Resources

Norwegian Organisation for Visual Communication

Grafill Website and resource page for contracts, information, news updates and a portfolio for Grafill´s members. www.grafill.no Address: Skovveien 20 (entrance in President Harbitz gate) 0257 Oslo Norway T: 0047 22 12 82 00 F: 0047 22 12 82 01 E: grafill@grafill.no Visuelt Annual event in Oslo, two days seminar for all the diciplines within Visual Communication.

The speakers are from all over the world. www.visuelt.org

Grafill – Norwegian Organisation for Visual Communication, is an organisation for everyone working – or studying to work within visual communication.

The organisation has 1400 professional members and students in the areas of graphic design, illustration, animation, cartoons and interactive design.

Grafill aims to look after the member’s professional, economical, juridical and social interests as well as to raise the quality of our professions and their ethical values as well as strengthen the education in these professions.

Grafill arranges the annual competition «The most beautiful books of the Year», the annual series of events called «Billedlig Talt» which focuses on picture books and illustrated books for children and adults, the Magazine «SNITT» which is Norway’s most important magazine for Visual Communication, and «Visuelt», being the largest yearly event within Visual Communication in the Nordic Countries.

AMG – authorized member of Grafill – is a protected title that shows high professionality in visual communication.

Grafill consists of the administration in Oslo, nine local branches, five groups representing various kinds of professions within the organisation – these arrange various events, exhibitions and competitions, separately or together.

The chairman of the Grafill Board is Wanda Grimsgaard, and Martin Biehl is the manager at the Grafill Office.

Designbasen Website and portfolio page for Norwegian designers and illustrators showing a wide range of work (eg. furniture, interior and graphic design companies) for businesses using design and illustration. www.designbasen.no

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How to Commission Illustration

Commissioning illustration is very straightforward. Although it is understood that the art-buying practice may vary from business to business. Good communication between the illustrator and client is encouraged at all times.

Contacting the Illustrator • Availability. How busy is the illustrator – are they free to take on a new commission? Illustrators can sometimes re-arrange their schedule to accommodate a new job.

• Outline your time scale together with a few details of the job. Depending on the nature of the commission the illustrator will probably want to discuss uses and fees before making a commitment.

• Is there a particular reason for contacting this illustrator?

If your call is based on seeing a particular promotion let the illustrator know what you’ve seen as it will give them a better understanding of exactly what it is you’re looking for.

Describing the illustration required • Mechanical information such as the likely printed size, whether in colour/ mono, space for typography etc. will all be required by the illustrator.

• If relevant, be specific about the means of execution if an illustrator works in a variety of styles.

• In terms of content, is a specific visual image required? If so this should be communicated as accurately as possible to the illustrator so there can little or no room for misinterpretation. Visual material you can supply will also help.

• Is the brief open to the illustrator’s interpretation?

Many illustrators prefer an open brief as it enables them to work more creatively; however frustration can set in if proposed sketches are repeatedly rejected. Be sure to outline any and all restrictions at the outset. If a sketch is rejected ensure you communicate to the illustrator the reasons for the rejection together with any suggestions for a remedy.

The illustrator may reasonably expect additional payment if extra rounds of sketches are requested above and beyond what was originally briefed.

• State the deadline for finished artwork and delivery of roughs.

Also provide an indication of the time needed for sketch approval.

Days spent waiting for approval on a drawing can seriously eat into the time set aside for execution of finished artwork.

Requesting a Portfolio • Consider how necessary a physical portfolio request is to your particular job. Most illustrators work can be viewed online, with samples available via e-mail. Re-arranging portfolios and getting them delivered can often be a time consuming and expensive procedure. Although illustrators will usually be happy to oblige, it helps considerably to understand how important this may be to any particular job.

• Give an outline of the job which has generated the portfolio request.

The illustrator may well want to ‘slant’ their portfolio contents to suit the job concerned.

• Let the illustrator know if their portfolio is being called in as part of a pitch or as an individual request.

• Be prepared to return the portfolio to the illustrator. It is reasonable to expect that the client bears the cost and responsibility for the return.

Requesting a Meeting • Consider the purpose of any proposed meeting with an illustrator and bear in mind that it could easily take a day out of the artist’s working week.

Briefs, portfolio samples and visual material can usually be more efficiently communicated via e-mail.

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• In arranging a meeting between artist and client ensure the illustrator is briefed as to what will be expected of their presence i.e. presenting portfolio, talking about ideas etc.

• A client should inform the illustrator of a cancelled meeting in good time.

• If more than one meeting is a requirement of the job then these times may reasonably be charged by the illustrator as added expenses.

Asking for a Quote • As illustration is costed out according to it’s usage the illustrator will need details of how and where the finished piece is to be used, and over what period of time that work is to be used, in order to arrive at a price.

• If you have a specified budget it saves a lot of time and energy if this communicated up front. Please do not offer the illustrator less than your budget allows. The very real deterioration in fees is making illustration an increasingly difficult profession to sustain.

• Do not expect an immediate quote from an illustrator for a proposed job.

Commissions can often be quite complex and the artist needs some time to consider the various aspects.

• Everything is negotiable. If a quote exceeds your budget get back in touch with the chosen illustrator and see what flexibility exists in the licensing arrangements.

Documentation • It is in the interests of both client and illustrator that proper documentation exists for commissioned works. Grafill offers a range of contracts on their website www.grafill.no.

• Copyright is a very valuable commodity. It affords the owner (the illustrator) the exclusive right to reproduce an image in any way throughout the world for the period of copyright i.e. 70 years.

Clearly a client commissioning does not require such wide-ranging rights and would not want to pay the appropriate usage fee.

• Please avoid asking illustrators to sign a contract which assigns copyright or ‘all rights’ to the client without first agreeing a price for such uses.

• Licence: The illustrator keeps the copyright and grants the client a licence appropriate to the commission. The licence would state the use, territory and time period and be exclusive to the client for the specified time.

The Job is Cancelled • Any envisaged problems over the style or content of artwork should be aired as soon as possible.

• If a commission is cancelled through no fault of the illustrator, the following cancellation fees are broadly accepted as industry standard.

- 25% of the agreed fee if the commission is cancelled before delivery of roughs.

- 50% of the agreed fee if the commission is cancelled at rough stage.

- 100% of the agreed fee if the commission is cancelled on the delivery of artwork.

The Finished Artwork • These days finished artwork can de delivered in a myriad of ways. Pass on your preferred method of delivery to the illustrator and confirm receipt with a simple e-mail/phone call.

• If alterations are required the illustrator may charge a reasonable fee for significant changes which were not in the original brief.

• Unless otherwise agreed the original artwork belongs to the artist. Please ensure you return it safely.

Based on The Association of Illustrators guidance for members and clients.

COPYRIGHT Åndsverkloven

MORAL RIGHTS

Copyright is an area which is governed by the Norwegian Law, in Norway called «Lov om opphavsrett til åndsverk m.v. (åndsverkloven)».

These are rights in addition to your economic right of copyright and your right of owning your illustration.

When you create a collage, painting, drawing, diagram, map, chart, plan, engraving, etching, lithograph, woodcut or similar work, you have created an artistic work and that is protected by copyright, provided that your illustrations fall into any one of these categories. You, as creator of that illustration, own the copyright which subsists in it. There is one exception to this general rule. If you are an employee and your job requires you to create illustrations, then usually your employer will own the copyright in these works. There are no registration requirements. There is no requirement to use the sign © but it will help the public to realise that your illustration is protected by copyright.

You have a right to be identified as author of your illustration. This right must be asserted in writing and should be included on any copyright, assignment or licence to reproduce or other written contract.

If you own copyright, you are the only person who has the right to make copies of your illustrations. If someone else makes a copy without your permission, they are infringing your copyright.

You can give permission to individuals or companies to reproduce your illustration which is known commonly in the illustration trade as granting a licence. Your license should be in writing and should set out the use that can be made of your illustration and any restriction you wish to place on the use. You can grant licences for different uses.

You have a right to object to derogatory treatment of your illustration.

This means you have a right to object if your illustration has been adapted, altered, added to or deleted from. You may be able to rely on this right if you are unhappy about the colour reproduction of your illustration or, if perhaps, it has been cropped in a way which distorts it.

You have a right not to be falsely attributed to another person’s art.

It is not possible to pass on your moral rights by way of assignment or licence but they can be waived, ie. given up. Check any written contract carefully to ensure that your client is not asking you to waive your moral rights.

Based on the British The Association of Illustrators (www.theaoi.com) advice and guide for illustrator members and their clients internationally.

You can effectively sell your copyright, which means that you have no further right of reproduction in your work. This is known as an assignment but will only be effective if you put it in writing.

If your illustration is reproduced without your permission, you are entitled to damages; perhaps an injunction to stop the infringement and on occasion the infringing copies delivered to you.

Your copyright in your illustration is an economic right. It is different from ownership of the illustration itself. You may still grant a licence or give an assignment of copyright in your illustration whilst owning the original piece.

Likewise, you may sell the original illustration without giving permission for it to be reproduced.

Based on the British The Association of Illustrators (www.theaoi.com) written explanation of the Copyright Law.

Norwegian Resources Contracts: Grafill has developed a range of standard contracts between Norwegian commissioners and illustrators.

You can find contracts for downloads, under «Kontrakter»: www.grafill.no Norwegian Copyright Law: The Law of Copyright «Lov om opphavsrett til åndsverk (åndsverkloven)» Is the central law of Norwegian copyright and ownership to a piece of art.

The law is published on Grafill´s pages in the Norwegian Language.

The contract between Grafill and the Publishing Houses: «Rammeavtalen» was set up as a guide for conduct between illustrators and publishing houses. The whole contract can be read at Grafill´s pages.

More questions?

Contact Grafill’s administration for more questions about contract agreements, ethical guidelines and copyright law.

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