Licensing Art for Decorative Ceramic Plates and Tabletop Products

Although there are many manufacturers that produce ceramic ware including plates and other tabletop products, not that many license art for them. Many do not use art on their products but some use in-house illustrators or purchase the art outright. Also some do license art by well-known brands such as Disney characters, and designer Tracy Porter. And, a few manufacturers like Enesco and Demdaco use a variety of materials including ceramics to create product collections for some of their artist brands. Note: There are many e-stores including Etsy that print-on-demand decorative ceramic plates but do not normally license art for them.

When searching the Internet for decorative ceramic plates and tabletop products, I found a few manufacturers that used a variety of art styles on their products. That indicates they probably license the art instead of using in-house illustrators. And, when artists names are mentioned on the manufacturer website, the art is most likely licensed. Note: Not all manufacturers have open websites that allow anyone to see their products. A person needs to be a retailer to get the password to view product catalogs. Thus, in many cases I had to rely on the e-stores of amazon.com, JC Penny's, Bed Bath & Beyond, etc. to see the different manufacturer products.

Below are a few manufacturers that I know license art and a few I “think” license art. If you know other ceramic manufacturers that license art, please share with the rest of us by posting a comment to this article. Thanks!

• Ashdene
The name of this manufacturer is shared by artist Patrizia Vitrano.

Products: Australian manufacturer of decorated coordinated homeware including ceramic tableware.

Information:
1. Licenses art.
2. Products on manufacturer website are visible to the public.
3. No direct contact information is on their website but I suggest contacting their USA & Canada distributor that is listed on "contact us".

• Certified International Corporation
Products: ceramic and melamine tabletop dinnerware and accessories 

Information:
1. Licenses art collections.
2. Products on the website are visible to the public.
3. Do not submit your art collections unless they are a good fit for the manufacturer’s product lines. Look at their Digital Catalog to see the type of themes and collections they license.
4. Call customer service for contact information to submit art collections.

• One Hundred 80 Degrees
Products: giftware - both traditional and contemporary Christmas, Halloween, harvest, birthday, and everyday products

Information:
1. Product catalog on the website is only available for retailers.
2. View more products on The Weed Patch Store.
3. You need to ask the manufacturer if they license art. If they do, ask for contact information, submission guidelines, and the password to view products.

• Park Designs
Products: coordinating textiles, ceramics and giftware from country to classic traditional and from everyday to holiday

Information:
1. Some products on the website are visible to the public.
2. You need to ask the manufacturer if they license art. If they do, ask for contact information, submission guidelines, and for the password to view all the products.

• Sango
The name of this manufacturer is shared by artist Patrizia Vitrano.

Products: Indonesian ceramics tableware manufacturer that uses art from American and European designers.

Information:
1. Licenses art.
2. Products on the website are visible to the public.
3. Contact manufacturer for submission contact information and guidelines.  Contact information is under customer outlet.

• Wild Wings
Products: art prints, various room decor and accents, decorative ceramic tabletop and decorative plates

Information:
1. Licenses fine art images.
2. Products on the website are visible to the public.
3. Click HERE for art submission specifications

Read more articles about the different industries that license art (calendars, greeting cards, flags, jig-saw puzzles, etc.) by going to Topics on the side bar and click on Manufacturers.

Your comments are welcome. Click on the comments section (below) to write your comment. Note: Some people have a problem in leaving a comment. The most successful method is to comment as Name/URL (your name and website or blog with a "complete" URL address).