We operate a service for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists (please email: anthony@aboriginalartists.com.au for an up-dated list of artists under licence) to create income from reproduction of works of art.

Typically you have located a painting in a book or catalogue on Aboriginal art (e.g. © the artist licensed by Aboriginal Artists Agency). Or you may be setting up a project using Aboriginal art as part of a trade promotion and will check with us to see if we have an agreement to clear copyright.

We set the rates that would apply to the use proposed (e.g. minimum $110 inc GST or $100 if GST is not applicable) and provide you with a (tax) invoice, and upon payment, a formal licence. This process protects you, the user, by clearly setting out the number of copies and/or length of time may which apply to the use. We are able to provide this service because over 300 individual artists have chosen to licence us to control their copyright.

From you, we need a list of the artists involved and the titles of the works and a clear account of the use you propose (e.g. reproduction as a postcard x 10,000, reproduction within a scholarly text with a print-run of 1000, the cover of a book with a print-run of 10,000, a calendar x 20 000 etc).

In the first instance do not hesitate to call us on 0417 230 464 to discuss your proposal; often we can resolve by phone the question of the fee level and the documentation required so that there may be no delay in knowing where you stand. The formalities may then be completed without holding up your project unnecessarily.

Our aim is to increase the income of artists who have signed with us by permitting suitable reproductions of their work in any medium – print, digital uses, film and video, theatre and architecture.

Some of our biggest projects involve working with architects for major public buildings. The forecourt mosaic in front of the Parliament House Canberra and the painting in the Opera Theatre foyer of the Sydney Opera House are examples of work by Michael Jagamarra Nelson on this scale.

Contact: Anthony Wallis M: 0417 230 464

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Aboriginal Artists Agency Limited is a non-profit organization. It was established in 1976 by the Australian Government through the Australian Council for the Arts and subsidised until 1986. Since then it has operated independent of any funding source; commissions of between 15-25% generate sufficient income for the company to be self-sustaining.