Licensing Guide

Congratulations on becoming a licensee of Creative Action Network art. Your work will help us extend the reach of our cause partners and artists by getting their work in front of new audiences. Below are some guidelines that outline how to make this relationship as beneficial as possible for all parties. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to drop us a line at christina@creativeaction.network!

Overview



Creative Action Network Brand

Overview

  • One Sentence: Creative Action Network is the marketplace for social impact art & design, supporting artists & causes with every purchase. 
  • One Paragraph: Creative Action Network (CAN) is a global community of artists and advocates making art with purpose. Since 2008, CAN has been working with the nation’s premier change making organizations to harness creativity for good. CAN runs crowdsources social impact art, inviting anyone and everyone to contribute their own original, meaningful designs. Those designs are sold as apparel, decor, and more online and through major retailers, supporting independent artists and great causes with every purchase.

How to Credit Artists

  • Artists should be credited whenever possible.
  • Format: [Design Title] by [Artist Name] for Creative Action Network.

How to Credit Cause Giveback

  • Artists receive 10% of all revenue
  • Cause partners (see above) receive 1% of all revenue (from their campaign specifically)
  • Commercial Co-Venture laws require the above information to be communicated as follows: "Creative Action Network is proud to support [Non-Profit Partner Name]."

Image Grid


Social Media Links


Press


Product Design

How to Access Art Files 

  • All of our art files are stored on Dropbox and require a Dropbox account to access.
  • Each campaign has it's own folder that includes that various file types available. 
  • You can download files from the Dropbox folder to local storage but you should be aware that we will always be adding more files and Dropbox will be the most up-to-date source available.
  • For access, please send an email to max@thecreativeactionnetwork.com with a list of emails that you would like to give access to. You are welcome to have more than one team member connected.

How to Use the Art

  • All of our designs are available as flat images (generally .jpgs).
  • Some of our designs are available as transparent or layered files (either transparent .png's, layered .psd's or .ai files). We generally have more layered files for our newer designs (the higher the ID number, the newer the design).
  • We can request layered files for any design from our artists and can generally fulfill those requests in under a week. To request a layered file please email max@thecreativeactionnetwork.com with the design titles and ID numbers you would like.
  • We have a lot of license to change or alter designs to fit the various sizes and aspect ratios of different products (for example, you can remove the "See America" text from See America art).
  • We like to think about the question "How can we extend the intention of the print design into the form of a new product?" This give us a lot of license to change, crop or replace elements with the goal of making a successful product.
  • If you're unsure, please feel free to share specific examples or questions with max@thecreativeactionnetwork.com.

  • Creative Action Network ®

Packaging+Brand Usage Examples

  • Hang tags should include CAN Logo, Campaign Name, Campaign Overview, Partner Description and CAN URL. See Example below:
  • Product descriptions should include CAN Name, Campaign Name and Description, Partner Name and Description, and Artist Name. See Example below:

Approval Process

  • All new product concepts should be sent to christina@thecreativeactionnetwork.com for feedback or approval. You will generally hear back within 24 hours.
  • The first round of concepts should be presented digitally for feedback and approval.
  • Physical Pre-Production samples must be sent for all new products.

Sending Samples

  • All physical samples should be sent to the following address:
  • Christina Bang, 4420 Hobbs Dr., La Canada, CA 91011


    Campaign and Art Information

    We run crowdsourced campaigns, each of which benefit a different cause. Campaigns are generally open-ended and are open to anyone interested in contributing. Below are listed our campaigns that are available for license and the non-profit partner associated with each.

    1200 Posters

    • Ecommerce Collection Page
    • Overview: 1200 Posters was one of Creative Action Network's first campaigns, originally inviting 12 up-and-coming artists to illustrate 1 of 12 quotes about community, conversation and collaboration from Margaret Wheatley's text "Turning to One Another".
    • Partner: None.
    • Design Metadata Spreadsheet

    A More Perfect Union

    • Ecommerce Collection Page
    • Overview: A More Perfect Union is a collection of designs celebrating our slightly more perfect union following the United States Supreme Court affirming the constitutional right of all couples to get married in all 50 states.
    • Partner: Proceeds support Courage Campaign, an online community powered by more than one million members, instrumental in the fight for marriage equality.
    •  (Click to download)
    • Design Metadata Spreadsheet

    Demand Zero

    Design for Obama

    Green New Deal

    • Ecommerce Collection Page
    • Overview: While the Green New Deal is still in its infancy, at CAN we’ve taken up the charge of helping the public understand and imagine what could be possible with this exciting new set of policies -- just as the artists of the original New Deal helped to inform and advocate for those innovative programs over 80 years ago.
    • Partner: Proceeds support Sunrise Movement, a growing army of young people dedicate to making climate change an urgent priority across America, ending the corrupting influence of fossil fuel executives on our politics, and electing leaders who stand up for the health and well-being of all people.
    • Design Metadata Spreadsheet

    Join the Pack

    • Ecommerce Collection Page
    • Overview: Join the Pack is a collection of designs celebrating the wolf by portraying its wildness, mystery and general bad-assness. We hope to combat fear and misunderstanding of wolves by celebrating the species and building a greater appreciation for the iconic creatures.
    • Partner: Proceeds support Earthjustice, using the power of law to defend our right to a healthy environment.
    •  (Click to Download)
    • Design Metadata Spreadsheet

    Recovering the Classics

    • Ecommerce Collection Page
    • Overview: Recovering the Classics is a collection of new covers for 100 of the greatest works of fiction in the public domain. Together we can help to keep these classics fresh, modern, and accessible to new generations of readers.
    • Partner: None.
    • Design Metadata Spreadsheet

    See America

    Space Horizons

    • Ecommerce Collection Page
    • Overview: Space Horizons is a new collection of mission patch designs for your favorite past, present and future missions to help engage a new generation in the excitement of extending humanity’s reach beyond Earth.
    • Partner: Proceeds support Space Horizons, an innovative non profit that promotes interest in STEM education for minority and female students in underserved communities.
    •  (Click to Download)
    • Design Metadata Spreadsheet

    The Gun Show

    • Ecommerce Collection Page
    • Overview: The Gun Show is a collection of posters that promote gun safety. Artists from around the world have contributed posters to join the national conversation about guns, and support the ongoing efforts to reduce violence.
    • Partner: None.
    • Design Metadata Spreadsheet

    Vote Libraries

    • Ecommerce Collection Page
    • Overview: Vote Libraries is a collection of designs depicting the changing way that libraries serve communities and the importance of supporting them with your vote. Since the beginning of our country, libraries are an integral part in the life of towns and cities.
    • Partner: Proceeds support EveryLibrary, the first and only national organization dedicated exclusively to political action at a local level to create, renew, and protect public funding for libraries of all types.
    • (Click to Download)
    • Design Metadata Spreadsheet

    We Can Do It!

    • Ecommerce Collection Page
    • Overview: We Can Do It! is a collection of designs inspired by the iconic “We Can Do It” poster of the 1940's to celebrate modern-day workers (women and men alike) who keep the country running and rarely receive the recognition they deserve.
    • Partner: Proceeds support Ultraviolet, a powerful and rapidly growing community of people from all walks of life mobilized to fight sexism and expand women's rights.
    •  (Click to Download)
    • Design Metadata Spreadsheet

    We Were Strangers Too

    What Makes America Great