Living with art: DACS and Tate transforming spaces and styles
John Moelwyn-Hughes from DACS' Licensing Team sheds light on our enduring collaboration with Tate, detailing how we've worked together over the years to make art accessible through a variety of licensed products.
Licensing enables artists and their representatives to have a say in how their work is used. Since 1984, DACS has worked closely with Tate to license artworks by DACS members for a wide range of products, underscoring our joint commitment to bring art into everyday life while protecting artists' rights and ensuring fair compensation for the use of their work.
Creating gallery-inspired accessories
Earlier this year, DACS supported Tate in their collaboration with Swatch to launch a series of seven collectible watches. This partnership highlights some of the world’s most iconic modern art, featuring works from Tate’s extensive collection, including those by DACS members Louise Bourgeois, Marc Chagall, Henri Matisse, Joan Miró, and Fernand Léger.
Licensing ensures the integrity of the artist’s work is respected and this can be seen in collaborations such as Tate’s Terry Frost jewellery collection, which draws inspiration from Frost's Moonship, (1972) featuring wooden jewellery that reflects his distinctive style.
To celebrate The Procession, Hew Locke’s Tate Britain Commission in the Duveens was a detail of the work adorns a metallic gold bag produced by Loqi. This collaboration, expertly licensed by DACS in close partnership with the artist's studio, ensures Locke’s work is faithfully reproduced, offering audiences a unique way to engage with his art beyond the gallery.
Bringing art to the home
One of Tate’s permanent collection highlights is Roy Lichtenstein's Whaam! (1963). DACS worked with Tate on a merchandise range including cushion covers and t-shirts, bringing Lichtenstein's pop art to everyday products with authenticity and care.
For the major retrospective of Patrick Caulfield work in 2013, DACS licensed Caulfield’s colourful Pottery, 1969 for a collection of porcelain plates and mugs highlighting the artists distinctive style of simple black outlines and strong colours.
To coincide with the exhibition Expressionists: Kandinsky, Münter and The Blue Rider, at Tate Modern, DACS worked with Tate to licence a range of merchandise including prints, wash bags and sketchbooks by the iconic German expressionist artist Gabriele Münter
Exploring art through print
Tate Publishing, produces detailed exhibition catalogues that document and celebrate some of Tate's most memorable shows.
For the seminal exhibition Women in Revolt, DACS licensed the works of Bobby Baker, Sonia Boyce, Sutapa Biswas, Joy Gregory, Zarina Bhimji and many more for the exhibition catalogue. On behalf of the artists, DACS ensured their works visions were faithfully represented and respected.
The exhibition catalogue for Tate’s exhibition Life Between Islands traces the connection between Britain and the Caribbean in the visual arts from the 1950s to today, a social and cultural history more often told through literature or popular music. DACS licensed Armet Francis, Sonia Boyce, Pogus Caesar, Hurvin Anderson, Alberta Whittle and many more for the publication, ensuring that the artists were satisfied with how their work was presented and celebrated.
The Significance of Licensing
DACS and Tate make art more accessible as part of everyday life. Through creative collaborations with a variety of licensed products, DACS helps protect the rights of the artist and estate, while allowing people to experience art in new and engaging ways.
