AOI

The AOI was established in 1973 to advance and protect illustrator’s rights and encourage professional standards. The AOI is a non-profit making trade association dedicated to its members’ professional interests and the promotion of illustration.

Members consist primarily of freelance illustrators as well as agents, clients, students and lecturers. The AOI is run by an administrative staff responsible to a volunteer Council of Management.

Campaigning
As the only body to represent illustrators and campaign for their rights in the UK, the AOI has successfully increased the standing of illustration as a profession and improved the commercial and ethical conditions of employment for illustrators. The AOI is a member of the British Copyright Council (BCC) and Creators Rights Alliance (CRA). It helped to establish the secondary rights arm of the Designers and Artists Copyright Society, (DACS), the UK visual arts collecting society.

Responsible for establishing the rights of illustrators to retain ownership of their artwork, the AOI aims to expose and resist rights abuses and exploitative practices within the industry whenever they occur. On behalf of its members, and with their continued support, the AOI can attempt things that it would be difficult or impossible individually. As part of the BCC, for example, the AOI is able to lobby parliament for changes in UK law, aligning it more closely with those of our European neighbours, widely seen as more creator friendly. AOI have produced a Code of Practice for member agents to promote good practice within the illustration industry, and inform illustrators what should be expected from an agent.

The Pro-Action committee was established in 2006 by the AOI and the Society of Artists Agents to deal with the problems facing illustrators in today’s market place. These include fee erosion, copyright grabs and the issuing of retrospective contracts from commissioners which are becoming increasingly prevalant.

The European Illustrators Forum (EIF), a group of 20 associations (at 2008), was formed to safeguard illustrators' rights and to assist the continental promotion of illustration through the co-ordinated action of member associations on a local level, and with a series of common initiatives on an international level. AOI was a founding member of EIF