Pokémon Company loosens copyright grip, starts free-to-use-art program for schools, day care

08:16 cherishe 0 Comments

Over 100 illustrations allow kids, teachers, and children’s hospital staff to create smiles and curiosity with the beloved anime/video game characters.

Both the Pokémon Company and Pokémon video game publisher Nintendo have reputations for being pretty strict about the use of their intellectual property, which includes the likenesses of the beloved Pocket Monster species. But that doesn’t mean the Pokémon Company doesn’t have a generous side too, and that side is on full, heartwarming display in the new Pokémon Illustration Lab service.

Pokémon Illustration Lab is an educational initiative that allows elementary schools and children’s daycare centers to download and use illustrated Pokémon artwork, without any need to pay licensing fees or worry about copyright complaints. The service has launched with over 100 illustrations, which in turn fall into one of four categories.

First up are complete illustrations, which can be used for decorations or worksheet accents and feature seasonal options like Pikachu dressed up for Christmas, Halloween, and Hina Matsuri.


Kids who want to express their own creative capabilities will love the black-and-white coloring sheets…

…and even more thorough artists can draw entire worlds around these background-less character art sheets, which can also be used to make signs and notice papers.

▼ “Let’s wash our hands and gargle,” Pikachu gently reminds kids.

Finally, there’s a collection of completed posters, in which Pikachu and pals model good behavior such as putting books back on the shelf when you’re done reading them, cleaning up your toys after you finish playing, and giving people a friendly hello when you see each other.

Hospitals and public offices are also allowed to make use of Pokémon Illustration Lab’s collection, and some facilities have already started giving their interiors a little Poké-pizzazz.

▼ Dehydration is a serious health risk during Japan’s hot and humid summers, so Pikachu and Slowpoke suggest “On hot days, let’s make sure to drink water.”

There are still a few rules users have to abide by. The illustrations can’t be used for for-profit activities, for example, and while you can put them up all over the interior of a school, you can’t hang them on the outside of the building or use them in advertising. The service is also currently only being offered to schools and other facilities in Japan, though hopefully, much like with the custom-made Pokémon dress shirt line, the Pokémon Company is planning to eventually expand the Pokémon Illustration Lab to other countries as well.

Related: Pokémon Illustration Lab
Source: The Pokémon Company
Top image: The Pokémon Company
Insert images: The Pokémon Company (1, 2)
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