Playboy’s teaming with Blitzway for a limited edition collection of art figurines designed by global artists featuring iconic Playboy images like the “Bunny” is the latest example of corporate brands being licensed to artists for art work. At $160 a pop, the Playboy deal is more about marketing than profit.
“These deals promote artistic creation and give the brand a halo,” explains a marketer with Hasbro, whose own “hidden room” program licenses toy brands like Mr. Potato head to artists with aesthetically spectacular results.
Many of these deals also serve charitable causes, like Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity’s licensing of “Peter Pan” to Iron Gut Publishing for a limited edition art print.