A little post I posted on the Katsucon Forum about the Artist Alley rules.

Dear Katsucon Artist Alley


I represent the group, Plastic Candy.
We have a question to the reasons why we were rejected from the Katsucon Artist table.

l Selling or reselling commercial merchandise is prohibited within the Artist Alley. Artists cannot sell or resell materials that can be bought in the Dealers room or in a store.

All the items we sell are HAND CRAFTED, and are not purchased through retails or any other means.

l  Artist Alley is intended for amateur artists working in a print/paper medium. It is also intended for artists who make 3D renditions of their own art or 3D renditions of licensed Anime characters. In that spirit, artists are required to use 75% or more of their table space for such art.

It is said that the AA is also a place for hand crated 3D renditions of their arts. I believe my items are not in violation of these rules.

Cat ears= pattern drafted / made with hands by Plastic Candy
Lolita bands= designed / made by Plastic Candy
Gothic and Cyber Punk accessories = sculpted shapes such as stars, buttons and others on pins, hand made by Plastic Candy
Hair clips= sculpted shapes on clips hand made by Plastic Candy
Key chains= key chains with shapes such as stars and anime characters in plush form, hand made by Plastic Candy
Earrings= earrings designed in Fruits Fashion, made by Plastic Candy.
Plushes= dolls of anime characters and original characters hand made by Plastic Candy
Doll outfits= Suited for BJDs, designed by Plastic Candy, and hand made by Plastic Candy
These items are the arts of Plastic Candy in a 3D form.
Also,
Portraits=Instant portraits drawn for buyers in Anime style, drawn by Plastic Candy
I strongly believe that the portraits are an original item in 2D paper/print medium.

If you would like pictures of them, we would gladly take them for you, even a progress picture to prove that these items are HAND crafted by us.

l Artists may not solely display and sell fan art. It is strongly suggested that fan art should not make up more than 25% of your table space. Fan art prints should be kept to 20 copies or less.

I believe items such as cat ears, Lolita bands, gothic Lolita bands, doll outfits and portraits are NOT a fan art in any category. They alone would make up the table up with more than 75% of the surface.

l Buttons, pins, hats, or t-shirts bearing the likeness of a licensed character are not allowed. Any such items bearing the artist’s original material are permitted.

Our pins, (hair pins) are not character pins. They are Fruit Styled items that contain shapes such as stars, flowers, and buttons. These pins would be our fashion portfolio type items.

l There can be no public display of sexually explicit or suggestive material without the proper checking of ID. If you are going to show adult material you MUST make sure the viewer shows proof of being 18+. This is solely the responsibility of the artist to do so, and as such, the artist will be held fully responsible for any failings to do so.

None of our items are 18+. Our items are accessories, 3D rendition of craft arts, and 2D images that would include portraits and our portfolios.
l Bootleg or knockoff items are prohibited. This includes, but is not limited to: CDs, DVDs, videos, posters, idol cards, and any unlicensed reproductions of any products actually released by an American company.

None of our items are bootlegs, or knock offs. If they were, they would be under the violation of the Japanese company copyrights, not the American company copyrights. In my understanding, Japanese copyrights do not affect items in America, unless they were copy righted by an American company.
In the Katsucon Artist Alley Rules, it is said that the AA is intended for artists who works in print/paper medium. However, it also says, "It is also intended for artists who make 3D renditions of their own art or 3D renditions of licensed Anime characters"
I have learned that Chii ears, from the anime Chobits, have also been banned. However, wouldn't the Chobits ear go under "3D renditions of licensed Anime characters”?
Although the Cosplay Chii ears were copyrighted by Cospa, it has not been done the same in the United States in my knowledge. Therefore, how would the artists be under the violation of the copyrights law if it weren’t copyrighted in the United States in the first place?
Also it is hard to find the reasoning to why cat ears at Katsucon Artist tables were banned. Unless the ears were copy righted, which I would find hard to do, since that would leave openings for people to copy right human body parts, I do not see the reason why cat ears should not be sold at the Katsucon table. Although they may seem similar, each artist’s rendition of these ears is very different. Every one of us drafts our own pattern to these ears with great effort. It seems bit insulting if the AA staffs saw them as the same, which would implicate that the AA staff does not understand the creativity that exists among arts, whether it be 3D or 2D arts.

l Copyright infringement laws are to be followed within the Artist Alley. It is the artist’s responsibility to make sure that their art does not violate copyright and must be able to prove it, if challenged.

I believe this part makes it hard for the artists such as us to understand what kind of items does not violate copyrights.
In the former statement, "3D renditions of licensed Anime characters" were allowed as long as they only made up 25% of the table. However, the term, license, seems to be too loosely defined here. By license, do you mean items licensed only in America?
How could the artists fill up 25% of their table with fan arts fan made anime character items if there is rule that prevents the artists to create copyrighted characters? This would rule out popular animation and game series for the artists, making the sales very difficult.

Art does not only mean inks and pencils. Art can be termed in different fields; quilting is an art, sculpting is an art, and even throwing a bucket of paint on a wall is considered an art. So why can’t handcraft and jewelry craft be considered as an art?

I respect the Katsucon most sincerely. However, I found some of the AA rules hard to understand, and I do not think that the Katsucon staffs gave enough information to why Plastic Candy table was rejected. However, Katsucon has every right to reject our request, and we completely respect your choice.
Thank you so much for putting this con together.
Have a happy holiday, and we wish to hear back from you soon.

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I really have NO idea what they are trying to do by banning all hair accessories at Artist Allley tables...
Some sellers JUST sell cosplay hair products, such as cat ears..
I'm not demanding this, but it would've been nice if Katsucon gave a reason to WHY they are banning all hair accessories goods...
this would mean
NO chii ears
NO cat ears
NO animal ears whatsoever
NO lolita bands
NOTHING thats gonna sit on your head.
Please speak out at the Katsu forum to show your opinion on this matter.
Thank you.

http://forums.katsucon.org/viewtopic.php?t=1485