In 1998 Christine Bourron knew the style of original art she wanted to purchase and how much she was willing to spend, but going door-to-door to galleries to view a selection and make a purchase was a huge pain point. At the time there were 190,000 artists in the US, with only 4,600 registered galleries — meaning, only a select number of artists were even getting their pieces in front of potential buyers. The Internet provided the economics of a larger market and lower costs for these artists (many pay commissions of over 50% to galleries) — not to mention solving her pain point as a consumer. Bourron went on to build PaintingsDirect.com, and a slew of other online art sellers and re-sellers popped up thereafter.
Today, there are several new ways and places to buy art online. Here are a handful that caught our eyes:
TurningArt
TurningArt is based here in Cambridge, Mass. and was the true inspiration for this post. Fresh off from $750k in seed funding the end of May, the company allows you to rent and rotate artwork in your home or office. Along the way you earn credit towards the purchase of an original piece of art on the site. Subscription plans range from $9.99 a month (new art every 3 months) to $19.99 a month (art on-demand, anytime you want). The site allows you to choose a frame (black or gold), populate a queue of prints that fit said frame after browsing a sizable selection on the site, and then ships you new prints according to your plan. TurningArt will help you try different pieces of artwork before you actually fork out hundreds of dollars on an original. The company already has over 1,300 Likes on Facebook and 400 followers on Twitter @TurningArt. (Sidenote: their founder is on my softball team and is a serious power hitter.)
OverstockArt
OverstockArt.com features “real art by real artists” (yes, we also thought, as opposed to…?). The site claims to have the most comprehensive selection of original oil paintings and reproductions on the web, but stood out to us because of its rich media features. The site has a “view in a room” feature that allows you to upload a photo of your room to see what a painting will look like in its real setting — even allowing you to test out various painting sizes and frame color options. And they have an iPhone app for this feature, which makes testing out art online without seeing it in person even easier. The site was founded in 2002, and grew 270% from 2007 to 2010. It now sits on the INC 5,000 list — ranked 1,106 overall and 55 in the retail category. They have 2,700 fans on Facebook, a blog called ArtCorner.com with a focus on art and decor, and 4,200 Twitter followers.
It is worth noting that the company behind OverstockArt also recently launched ArtistBe.com, which aims to surface and help you find “the next great artists of our generation.”
GalleryDirect
GalleryDirect.com is bringing mass customization to the art industry, dubbing itself as offering “the finest quality artwork custom-tailored to your needs.” The site’s value proposition is all about service: offering low prices, simple shipping/easy returns, and custom sizing and framing. What really makes this site innovative is its “Canvas on Demand” feature, whereby you upload a photo you’d like made into a piece of art. Customize the painting size you would like, select the medium (from canvas or paper to even aluminum or wood), and then select your frame style of choice. Don’t have a photo in mind? Then browse the 10 million images in its vault you can turn into custom prints, or the 4,500 fine art images that you can reproduce into prints. The company has 2,600 Likes on Facebook, over 400 followers on Twitter, and keeps an edgy blog — one that was even featured in the MLB Fan Cave earlier this spring.
UGallery
UGallery.com is a “curated online gallery,” featuring affordable original art created by a select group of ~350 artists. The site was founded in 2006 by Arizona University business students who were on a mission to offer affordable art online created by emerging artists. The site seems to cater to a younger generation, each day featuring a daily original art deal at noon at highly discounted prices, and with the founders having embraced social marketing including a blog (“the hub for all things affordable art”) and Facebook and Twitter. They also have an email list of regular buyers, and are a top Google merchant if you wish to shop that way instead. Since the beginning of the year, these recent college graduates have been featured on CNN, MSN, The Economist, InStyle and US Weekly.
ArtSumo
Last on the list is ArtSumo, a daily art deal site founded earlier this year with the tagline, “discover the world, one painting a day.” The site has a social entrepreneurship focus, whereby the art is selected by the founder from artists in developing economies. The founder seems to be focusing more on the sourcing of art via enjoying some personal traveling than on the business at this point. That being said, the idea of a curated experience a la Gilt City / Jetsetter seems natural for the art industry, and particularly for the developing world — blending a mix of artist biographies, stories, imagery, etc. Keep your eye on the site in the event the founder gets home from his travels and is ready to rock n’ roll on the business.
