Buying Art

Recently we were reading a blog and people were discussing the best place to find “good” art.  The responses generally included reputable galleries to juried outdoor expositions, and some even recommended searching for artist websites in order to buy directly from accomplished artists.  Our immediate thought was that these people need to know about TheArtGallerist.com.  TheArtGallerist.com sells the artwork of some of the best artists.  Their participating artists have been sourced from all of these places, in an effort to make buying fine art at affordable prices easy and enjoyable.    

Let’s face it, for some, galleries can be difficult to get to.  Not only that, they are expensive and can be intimidating to inexperienced buyers.  Outdoor juried expositions can be fun.  You can find a lot of very talented artists exhibiting their artwork at these shows.  They too can be hard to get to if you don’t live near a community that happens to sponsor one of these art “festivals”.  Then there is the weather, the crowds, and the fact that they happen only once a year.  Finally, I don’t know about you, but I have better things to do with my time than surfing the Internet to find artist websites.  Even if you go to a website that is dedicated to selling original artwork, you have to know what you are doing because the good art of some artists is mixed with the bad.  Additionally, there are just too many choices and remembering what you liked and where you saw it can be a challenge.

TheArtGallerist.com understands all of these things and has really taken the time to provide a unique and enjoyable experience for those looking to purchase fine art.  You get the experience of being in a fine art gallery, but with an unsurpassed variety of quality original artwork.   There are also “tools” available that make it easy for you to find just the right piece that fits your style and budget.  With separate galleries for professional, emerging, and student artists, you can easily find and buy art you can afford.  Artists need to apply to the website’s jury before they can participate, ensuring visitors access to only the best contemporary artists from across the country and around the world.

Once you have selected the exhibit that interests you, you can then choose a medium.  Choose from oil, acrylic or watercolor paintings, mixed media works, ceramics, sculpture, even artist prints, and then filter the artwork within that medium by artist, style, and/or subject matter.  Of course at any time, you can sort the artwork by price.  If you see something you like, just click “Add to My Wish List”.  That way, you can always get back to it, and to the artist who created it.

We believe the best feature of the website is its’ Guestbook which allows visitors to communicate directly with artists.  It is a combination of an artist guestbook at an art fair or exhibition, and an open house at a gallery.  Visitors can leave comments of appreciation for the artist’s work, ask about inspiration, new series releases, technique, etc.  It, along with the Artist Information section, provides visitors the chance to get to know the artist and their work as they make their purchase decision.

TheArtGallerist.com has sourced artists that exhibit in galleries and participate in the major juried art festivals.  Those that don’t yet soon will, as they are very talented Student artists that are developing their talents while they are working for greater recognition. 

We suggest you visit TheArtGallerist.com today and enjoy the unique experience we have created for you.

Buying Fine Art Online

We occasionally get people that want to know if we have a store or brick and mortar gallery that they can visit to actually see the artwork they want to purchase in person.  While I can definitely appreciate that nothing beats viewing a piece of artwork in person and up close, I think it is a bit funny that some people can’t yet grasp one of the Internets greatest strengths.  That is the Internet’s ability to link people to products from all over the world.  Because just about every business has a website now and because the search engines typically provide their results based upon a person’s geography, people tend to loose sight of this fact and often think of all Internet businesses in local terms. 

The assumption that we would happen to have a brick and mortar gallery that be within driving distance to each of you is extremely remote.  That is why the Internet is so fantastic, and a wonderful place to purchase fine art!  It not only exposes people that don’t have the ability to visit a fine art gallery access to the same to quality artwork, it also allows them to see more great artists in one place.  Artists, not just from all over the country, but from around the world! 

Skeptics say that you really can’t appreciate or understand what you are buying when you buy something over the Internet.  It is true that your depth perception, color, size, and other important criteria might not be exactly the same as it would be if you were seeing a piece in person.  This however should not stop potential buyers from purchasing even an expensive piece of art as long as the art website offers a purchase guarantee.

Customer Satisfaction Guarantees make purchasing fine art over the Internet risk free, and typically allow buyers to return the artwork they purchased for any reason as long as they do so within a specified period of time.  These guarantee periods range from seven to fourteen days, which is plenty of time for the buyer to check out the artists work and see it in the location or room for which is was intended. For example, at TheArtGallerist.com we have a 100% Customer Satisfaction Guarantee which provides the customer with a full refund of the purchase price as long as we are notified of their intent to return the artwork within 7 days.

The Internet now provides everyone with access to an entire world of wonderful and very talented artists.  In the not too distant past these artists had to struggle to gain recognition beyond the borders of their cities.  Today their only obstacle is, with so many artists and so much artwork to choose from, how do they get noticed?  That is where an online fine art gallery is most valuable, taking the time to study and evaluate submissions from around the world before deciding which artists they want to work with.

Fine Art as a Gift

When thinking of what to get someone special for the holidays or for a special occasion, one rarely thinks of artwork.  The reason is that most people know it can be one of those gifts that can easily backfire.  Buying something that you think someone will like can easily turn a momentous and joyful event into an embarrassing and awkward moment when you realize the person doesn’t like the painting you were sure would please them.

Fine art can still however be the one of the greatest and most memorable gifts you can give.  Just don’t make it memorable for all the wrong reasons.  You may think you know a person, their likes and dislikes, but art is a very personal thing.  What one person likes might be another’s nightmare. 

That is why the best solution is to give a Gift Certificate which allows the recipient to choose a piece that they truly like.  Additionally, it saves the recipient from having to dig it out and hang it back on the wall every time they think you are coming over.

Just think of what the gift of art can mean.  A piece of original fine art is the perfect gift for Christmas!  It can mark a special occasion like a birthday, wedding, or anniversary.  It can celebrate a milestone or special achievement like a graduation, a birth, promotion, or a new house.  It can also say “I love you”.  The thing that makes it so special is that the gift of art that you made possible will keep on giving!  With the ability to pick that special piece for a special place in their home or office, your loved one will think of you and remember that special time each time they look at the artwork that you made possible.  Many of us know this feeling when after many years we look at a painting we may have purchased when traveling.  It immediately sends us back to that exotic location or an exciting city, and the things we did, saw, etc. 

Fine art is one of those unique things that you can purchase that will not only last a life time, but that can  be passed from generation to generation.  No other thing that you may purchase with maybe the exception of expensive jewelry will last as long.  People will easily spend hundreds and perhaps a thousand dollars on an outfit, which after a few years is thread bare, out of style, and something that they don’t even feel good about donating to the Good Will.  The right piece of art will continue to give joy year after year.

For weddings as an example, with a gift certificate to TheArtGallerist.com the couple can purchase a piece of original fine art that will remind them of a shared experience, their backgrounds, or even their honeymoon.  It is true that it is right out there how much you spent on the gift when you give a gift certificate, but buying them something that you hope they will think costs more than it actually did is not the solution.  Let’s just keep in mind that the gift should be something that celebrates the happy couple, and does not have to break the bank.  After all, what good is a gift that may seem expensive, if the person has absolutely no use for it and it ends up in a closet, under the bed, or worse gets re-gifted?

Finally, your gift doesn’t have to be extravagant like in an amount to cover the most expensive painting or sculpture in the gallery.  Whatever the amount of your gift certificate, the recipient can either buy something beautiful and inexpensive, but yet is none the less meaningful.  Another option would be to save it until they can afford the piece they have put on their “Wish List”, a free service for members of our “Collectors Club”.

Meet the Artist Before You Buy

One of the things we are very proud of at TheArtGallerist.com is the Artist Guestbook feature we have built into our online fine art gallery.  We’ve talked about this before on this blog, but our “Artist Guestbook” feature allows potential buyers to interact directly with our participating artists.  Our artists are available to answer any question visitors might have, and to do so until they feel completely comfortable with the fine art they are interested in purchasing.  Even if someone is not immediately interested in purchasing a piece of fine art from us, they are still welcome to meet, leave comments for, or ask questions of any of our artists.

We have always felt strongly that visitors should have this ability.  Everyone loves to be complimented when someone believes they have done something extraordinary, but potential fine art buyers can also ask questions of the artist about a specific piece of art, the inspiration, techniques, achievements, etc.  While some of this information may be contained in the “artist information” sections of many art websites, it is this two-way Facebook like interaction that we always believed was missing. While this has proven valuable to some, we are not sure if everyone is actually aware that this feature exists.  We have attempted to make some design modifications to make it more visible, but we don’t see art lovers using it as much as we thought they would.  So the question I pose to all of you is…“If you were in the market for a piece of fine art and this ability to communicate with the artist was available to you, would you use it?

Click on either the Guestbook or Artist Info tab.

 

If you have been to TheArtGallerist.com website before, can you recall seeing the Artist Guestbook feature?  If not, it is directly behind the Artist Info section that appears on every artist’s page. To access it, all you have to do is click on the Guestbook tab.  Now granted, we do require the user to first register by providing their name and e-mail address, but that is all the information a user has to provide.  This information also allows the person to become a member of our “Collectors Club”.  Membership is free, and in addition to the exclusive ability to use the Guestbook feature, Club members also can receive a copy of our Quarterly e-Newsletter and to create and maintain an online “Wish List” of paintings or other original works of art that you would one day like to purchase. 

To summarize, here the two questions we would like you to answer.

1. Prior to reading this, were you aware of or did you see the “Artist Guestbook” feature on TheArtGallerist.com website?
2. If you were in the market for a piece of fine art and the ability to communicate with the artist was available to you, would you use it?

 

We would love to hear your ideas on what you think might make TheArtGallerist.com Guestbook feature more attractive and enticing for people to use.  Please leave your comments or suggestions as a posted response to this blog entry.  Thank you in advance for your valuable input and suggestions.  We are really interested in learning what you think.