Thanks to the dawn of the internet, art in America has experienced a renaissance of sorts, with new, talented and important young and aspiring artists making a name for themselves every month and with the long-suffering art galleries finally getting a taste of commercial success. The internet has made it easier for art connoisseurs and dealers to peruse an endless number of new paintings and check out the latest masterpieces that are on sale without traveling half-way across the globe like they used to. Today, an art collector can attend as many as three or four art auctions a day without leaving the comfort of his bedroom. In the past, he would have to criss-cross America and Europe for a week or two before he could attend as many art auctions. There are now about a dozen websites dedicated to lucrative art auctions. These auction sites have impressive art listings and offer classic works of art worth millions of American dollars. Aside from the auctions, the website also have a listing of important art events and have informative content that narrate the history of the great artists of all time as well as their work. And, of course, there’s gallery after gallery of timeless and awe-inspiring paintings. These days, every art gallery worth its salt has to have its own website. This is the modern and easy way for them to reach out to art patrons around the world. And the internet has only boosted existing art galleries. Through the internet, there are now virtual online galleries, which are galleries that only exist on the web, with no physical structure as an equivalent. If the art galleries have been flourishing, it looks like the good fortune has spread to the artists as well. There are weekly announcement on the websites about successful sales by up and coming artists, complete with that all-important photo of the artist himself beaming broadly beside his cherished newly-sold painting and its new owner. Finally, with the arrival of the internet, artists now have a consistent, dependable source of income. Not only do they now have a showcase for their works, the artists are often commissioned by the galleries to do artworks for their regular theme art exhibits. Suddenly, art has become a viable commercial endeavor. |
