Artaissance - Online Art Buying Made Easy

Shopping for artwork to decorate the walls of your home can be challenging. Clients often express their frustrations to me with regards to the difficulty they have encountered while shopping for artwork - some of the most common questions are:

• How do I know my art style?
• What colors work with my current decor?
• How do I know what size art I need for a specific area?

Once those questions are answered the next question is: ” Where can I buy affordable art - one that’s high quality (& rather unique) but without the pain inducing prices?” Followed by: “I bought the art pieces I love, now I need to get them framed - who do you recommend?”.

In the past, I would recommend visiting art galleries, local artists’ studios, and home decor shops which meant lots of leg work for both my clients and me. Not to mention the inevitable situation that would arise at the end of the artwork “discovery shopping” expedition - the dreaded “I know we’ve seen nearly two dozen pieces but for the life of me they’ve all sort of blended together in my head…”. Taking digital photos has helped in some situations but not all galleries or shops allow photography.

Personally, I enjoy the ease and convenience of shopping online and I recommend it to my clients. I help them buy everything from picture frames to chandeliers with a click of a mouse from the comfort of their homes. The only product I’ve steered my clients away from purchasing online has been artwork for the following two reasons:

1. Poor Quality - what you see isn’t always what you get
2. Lack of unique and/or inspiring art

Artaissance, an online art gallery, changed my view of buying art online. Last month, I had the pleasure of reviewing their website artaissance.com.

Artaissance.com is a well-designed and easy to navigate website. You can search for artwork by:

• Artist: Artaissance has over 100 talented up and coming and established artists’ works in their gallery.
• Preferred Color: Makes decorating with artwork a breeze.
• Room Setting: Recommended artwork for every room in your home.
• Your Interests: Contemporary, Americana, Global, and more.
• Art Orientation: Horizontal, Vertical or Square.
• Companion Pieces

Artaissance, in essence has created a website that helps guide you every step of the way - think of artaissance.com as your very own personal art shopper.

The Artaissance “My Art Gallery”, is another useful shopping tool. Using your email address, you can sign up for your own art gallery; a portfolio of sorts where you can add your favorite artwork, refer to it at a later date, and even share your art discoveries with friends and family.

Samples of your favorite art work are also available. You can order 5.5 inch X 8.5 inch paper samples (feels like a high quality water color paper) or canvas samples (high quality also) for $6.00. I love the idea of samples (which depicts the true color something you simply cannot get from a printout) since you can add them to your design portfolio and refer to them when your are shopping for other decor, accessories and furnishings.

For this review, I selected and ordered a 16 inch X 22 3/16 inch beautiful print (Shown on left) called “Swirl of Color” by artist Marta Wiley.

Artaissance.com., provides you with the option to have the print delivered to your home or to one of their many art dealer/partners. I chose to have the print shipped to an authorized Artaissance partner: House of Frames in Merritt Island, Florida. I wanted to explore the entire process of shopping, finding the perfect art piece, buying it online and then having it framed.

Within two weeks I received a call from Dionne Casey, the proprietor of House of Frames. My print was ready for pickup.

At the frame shop, Dionne rolled out the print and I was pleasantly surprised. The color pigment was intense, vibrant and rich. Touching the paper I immediately thought of water color paper - it felt expensive. This was no ordinary giclee - this piece looked like a true water color. Dionne, explained to me that Artaissance “captures the look and essence of the original artwork by using a printing process that provides better color accuracy and pigmentation.” For a visual comparison, Dionne showed me a “regular” giclee which when laid next to the Artaissance print looked like an inexpensive print with dull color and lack of depth.

The entire online art buying process via Artaissance was simple, convenient and one that I would definitely recommend. I would also suggest working with your local Artaissance dealer as I did - they provide additional insight and experience. Dionne for example, creates master art plans for her clients. Using a master art plan, her clients are better equipped to purchase the correct style, size, and color mix. She then works closely with her clients to determine where each piece will reside and how it will be lit.

WANT TO WIN THIS PRINT? I decided not to have the print framed to keep for myself. Trust me, I would love to hang this beauty in my library but I’ve decided to give it away to one very lucky reader. Just tell me how and where you would use this print (in the comments section or via email at artaissancePrint@thedecoratingdiva.com). The winner will be picked on November 16th, 2007. THE DETAILS: The print is valued at $150.00 and provided courtesy of Artaissance. Contest limited to USA residents in the contiguous 48 States. Shipping fees will be paid by The Decorating Diva LLC. All taxes on print are responsibility of winner. One entry per household.

Online Resources: Artaissance.com , House of Frames

Reprint permission.