| Browsing online art sales in search for original paintings | | | | originals are not affordable, they belong to the |
| to add to your private collection or to decorate a wall | | | | museums and to the living rooms of millionaires or |
| could be tantalizing and time consuming experience. | | | | people of royal blood. |
| Part of it comes from the prices, which are usually too | | | | To make more sense of what we about to propose, |
| high for a casual art collector to afford unless she is | | | | consider a quick break down of economics of buying |
| ready to compromise in some way. | | | | prints. A typical good quality print costs around hundred |
| One compromise to consider is to sacrifice canvas | | | | dollars or more. To compensate for cheaper look of |
| size. Depending on the goals of the collector, this may | | | | the print, a fancy frame - may be even a custom |
| not be always desirable. Besides top artists would sell | | | | made one - is usually purchased. Such frame may |
| even small pieces for high prices. | | | | come at the price of couple hundred dollars. In this |
| Another approach is to be less picky in terms of | | | | scenario the print and the frame together may easily |
| quality. When considering a painting posted on eBay or | | | | total to something well above two hundred dollars. |
| any other art sales website, the buyer is guided only | | | | Now consider a completely different approach. The |
| by her taste and personal perception of the quality of | | | | buyer cuts expenses on framing by buying a |
| art. Art is subjective and if the buyer feels confident, | | | | mass-produced regular frame. But instead of a print |
| such approach is completely acceptable. | | | | she goes after some original painting for a price |
| However in most cases a wise buyer would look for | | | | comparable to that one of a print. Leaving the aspect |
| some additional support for her decision, some kind of | | | | of art quality aside for a moment, it is possible to buy a |
| endorsement of the painting quality. This may come as | | | | painting through online auctions for just few dollars. It is |
| credentials or established reputation of the painter, | | | | hard to argue that a print is no match to an original |
| size-able following and alike. But, as expected, popular | | | | painting even when the original is framed very |
| accomplished artists rarely sell their art directly through | | | | inexpensively. |
| general online auctions. And when they do, they usually | | | | But is it possible to buy high quality original art at such |
| fetch a high auction price anyway. In other words, | | | | low price? A number of prolific accomplished artists |
| bidding on traditional online auctions for an original | | | | united under a group name Undisclosed Artists sell their |
| painting of good quality usually results in premium price | | | | peer-endorsed art anonymously for exactly such |
| on anything worth bidding for. | | | | inexpensive prices. The catch is that the paintings are |
| Settling for prints instead of originals may be viewed | | | | sold unsigned. (Yes, there is still a compromise to |
| as a solution to this. Sadly, this least resistance | | | | make. |
| approach reinforces a centuries-old stereotype - | | | | |