Amazon weighs in on fine arts market

The online behemoth tackles an industry dear to our hearts – the fine arts market. 

Amazon.com has launched Amazon Art, an online marketplace that draws in art from over 150 galleries and art dealers, making over 40,000 works of fine art available for purchase online. The most expensive item listed so far is Norman Rockwell’s Willie Gillis: Package from Home, 1941 – on sale for USD $4.85 million.

Other notable works for sale are Andy Warhol’s 1967 work Marilyn Monroe (Marilyn) (II.29), for USD $124,900.00, which includes free shipping; and Marc Chagall’s The Bouquet, 1974, going for USD $80,000 (although you’ll have to fork out $250 shipping cost).

Those who don’t have that kind of money tucked away under their mattress will still be able to get involved with the ‘Under $200’ category, and you can still pick up a work by Salvador Dali for under $2000.

The online giant has partnered with galleries such as Paddle8 in New York, Holden Luntz in Palm Beach, The McLoughlin Gallery and Modernbook in San Francisco, and Catherine Person Gallery in Seattle.

COO and founding partner of Paddle8 said the partnership meant the gallery can, ‘Dramatically expand our audience while simultaneously providing access to affordable, limited-edition works by some of the most significant artists working today.’

Holden Luntz, owner and Founder of Holden Luntz Gallery in Palm Beach said that ‘models for dealing in contemporary arts have evovlved in this digital age and ecommerce is a channel to reach more clientele.’

Users have already taken to the site with the usual humorous aplomb they apply to all of Amazon’s other products, with some taking the opportunity to provide ‘reviews’ of the artworks.

One reviewer, Sydney2012, mocks the elite pricing of Rockwell’s work in a post titled ‘This painting saved my life’. ‘Up until now, every time I wanted fine art I had to call for the driver, order him to take me around to multiple galleries to track it down, and drive back home… As I live in a mansion with many walls to decorate this was obviously very stressful. I spent my days hunting down art… My life began falling apart. I missed multiple Pilates classes. My weekly manicures turned into bi-weekly manicures. My Chihuahua was wearing last year’s outfits, which was very awkward for me when I ran into neighbours.’

‘Kyle’ writes a review titled ‘Works Well for High Traffic Areas’ saying, ‘Installed one of these on top of my urinal, and besides the creepy looks on their faces when I pee, its [sic] been worth the purchase… I give it 4 stars. Minus one star for looking old.’

All humour aside, there are some interesting partnerships in play as well as a shift from what were once fringe arts sites selling work by emerging artists, and eBay, into the mainstream.

Joshua Steen, Founder of Luster NYC located in Brooklyn, NY, said, ‘We’ll begin to see a whole new breed of art collector and that’s good for everyone – the galleries, artists, and customers.’

Serious collectors, such as those who would purchase the Rockwell painting for $4.85 million, are often reluctant to purchase online due concerns about authenticity, but having direct links to galleries should alleviate that – especially with so many Warhols for sale, which can often be difficult to authenticate.

One critic, Tyler Cowen, writes in a post ‘Is Amazon a doomed venture? Let’s hope so’, ‘I’ve browsed the “above 10k” category and virtually all of it seems a) aesthetically absymal [sic] and b) drastically overpriced. It looks like dealers trying to unload unwanted, hard to sell inventory at sucker prices. I’m guessing that many of these are being sold at multiples of three or four over auction price histories. Is this unexceptional John Frost worth even a third of the 150k asking price? Maybe not.’

Amazon will reportedly take a 5 to 20 percent cut on all sales, so even if serious collectors are pushed out of the equation by not being able to view the work before purchasing at such a high price, the low-to-mid range end of the spectrum should prove lucrative.

Peter Osborne of London gallery Osborne told the Telegraph that the big pieces seem little more than a publicity stunt. ‘It raises the profile of the site, but at the high end you are going to struggle to do a lot of business on line.’

In Australia at least there are already a number of websites that sell art online, with some such as Art Pharmacy fulfilling the role of the gallery in that they promote and support the artists they represent as well as selling their art online. Art Pharmacy occupies the under $2000 end of the spectrum and focuses on representing emerging artists.

Perhaps Amazon, in the United States at least, will help draw in the next generation of art collectors.

‘My gallery is committed to making original art accessible to all, especially new collectors,’ said Lisa Cooper, Owner of Elisa Contemporary Art in New York. 

‘We’re thrilled to share our artists and their work with our current clients and help us connect with new ones.’