TREND: INTERNET INCREASES ARTWORKS' EXPOSURE // THE PICASSOS OF CYBERSPACE // Online galleries help artists show and sell their work

By ERIN AUERBACH THE PRESS-ENTERPRISE   
Artists no longer have to wait for a big break to get their work into a gallery. There's plenty of room in cyberspace.

Online galleries allow artists at every level to show and sell their work. Although prospective Web buyers won't get the same view of the work or personalized attention from a curator, Internet galleries provide a place where prodigies and wannabes can enjoy equal footing in the often-elitist world of visual art.

Brian Messinger's uncle taught him to paint. Messinger, 28, of Ontario, works at Costco but continues to create original landscapes and abstracts using acrylic and glass beads. Seven of his paintings are listed on BounlessGallery.com.

Although he hasn't sold a piece yet, he chose BoundlessGallery.com because it doesn't charge artists to post their work, instead taking a 25 percent commission from every piece sold.

"It's really a great concept because if anybody sees your work and wants a custom piece made, they can contact you to request it," Messinger said.

Daniel Foster, executive director of the Riverside Art Museum, says online galleries should ultimately benefit artists.

"More and more cyber art galleries will be a growing trend in art because it enfranchises the artist more, making it less elitist," he said.

Online galleries typically provide user-friendly options, such as easy search engines, critiques and requests for commissions.

Cyperspace posting of artwork, too, is virtually unlimited.

BoundlessGallery.com is an Illinois-based company that features more than 8,000 pieces from 900 artists in the United States and abroad. Peter Gregory, president, said most artwork submitted is accepted.

"We more or less will let any artist on (the site)," said Gregory, who is also an amateur woodworker. "We only get rid of people sending us things that are on the back of a tissue or something."

Yessy Art Gallery, another online gallery, has a similar philosophy about art.

"There are no judges, because what may be considered junk to one person, could be considered art to another," Doug Titcomb , president of Yessy, Inc., said in an e-mail. "We give all artists a chance."

Yessy charges artists $59 a year to have full access to the site.

David Godinez, 20, of Glen Avon, has posted his work on Yessy for about a year. He hasn't sold anything yet, but he has attracted some interest from prospective buyers from Los Angeles to Europe.

"It just feels great when someone you don't know, living far away from you, tells you they like your work," he said. "I now know I have a fan in Germany."

Joseph McGowan, of Riverside, has had his water sculptures online with Yessy Art Gallery since 1999. McGown, who creates original water sculptures priced from $5,000 to $45,000, said online galleries enable artists at every level.

"An open avenue to any artist of any capabilities is a good thing," McGowan said. "Nobody's a Picasso overnight."
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WHERE TO BROWSE
* www.boundlessgallery.com
* www.yessy.com
* www.art.com
* www.artpromote.com
* www.artmajeur.com
* www.jolaf.com
* www.w3art.com
* www.artspan.com
* www.artroof.com
* www.artq.net

Art: PHOTOS

Caption: (1) PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY JEFF GIROD/THE PRESS-ENTERPRISE / Pieces of art offered online include (clockwise from left): "Flower Rose," by David Godinez
"The Whole World In His Hand," by Brian Messinger
"Crossroads," by Messinger
"Sunspots," by Messinger. (2) SPECIAL TO THE PRESS-ENTERPRISE / Riverside artist Joseph McGowan creates water sculptures priced from $5,000 to $45,000.

Zone: ALL ZONES

Edition: 
Section: YOUR LIFE
Page#: D01