GRANVILLE, OH. January 2007 - Columbus,
Ohio
artist Walter King - http://www.absolutearts.com/walterking,
former
Chair of Illustration at Columbus College of Art and Design, was one of
the
first Portfolio Artists at absolutearts.com, the most popular visual arts
site
on the web, back in 1999. "It's been terrific - I had collectors that
bought my work years before, 'find' my Portfolio through other search
engines. I sold three works in a matter of weeks. I established a
relationship with a gallery in Argentina, which surely wouldn't have
happened unless I was on absolutearts.com." Walter is also a forum
moderator and monthly featured blogger. The format of absolutearts.com and
the content is extremely relevant to contemporary visual artists all over
the globe, so much so that other startup sites use absolutearts.com as the
industry standard.
In 1995, during the birthing of the World Wide Web, then Arts
Administration/Education
graduate student, Markus Kruse, originally from Berlin, Germany, began a
website for art related resources on the Web. World Wide Arts Resources was
born. "It now seems so primitive. We had about 50 resources. There were so
few. The Brooklyn Museum of Art even had us create their website," Markus
states. Over the years absolutearts.com grew to the largest search engine for the
visual arts.
Markus began to sculpt this pioneering idea into absolutearts.com
-
a website where artists from around the world easily showcase
their artworks for free.
Mind you, this all started before everyone had digital cameras. Soon
international arts news was added as an attraction not only for artists,
but also for art collectors, galleries and museums. The goal is and was to
make a site for the visual arts, where collectors 'meet' artists and
where artists exchange ideas. You could call absolutearts.com the
precursor to any of the MY and U websites.
Obviously, having lived through the dotcom bubble bursts, this business
takes dedication. They aren't riding on the name of some big collector,
it's not about a flash-in-the-pan, trendy newbie. It's about staying power
- continually evolving to be the best tool for artists, no matter what
their age, interest or location. For example last month artists asked to
be able to share photos of their studios, openings and events - in a week,
that service was in place. They are honestly the best all around visual
arts site and have been for 12 years.
"It's about flexibility," says Markus. "We deal with a range of artists."
Different
levels of membership meet different artists' needs. This is a site for
established, professional artists on down to the weekend dabbler or
student. Kruse explains, "Some artists use their Portfolio at
absolutearts.com as their main website, while others prefer to have a
Portfolio to compliment their existing online marketing which boosts their
'traffic'." Each month thousands of artists upload work at
absolutearts.com, making the site the
largest selection of quality artworks online.
Edem Elesh - http://www.absolutearts.com/portfolios/e/edemelesh
- who's been with absolutearts.com for four years has had absolutearts.com
coordinate numerous artwork sales. "Working with absolutearts.com proves
to be an invaluable asset to my ongoing art career," says Elesh, Los
Angeles mixed media artist, who found that absolutearts.com linked him
better in the big search engines and did a universal job of promoting him
across the site. "They regularly feature my work and exhibitions that I'm
in, on the homepage and in their emailed newsletter. It gives my work
global exposure to potential collectors."
The company's success has a lot to do with their ability to balance
knowledge
of the art world with knowledge of online commerce. The site is the best
linked
on Google. Just do a search and test it by typing in "contemporary art for
sale",
"art news" or "art blogs".
Every day, the absolutearts.com office, run out of a 1840's barn in rural
Ohio,
fields emails and calls from around the world. "What's unique about these
guys
is that humans really work there," says Jaiymie Kiggins - http://www.absolutearts.com/portfolios/j/jkiggins/
- of Columbus, OH who recently sold a large sculptural work through
absolutearts.com to a
restaurant in Lafayette, California. His clients commented, "The folks at
absolutearts.com helped coordinate the sale in a professional manner that
made us feel secure with such a large transaction." Not only is the
absolutearts.com team tech savvy, they are art marketing specialists.
The whole idea was pre Mytype websites. absolutearts.com has transformed with the
web
and with the artists that use the web. The company's motivation is to
provide
a valuable service and place where artists cannot only sell their work,
but
exchange ideas, get advice, keep current and keep in touch. Luise Andersen
artist
from Fontana, California, was "discovered" through her Portfolio at
absolutearts.com - http://www.absolutearts.com/portfolios/l/laselectart/
- by a gallery, which selected her work for a group exhibition in Italy
during the summer of 2006. The same gallery also gave her a solo
exhibition at their partner gallery in Paris this winter.
"absolutearts.com launched me and my work onto the international art
scene. What makes absolutearts.com different is that they are real people
- its not some giant corporation where you just post your images and cross
your fingers," boasts Luise. "I love it that I can upload work in
progress, involving viewers. They become attached when they feel and
understand the progress of the creation of a piece of art."
It turns out that the Maria Elena Kravetz Gallery in Cordoba, Argentina
where Walter King has had exhibitions, and the Camaver Kunsthaus, who
sponsored Luise Andersen, have both created Gallery Portfolios to market
their artists.
What it boils down to is absolutearts.com offers a successful grassroots theory in a
professional
package. Markus Kruse concludes, "We've got so many new things planned for
the upcoming months. I am continually energized by the challenge to keep
growing, keep doing what's right to bring artists closer to collectors."
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Image credits from top:
- Walter King, Tree of Life, 2006, Acrylic Painting, 30"w by 40"h
- Dr. Markus Kruse, World Wide Arts Resources, Corp. photo by Janet Thomas
- Edem Elesh, Hood, 2006, Mixed Media, 48"w by 36"h
- Jaiymie Kiggins, Giraffe-detail, 1995, Steel Sculpture, 3'w by 11'h by 7'deep
- Luise Andersen, Fenetre d'Esprit, 2006, Acrylic Painting, 36"w by 24"h
World Wide Arts Resources, Corp. is a small, privately held company based
in
Granville, Ohio, in the heart of the US. Since 1995, wwar.com and
absolutearts.com have provided information to millions of art enthusiasts.
wwar.com / absolutearts.com have become the largest arts sites on the
World Wide Web. Constant evolution plays a critical role in enhancing the
client's experience and meeting their ever-increasing needs. In 1999,
wwar.com expanded to include absolutearts.com, which began as a daily arts
news outlet and has adapted to include the Internet's most comprehensive
contemporary art online Portfolio programs.
More information about the people at absolutearts.com can be found at: http://wwar.com/about/
Issued by:
Jodi Melfi
VP Marketing
absolutearts.com
3678 Loudon Street
Granville OH USA 43023
740-587-3326
press@absolutearts.com
