September 17th, 2020
By Veronica Vale
This year, Sotheby’s announces $2.5 billion in sales for 2020, largely thanks to online sales. Despite the expectation for plummeting art sales amidst COVID-19, the art world proved its capacity for adaptation and its ardent love of art with soaring online sales. Sotheby’s CEO, Charles Steward, observes, “although driven by necessity, it’s clear that Sotheby’s clients’ interest and confidence in technology has fundamentally changed.”
Sotheby’s first live global auction brought in a grand total of $363 million, affirming Stewart’s assertion that, “The art and luxury markets have proven to be incredibly resilient, and demand for quality across categories is unabated.” The second live auction brought in $200.3 million in sales, making history as the first time that online sales accounted for a double-digit percentage of total Sotheby’s sales.
Of the success, Stewart says, “Our team successfully took the circumstances of the past several months and turned them into opportunities, which advanced numerous initiatives that will likely change our business forever.”
If Sotheby’s is any prediction, then this unprecedented year has the potential to change the entire art world — and our art-buying experience — forever. So as we usher in a new age of online art buying, we wanted to outline some of the ways that Gallery MAR can offer you a streamlined online art buying experience, from first inquiry to final installment:
- Email or Call to Buy – Purchase your next artwork without leaving your home! We are happy to handle all sales via email or phone. Simply email us at info@gallerymar.com or call us at 435-649-3001 where we can answer all your questions, gather information, take payment, and work out shipping options. Once the sale is complete, we’ll email you your invoice and send a hard copy of your invoice along with all sales and artist information with your piece.
- Follow us on Social Media – Consider following Gallery MAR on Facebook and/or Instagram to receive the the latest Gallery MAR content, including images of new pieces hanging in the gallery on our modern, white walls.
- Subscribe to Our Newsletter – Want to stay up to date on all things Gallery MAR? Join our newsletter for monthly updates on gallery news, artist interviews, exhibitions, in situ images, blog updates, and more.
- Join our Exclusive Mailing List – Be the first to know about a particular artists’ new work or show by joining one of our exclusive mailing lists. Simply let us know which artist(s) you would like to stay up to date with, and we’ll add you to our mailing list to receive exclusive sneak peaks of new exhibitions.
- “Inquire” Feature – Our “Inquire” feature on our website allows you to ask about a painting with one click. Simply find an artwork you’re interested in and click “Inquire.” You can attach a personal message if you prefer or just hit “Send.” We’ll be quick to reply with the status of the piece and any other information you may need.
- “Print” Feature – If you’re the kind of person who prefers paper over a screen, our “Print” option on our website makes it quick and easy to print out a hard copy of any piece of work you love, along with all of its specifications, including size, medium, and artist. Print out several different pieces that you love and mull them over without the glare of a blue light computer screen.
- “View in Room” Feature – our “View in Room” feature allows you to see a scaled representation of each painting in a clean, modern room for a quick and easy grasp on the size of a work. Each piece of art on our website lists the size of the work in inches, but sometimes, visualizing its scale makes it a whole lot simpler.
- Photoshop It! – If you’re still unsure how a piece might look in your space, allow our Fine Art Consultants to work their magic and Photoshop the piece into a photograph of your home. Simply send along an image of your space along with a measurement of something in the room (the length of the headboard or fireplace mantle, for instance) and our highly trained and experienced Fine Art Consultants can help you beautifully visualize the piece in your home. Even if you’re undecided on which piece to choose, ask our Fine Art Consultants to Photoshop a few of their recommendations for your space. We guarantee you’ll be delighted with their expert eye.
- White Glove Shipping – We offer several different shipping options to best serve your needs. If you’re concerned about the shipping of your new precious piece, consider adding White Glove to your shipping option for an additional fee. Our friends with White Glove will deliver the piece directly into your home and unship/uncrate the work themselves, so you can take the worry and work out of shipping.
- Installation Experts – If you’re local to Park City, our team of highly trained Fine Art Consultants are happy to install your work themselves. We’ll bring all of the tools and equipment necessary to ensure a strong, and beautiful installation of your new piece. For more complicated installations (for instance, a stone fireplace), we highly recommend hiring the expert team Aisling Art Installation. We’ll even call them and set up the installation for you if you prefer.
Please let our Fine Art Consultants know if you have any questions about online art buying at Gallery MAR. Thank you for continuing to support our artists from wherever you are.