As commerce has exploded onto the internet, so commercial art has found a niche as well. Scores of sites exist where all forms and mediums of art are displayed, bought, and sold, from individual sites relying on wire transfers, to auction sites such as eBay where MasterCharge, Visa, and Federal Express provide instant (or nearly instant) shopping satisfaction. Additionally, due to the rising popularity of online art dealers, many corporate sites have been developed to authenticate, appraise and document artwork. Finally, a proliferation of businesses have put their artwork and art supply catalogues onto the internet to offer online ordering with direct delivery, including many unique items and hard-to-find supplies.

Though originally founded in 1744, Sotheby’s has had no problem keeping up with the times. Their site is bold, draped in royal blue banners, and by far the most fun of the online auction sites. Auction calendars, online catalogues, live auction results, collecting departments, an online magazine and shop, and a listing of available services are a mere scratch on the surface of what Sotheby’s has to offer. A cyber-shopper can actually bid and buy online from this highly respected house of artwork and antiquity. Fabulous fun can be had going from category to sub-category to the actual works on display, which are shown in very clear, full color, accompanied by a starting or current bid, an estimate of what the piece will go for, and the time remaining for bidding. With a click of the darling blue bid button, anyone with an authenticated username and password can vie for online art ranging from a gorgeous Modern Baccarat Millefiori paperweight (estimated at $500) to Cottage With a White Paling, 1650 (estimated at over $35,000) by Rembrandt - and yes, that would be the Rembrandt of European Renaissance fame. To achieve authentication one must only provide a few paltry bits of information including name, address, and two major credit cards. Though certainly pricey, Sotheby’s Online is an amazing site to spend an afternoon browsing. Two warnings to potential gravel-chasers at this site: first, it’s terribly difficult to visit without bidding on something (I couldn’t resist making an offer for that Baccarat paperweight); and second, due to the graphic intensity of the site, it is slow to load even with a cable modem or DSL connection.

Originally founded 22 years after Sotheby’s, Christie’s has made up for the lost decades by crushing world records for prices paid at auction. Holding such records as the most expensive painting ever sold at auction (Portrait of Dr. Gachet by Vincent Van Gogh [$82.5M]), the most spent for a film prop (the Maltese Falcon, from the film of the same name starring Humphrey Bogart [$398,500]), and the highest price ever paid for a musical instrument (The Kreutzer, a violin by Antonio Stradivari [$1.6M]), Christie’s has a reputation second to none. Their site, sleek and glossy with scarlet banners, offers information about Christie’s, announcements of featured auctions and events, sale information and categories, previews of new publications, press releases, and webcasts of live auctions. Unfortunately, one cannot yet bid or buy online here and must resort to the 20th century methods of bidding in person, in writing, or by telephone. Unique to Christie’s is Lot Finder, a registered search engine which allows users to browse sale catalogues from auctions around the world – a very handy tool for those who travel or who don’t mind taking a trip to obtain their art. Eighty sale categories, from wine to fine art to sunken cargo, are displayed and broken down into sub-categories, where users can find current sales calendars as well as departmental information such as what they sell and where in the real world they are located. Though not quite up to the technological standards Sotheby’s has achieved, Christie’s site is still well worth a visit.

Next Monet was founded to make the purchasing of contemporary art less intimidating, and hopefully more satisfying, by providing information about the artists and their work, and the context in which the art is made. The site has a slick front page that leads to their inner sanctum, which displays a few pieces of art to represent their cyber-gallery categories: new works, landscapes, abstract works, and sculpture. Users need only click on the representative work to enter the online galleries. The site also holds weekly exhibits of works for sale, a feature column that covers art and art-related issues, membership information (members receive special privileges such as introductory prices, sneak previews, and announcements of new artists and events), an artist directory and information for artists who wish to be considered for inclusion in their galleries. Artwork is sourced from respected galleries around the world as well as direct from artists’ studios. Every work selected undergoes a stringent process of certification by jury. Finally, Next Monet offers collecting tips, expert advice, and real-time online answers to any questions you might have. With prices spanning every budget, this is a perfect site for both amateur and professional decorators looking for home or office artwork. And who knows? As the site name professes, users may end up discovering the next Monet.

Where Christie’s is about tradition and Sotheby’s about 21st century technology, this site is about commerce, pure and simple. With banners touting this month’s specials and the top sellers, the site also offers a search engine, newsletter, and lists the available shopping categories which include fine art, photography, prints, posters, gifts, and animation. Perhaps the best aspect of Art.com is a feature called “My Gallery”. This feature allows users to select pieces on the site, place them in their cyber-shopping cart, then park the cart for later viewing, online purchasing, or for use as a visual wish-list which can be emailed to friends and relatives. Whether users are looking to decorate a dorm room or find just the right gift for a special friend, this is a great site. Prices are average to mildly expensive, and shipping is free on orders of $30 or more. Spending that much at this fun site is only too easy.

This is an excellent place to start a commercial art search online. If it deals with art, it can be found at this site: an interactive gateway with access to artists, museums, galleries, high quality art, art history, arts education, antiques, performing arts, classified ads, résumé postings, arts chats, and arts forums. Pages on the site are broken down into arts services, visual arts, performing arts, more arts, site information, and premiere links, many of which lead to additional art commerce sites. Additionally, this site offers artists a myriad of services, including the opportunity to have their website included in the listings, or virtual space for the display of their portfolios in categories as diverse as animation, calligraphy, glass work, mixed media and even tattoo art. This is an excellent site to find unique, unusual, unconventional artistry that is most often very affordable and in some cases, a virtual steal.

Boasting the largest and most sophisticated art-focused audience on the internet today, Artnet.com has a daily magazine, over 850 international galleries and dealers, stores, databases (including an auction database with over 1.8 million auction records), resources (such as a dictionary of art), and links to museums, fairs, seminars and services. More importantly, however, they showcase portfolios of artists around the world from Cherbourg, France to the Bronx - over 140 independent artist listings. The online galleries here are very pretty, displaying large thumbnails of the works and the dates and physical locations of where they are being exhibited. The online auctions at Artnet.com offer users a Sotheby’s-like experience, at more accessible prices. They highlight picks of the day, as well as a lot search feature, and offer these categories: modern, contemporary, photography, American, and 20th century decorative arts. Occasionally, ‘themed’ auctions are announced and held; these are especially worth visiting. Payment can be made by credit card, certified check or money order, or by wire transfer. Once again, it’s almost impossible to spend any amount of time here without bidding on something. The upside is that here a user is far less likely to max out the Visa.

Published since 1992, the Antiques & Collectors Reproduction News is a monthly newsletter dedicated to helping art aficionados detect fakes and reproductions. Each month they alert the public to any recent fabrications, covering all subjects and mediums, always with close-up photographs and clear illustrations showing old and new side by side. Each issue usually includes 35 to 70 such pictures so that readers can learn the tricks of forgers and those who would dupe art lovers and owners throughout the world. Their website offers general information about the newsletter, highlighting the cover story and feature articles each month. It also has an online index that spans the entire nine-year publication history, with an option allowing users to order back issues. Finally, the site offers products for sale which can be used to detect fakes, such as black lights, invisible inks, precious metal tests, gemstone tests, pocket reference cards, and loupes - those nifty little magnifying eye pieces used in jewelry stores, museums, and galleries the world over. Visiting the site is a smart and valuable way to spend a little surfing time, and a must for any serious collector.

Exactly as its name states, this site provides complete art business services. An overflowing fountain of information, their offerings include news updates, articles for artists and collectors, reference books, book reviews, and a database containing over 3 million price records, as well as biographical information on over 200,000 artists. Additionally, services and the requisite fees for said services are advertised on the site. For dealers and collectors, artbusiness.com will provide current artist selling price summaries, biographies, email appraisals, hard copy appraisals, selling and buying advice, collection development, estate and inheritance advice, expert witness consultation, fundraising and charity assistance, fine art and rare book brokering, and seminars and lectures on art business issues. For artists, they offer career consultations, website critiques, marketing plans, estate planning, and mediation and dispute resolution. They also sell some out-of-print art reference books and exhibition catalogues. Advertised fees are quite reasonable; and where fine art is concerned, one cannot be too careful in properly insuring and caring for what may one day be a family heirloom.

The Wildenstein site proclaims its expertise and superior standards with super-sharp front page flash art and beautiful backgrounds. Known the world over for the collection catalogues they produce based on acknowledged authentication, the site offers several for sale. Additionally, the site showcases a current exhibition and offers links to information about the real-world gallery in Manhattan and past exhibitions. Client services advertised on the site include appraisals, storage information and advice, authentication, bidding assistance for auctions, and general collection advice. Finally, the site has a brilliant ‘brag’ page listing important works they have sold and to whom they were sold, such as the very well known (and often duplicated) Water Lillies by Claude Monet, sold to the Australian National Gallery.

Self-described as “the world’s leader in art market information,” artprice.com is a data bank holding over 2 million auction results, with information on over 175,000 artists. Website pages include news, press releases, links, auctioneers, artists, employment opportunities and an online store where users can purchase the Artprice Annual (contains detailed auction results), Artprice CD-Rom, Art Price Indicator (lists representative prices for artists), and an encyclopedia of artists’ signatures, symbols, and monograms. Also available on the site are art market indices, reliable synthesized instruments that gauge the development of a market or the general trend in the standing of an artist, period, or any given school. They guarantee “to supply objective and coherent reference information based on solid technical foundations to meet the needs of the art market professional,” and the site definitely delivers what it promises. This is a great site for those professionals, as well as skilled amateurs and art educators. Casual users may find the site a bit daunting and unfriendly, as more than a little knowledge about the nuances of the art market is required to truly utilize all the tools available.