Tuesday, November 11, 2008

New local website for artists features one original piece a day

By Laura Seewoester

Image provided by Daily Original

Lin Hampton (Denton), Bench in Garden

Justin Hampton of Plano is the person behind a new web site that takes a different twist on art dealing. Dailyoriginal.com, which launched November 1st, has taken the “one deal day” strategy and applied it to selling art work. Hampton, the son of an artist, came up with the idea after watching his mother (very much an artist and not so much into marketing) struggle over the years with selling her work. He suggested she sell her work on line, but most web sites charge monthly fees in addition to large commissions once a piece is sold. Throw that in the mix with the other artists represented by a web site (or traditional gallery) and suddenly selling one piece becomes very competitive.

“All the websites I've seen, there's maybe a thousand artists. You're never gonna find anything unless you actually send people to your page on that site,” Hampton says.

Image provided by Daily Original

Roxanne Nichols (Coppell), Texas Longhorn

The way the site works is pretty cut and dry. One piece is featured each day, giving the artist prime real estate on the site. The artist retains all copyrights and even hangs on to the piece until it is sold. In addition, there is no monthly fee to be represented on the site, however Hampton does take a 25% commission off any work that is sold (which is about the minimum a gallery will take, but it's often more). In other words, it's free until it's sold.

“I don't try to get in the artist's way, I just try to make it an extra way for them to sell something.”

While some sites may have a lower commission like Etsy.com (which is only about 3-4%), anyone perusing the site will be bombarded with thousands of sellers making it difficult both for the buyer to find anything and the seller to sell a piece.

“Etsy is not so great for the artist. I've had over 1000 hits for one artist and we just launched last week.”

With only one work featured each day, there is no tug of war between different artists and potential buyers. (We still love us some Etsy.com though.)

The only stipulation for the artist is they cannot sell a piece the day it is featured on the site.

Image provided by Daily Original

Suzanne Berry (New York), Nude 13

One impressive thing about Hampton is that, despite his endless flow of ideas and enthusiasm, he isn't unrealistic in his expectations for the business. Hampton's intentions are in the interest of the artist. While he hopes to make a little money in the process, he is well aware that running Dailyoriginal.com, will never be a full time venture for him.

“Selling one thing a day, I'm not making a living off it.”

Hampton also won't sell just any art. Another thing he noticed from researching art sites with his mother was that often selling artwork online can mean sacrificing reputability. To keep his reputation (and that of the artists') in good standing Hampton hand picks the artists on his site.

While the site may look a little bare minimum at the moment, Hampton has more ideas than he knows what to do with. Daily Original will likely roll out with new features in the near future, so keep an eye out. In the meantime, enjoy your daily dose of a “daily original.”

Related stories

• Pegasus News week in view: Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em edition (Nov. 13, 2008)

See more stories in:

• Arts > Fine Arts > Art and Sculpture

Comments

Jason Rice Verified

Angela, nobody in town covers the arts like Peg. Stick around. Make some contributions. Point some friends to the place. Help make the place home and pay some bills for these guys. They really have their heart int it and any investment will pay off.

Gotta say - Love Laura's art coverage of late. No place keeps my attention like Pegasus.

And no, Pavel it's not my Attention Deficit -- hey a Cyclone review!!

12 months ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )

alexander troup Verified

It is Art in the Mertoplex and like the famed Chapman Kelly Galley in the 1960's and Valley House, it is about Texas Art, the nude is quite good, color and shade, until then A.T, in the artist light.

12 months ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )