There is something about the sweltering summer heat that makes people so lazy. Some great shows are on at Galerie Martini (Heat), Zee Stone Gallery (Summer In The City), and Connoisseur Gallery (Summer Bliss) featuring a mixed bag of artists from Japanese-born Yumi Kondo to Chinese-American Larry Yung to mainland impressionist Wu Tao. Great stuff to see if you enjoy the walk. But due to this week's unpredictable weather I have decided to take advantage of the Internet and become an 'armchair' art enthusiast instead.
I started buying art, among other things, on the Internet two years ago when I had broadband installed in my home (it's so much faster for downloading colour graphics). Internet art shopping was a hit-and-miss affair for me too, but then again, I can't say every fashion decision I made when I logged on to Neimanmarcus.com at midnight turned out well.
I fondly remember purchasing a Marc Chagall lithograph from eBay.com for a friend's birthday, which came in pristine condition. I also bought a disappointing abstract by French artist Alina Corceru from sothebys.com - the red paint was illustrated beautifully on the computer screen but when it arrived it was more like the shade of dried blood. It now hangs in the bathroom of my San Francisco home. I especially enjoyed browsing through icollector.com before it closed down recently, and still regret that I let a David Hockney lithograph of one of his beloved dachshunds slip away.
Local galleries are also using the Internet as a selling tool and I must say it's a blessing for busy Hong Kongers to be able to check out their collections, read about the artists and ask about prices. I am told by Amelia Johnson, co-owner of Galerie Martini, that the Internet has not only helped the gallery's overseas business - which I assume is a blessing considering the slump in our own economy - but local buyers are using it as well.
All a client then needs to do is either send a cheque or make a direct deposit to the gallery's account and it will deliver the painting to the customer. With known clients, Johnson can even do a COD (cash on delivery). If the person decides they don't like the work, the gallery will take it back and only bill for shipping.
