Art Store hopes to click with 0% loans

YOU can buy your groceries online as well as download music and the latest films. And now you can purchase new artworks too.

A national online store for contemporary art is to launch this week, aiming to boost sales by offering consumers the chance to buy artworks over the internet with an interest-free loan.

Backed by 45,000 from new arts quango Creative Scotland, the online Art Store will link an initial 23 major UK galleries, including eight in Scotland, selling everything from prints to original paintings. Arts Council England is also supporting the project.

The work of major artists, from Alan Davie and Toby Paterson to Elizabeth Blackadder and Alison Watt will be available. The loans are limited to 2,000 for living artists, but it can be used towards the price of a more expensive work.

Peter Tullin, managing partner of CultureLabel.com, which has developed the site, said: "The launch of this Art Store gives everyone the chance to browse and buy the great art they love, from the nation's best galleries, without leaving home."

The Art Store subsumes the successful Own Art scheme, which offers similar loans. Potential buyers can now see 360 degree images of artworks for sale thanks to new software.

http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/ownart/