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I am an artist specialising in Name Illustration. At first glance my ‘alphabet name’ paintings are colourful, pretty, unusual and complex. They appeal to children and parents alike, and are especially appropriate as a gift for a new baby – a time when everyone revels in the joy of a new arrival and name in the family. Read more

The artist David Hardy produced his first space art in 1950, at the age of just 14, and illustrated his first book, entitled “Suns, Myths and Men”, for Patrick Moore in 1954 when he was just 18. As a young man, he worked at Cadbury’s, near to his home in Bournville, painting chocolate boxes whilst learning his trade as an illustrator, and then he became a freelance painter and illustrator in 1965. Read more

One of ArtyPrints featured artists, Melissa Lundberg studied in Italy and America focusing on representational art before returning to establish herself in Stockholm, Sweden where she has her own studio. She teaches locally and is a member of the Swedish Art Association. Read more

Ingrid Abery was born in London in the late 1960s but grew up in Sussex. Her childhood was spent by the sea, often photographing and painting it, and her artistic career thus began at a very young age, progressing towards sculpting and even stone carving. Read more

The son of a Dutch minister, Vincent van Gogh was born in 1853 and took up painting around 1880 after working as an art dealer, a teacher and a missionary. He worked prodigiously, supported by his parents and by his brother, Theo, concentrating particularly on scenes of peasant life. Read more

His family's travels took him to London, where he studied for his degree before training as an illustrator. As a result of the training he received at this stage of his life, he has a keen interest in the more 'traditional' use of materials like ink, charcoal and pencil and in media like drawing and painting, but over recent years he has also been increasingly drawn to the creative opportunities available through the use of new digital media. He tries therefore, wherever possible, he says "to merge the old and the new to create a winning combination". Read more

This German landscape artist travelled extensively, and is renowned for his paintings of towering and atmospheric mountain ranges. Read more

This German landscape artist travelled extensively, and is renowned for his paintings of towering and atmospheric mountain ranges. Bierstadt is particularly known for his paintings of North American mountain ranges, which he often undertook on huge canvasses, mirroring the scale of his subjects. He is sometimes referred to as belonging to the Rocky Mountain School of artists. Read more

Beatrix Potter is perhaps the best-known author and illustrator of children’s books of all time. Visitors from around the globe flock in thousands to the picturesque Lake District farmhouse home, Hill Top Farm, in which she completed most of her charming water-colours. Read more

Ingrid Abery was born in London in the late 1960s but grew up in Sussex. Her childhood was spent by the sea, often photographing and painting it, and her artistic career thus began at a very young age, progressing towards sculpting and even stone carving. Read more

Although her very earliest memories recall her love of the bright colours of poster paint and her anticipation of what she could achieve with them, as a young child she found art extremely difficult and did not really consider a career in the arts world until she became involved in set and costume design whilst completing her degree in Music, Dance and Drama. Her tutor picked up on a small series of sketches which she had prepared for the costumes for a production of Hamlet and his enthusiasm gave Barbara James the courage to begin to experiment with colours, textiles and artistic ideas. Read more

Born in Fountain Valley, California, Bridges moved frequently as a small child and, by her own description, never felt there was anywhere to call home. She spent her time deep in her imagination, drawing the things that came into her mind and mastering her skills at rendering. To her delight, she found that art and drawing were not only her solace and pastime, but a way to make new friends as well, and wherever she went, she employed her art to express herself to others. Read more

Monsted was born in the Danish town of Grenaa on the 10th December 1859. He first studied painting at the Copenhagen Academy. Afterwards he travelled extensively, taking in visits to Italy, Switzerland and Paris. Read more

Nicholas Konstantinovich Roerich was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, on October 9, 1874, the first-born son of lawyer and notary, Konstantin Roerich and his wife Maria. He was raised in the comfortable environment of an upper middle-class Russian family with its advantages of contact with the writers, artists, and scientists who often came to visit the Roerichs. At an early age he showed a curiosity and talent for a variety of activities. When he was nine, a noted archeologist came to conduct explorations in the region and took young Roerich on his excavations of the local tumuli. The adventure of unveiling the mysteries of forgotten eras with his own hands sparked an interest in archeology that would last his lifetime. Through other contacts he developed interests in collecting prehistoric artifacts, coins, and minerals, and built his own arboretum for the study of plants and trees. Read more

Born in Lausanne, Theophile Steinlen studied at the local university before taking a design job at a textile mill in Mulhouse, in eastern France. Still developing his skills, he and his new wife were then encouraged by the painter François Bocion to move to the artistic community in the Montmartre Quarter of Paris. Once there, Steinlen was befriended by the painter Adolphe Willette, who introduced him the artistic crowd at the Le Chat Noir cabaret, which led to his famous commission work for poster art for the cabaret owner and entertainer, Aristide Bruant. Read more

Danny Todd was born in Coleraine, in Northern Ireland, near to the Antrim coast and to the world famous Giant's Causeway. He has established a reputation for his beautiful depictions of the Irish countryside. Read more

Chris Simpson was born in Zurich in August 1952 to a Russian/Bulgarian mother and an Australian father. The family lived in Mauritius for 24 years and, although educated in the United Kingdom, Chris Simpson still spent an average of 3 months a year on the island. Read more

Little is known about the life of artist Antonio F. de Prades. He flourished from 1844 until 1886 and was probably the brother of the painters Alfred P. and Frank de Prades. Read more

Born in Brussels, in 1946, Thierry Poncelet spent his childhood in Manche en Famenne, a small town in Belgium. At a young age, his grandmother, who was a well-known portrait painter, encouraged him to paint and draw. Read more

The photographer Bill Philip was born in 1946 and brought up in Scotland and the Lake District. From an early age he was influenced by the power of the landscape, mountains, lochs and seas that surrounded his childhood homes and these echoes can be seen in much of his work today. Read more

Born in 1884, Snaffles was one of the greatest sporting and military artists of his time. Charlie Johnson Payne was the fourth of a bootmaker's eight children and from his youth developed a passion for all things military. He tried to enlist in the army to fight in the Boer war, but was rejected on the grounds that he was too young. Eventually, he joined the Royal Garrison Artillery at the age of 18 as a gunner but in 1906 he was forced to leave because of illness. However, his time in the army was influential, as his first recorded works of semi-caricature portrait date from this time. Read more

Equestrian and portrait artist Susan Crawford was born in the Scottish district of East Lothian. Her father was a racehorse trainer and she grew up on the family farm, inheriting her parent's affinity with horses and the countryside and learning to ride when she was only a toddler. Read more

Henderson Cisz was born in Brazil in 1960 and grew up in a small village in Parana State. Cisz had talent from a very young age, but considered it only a hobby. By the time he finished school, he entered a position as a banker. Read more

John Singer Sargent (January 12, 1856 - April 14, 1925) was a painter especially known for his fine portraits. He is usually considered an American artist, although he spent most of his life in Europe. Sargent was born in Florence, Italy to USA parents. He studied in Italy and Germany, and then in Paris under Carolus Duran. Read more

Walter Elias Disney (December 5, 1901 – December 15, 1966) was a multiple Academy Award-winning American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur and philanthropist. Disney is famous for his influence in the field of entertainment during the twentieth century. As the co-founder (with his brother Roy O. Disney) of Walt Disney Productions, Disney became one of the best-known motion picture producers in the world. The corporation he co-founded, now known as The Walt Disney Company, today has annual revenues of approximately U.S. $35 billion. Read more

The Dutch artist Hans Paus (1959) is a passionate modern artist. The ancient landscape of his native soil, the region Twente, is beside the impressions of his travels, a great source of inspiration. The floral images and abstract figures are another passion. His paintings unveil a neo-impressionistic style. Read more

Paul Jackson Pollock (January 28, 1912 - August 11, 1956) was an influential American painter and a major force in the abstract expressionist movement. In October 1945 he married the artist Lee Krasner. During his lifetime, Pollock enjoyed considerable fame and notoriety. He was regarded as a mostly reclusive artist, but had a volatile personality and struggled with alcoholism all of his life. He died at the age of 44 in an alcohol-related, single-car crash. In December 1956 he was given a memorial retrospective exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, and a larger more comprehensive exhibition there in 1967. More recently, in 1998 and 1999, his work was honored with large-scale retrospective exhibitions at MoMA and at The Tate in London. In 2000, Pollock was the subject of an Academy Award-winning film directed by and starring Ed Harris as Pollock. Read more

Edvard Munch's "The Scream" is one of the most familiar artworks of all time. Yet viewers know it more from parodies than direct encounters with any of the five versions created by the artist. The lithographic version of "The Scream" will be among 150 paintings and works on paper in an exhibition on the artist and his contemporaries opening Saturday at the Art Institute of Chicago. Read more

Raffaelo Sanzio was the youngest of the three giants of the High Renaissance. He was born in Urbino in 1483 and received his first instruction in the techniques of painting from his father, Giovanni Santi, a minor artist. Urbino, where Raphael spent his youth, was also the seat of the warfaring but art-loving condottiere Federico 11 da Montefeltro. Read more

Alphonse Mucha was born in 1860 in Ivancice, Moravia, which is near the city of Brno in the modern Czech Republic. It was a small town, and for all intents and purposes life was closer to the 18th than the 19th century. Though Mucha is supposed to have started drawing before he was walking, his early years were spent as a choirboy and amateur musician. It wasn't until he finished high school (needing two extra years to accomplish that onerous task) that he came to realize that living people were responsible for some of the art he admired in the local churches. That epiphany made him determined to become a painter, despite his father's efforts in securing him "respectable" employment as a clerk in the local court. Read more

Edgar Degas was born on Rue de la Victoire in Paris, the son of a wealthy art-loving banker. Initially trained in law, he instead entered the Ecole des Beaux Arts in 1855 where he studied under Louis Lamothe. Degas spent a period of time in Italy studying the work of the Old Masters. His first works include many portraits, copies and historical paintings, for example 'Italian Head' (1856) and 'Young Spartans' (1860), all painted in a severely classical style. A chance meeting with Manet led Degas to encounter the Impressionist group and he soon moved away from historical scenes to concentrate on the contemporary. Read more

Pierre-Auguste Renoir was born on 25 February 1841 in Limoges. He was the sixth child of Léonard Renoir (1799-1874) and Marguerite Merlet (1807-1896). In 1844 Renoir and his family moved to Paris where Léonard Renoir earned his living as a tailor. In 1854 Renoir left school and begin his apprenticeship as a porcelain painter at the firm of Lévy frères. His precocious talent for painting would assure his career as a porcelain painter but the firm went bankrupt in 1858. After that Renoir dabbled in a number of different jobs but it seems that he may have decided to become a full-time painter around this date. Read more

Constable and Turner were the leading figures in English landscape painting of the 19th cent. Constable became famous for his landscapes of Suffolk, Hampstead, Salisbury, and Brighton. The son of a prosperous miller, he showed artistic talent while very young but did not devote himself to art until he was 23, when he went to London to study at the Royal Academy. Influenced by the 17th-century landscape painters Ruisdael and Claude Lorrain, his poetic approach to nature paralleled in spirit that of his contemporary, the poet Wordsworth. Read more

Joseph Mallord William Turner was born in Maiden Lane, off Covent Garden in London. Turner showed talent early on and by the age of 13 his father, realising his son was a potentially lucrative asset, apprenticed him to Thomas Malton, a watercolourist. After a year Turner enrolled at the Royal Academy to study painting. By 1793 with the help of his father, Turner had his own studio. His early work consisted of precise drawings of landscapes, churches and country houses, while his main income came from work as a copyist. Read more

Rembrandt HARMENSZOON VAN RIJN (b. July 15, 1606, Leiden, Neth.--d. Oct. 4, 1669, Amsterdam), Dutch painter, draftsman, and etcher of the 17th century, a giant in the history of art. His paintings are characterized by luxuriant brushwork, rich colour, and a mastery of chiaroscuro. Numerous portraits and self-portraits exhibit a profound penetration of character. His drawings constitute a vivid record of contemporary Amsterdam life. The greatest artist of the Dutch school, he was a master of light and shadow whose paintings, drawings, and etchings made him a giant in the history of art. Read more

René François Ghislain Magritte was born on November 21, 1898, in Lessines, Belgium. He studied intermittently between 1916 and 1918 at the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. Magritte first exhibited at the Centre d'Art in Brussels in 1920. After completing military service in 1921, he worked briefly as a designer in a wallpaper factory. In 1923 he participated with Lyonel Feininger, El Lissitzky, László Moholy-Nagy, and the Belgian Paul Joostens in an exhibition at the Cercle Royal Artistique in Antwerp. In 1924 he collaborated with E. L. T. Mesens on the review Oesophage. Read more

Botticelli was a late 15th-century Florentine painter, popular for his graceful Madonnas, altarpieces, and life-size mythological paintings, such as 'Venus and Mars'. He pioneered new types of portraiture in Italy, influenced by Netherlandish art. Read more

Will Rafuse was born in Calgary, Alberta. After spending many years living on the Prairies he moved to Vancouver in 1986. He received a diploma in Graphic Arts and Illustration from Capilano College in North Vancouver and continued his education at Vancouver Community College, receiving a diploma in Computer Graphics and Multimedia Read more

Don Li-Leger's paintings reveal the artist’s intimate knowledge and deep sensitivity to the often hidden realms of nature. Born and raised in British Columbia, he has painted since childhood, focusing initially on birds and animals of his native province. In later years, extensive field trips to the Orient and to wildlife sanctuaries throughout North America extended his vision - and the scope of his subject matter.Recently, his work has taken a new departure, with figurative etchings and more improvisational mono-prints and paintings. Read more

Born in the Italian resort town of Livorno,Cappiello (1875 - 1942) had a natural talent for drawing and his first ambition was to be a great painter. Leonetto Cappiello is often called the father of the Modern Poster. His posters are a sequel to the works of the artists such as Villemot, Cheret and Pal. Read more

Ansel Easton Adams was born on February 20, 1902, in San Francisco, California, near the Golden Gate Bridge. His father, a successful businessman, sent his son to private, as well as public, schools; beyond such formal education, however, Adams was largely self-taught. Charles and Olive Adams gave their son, Ansel, the freedom to grow and become whatever his intellect and talents would allow him to be. At twelve, unable to stand the confinement and tedium of the classroom, he utterly disrupted his lessons with wild laughter and undisguised contempt for the inept ramblings of his teachers. Read more

Caravaggio (1573-1610). Probably the most revolutionary artist of his time, the Italian painter Caravaggio abandoned the rules that had guided a century of artists before him. They had idealized the human and religious experience. Read more

Gustav Klimt (1862-1918) was one of the most innovative and controversial artists of the early twentieth century. Born in 1862 the son of an engraver, Klimt attended the Kunstgewerbeschule (School of Arts and Crafts) in Vienna for seven years starting in 1876. In 1879 he formed with his brother Ernst and a co-student, Franz Matsch (1861-1942), a studio where they executed designs primarily of other artists--for instance, the graffiti designs of Laufberger for the Art Historical Museum and for Hans Makart (1840-1884). Read more

Mark Rothko was born Marcus Rothkowitz on September 25, 1903, in Dvinsk, Russia (now Latvia). In 1913 he left Russia and settled with the rest of his family in Portland, Oregon. Rothko attended Yale University, New Haven, on a scholarship from 1921 to 1923. That year he left Yale without receiving a degree and moved to New York. In 1925 he studied under Max Weber at the Art Students League. He participated in his first group exhibition at the Opportunity Galleries, New York, in 1928. During the early 1930s Rothko became a close friend of Milton Avery and Adolph Gottlieb. His first solo show took place at the Portland Art Museum in 1933. Read more

From his studio in New York City, Roy Lichtenstein did cartoon inspired paintings that helped launch the Pop Art movement. He was unique in that he developed a new visual language in an avant-garde style that was disruptive to viewers and yet was accessible and popular with them. He also did innovative art work that incorporated many late 20th-century movements and addressed a number of social issues. Read more

Titian (Tiziano) was the greatest painter of 16th-century Venice, and the first painter to have a mainly international clientele. He was court painter to the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, and reputedly on terms of friendship with him. He mastered a wide range of subject matter - devotional and mythological themes, portraits and allegories. Read more

Leonardo is one the world’s immortal thinkers, artists and philosophers. In several different fields he proved to be both innovative and several centuries ahead of his contemporaries. Born as illegitimate son of a Florentice noble and peasant woman Leonardo grew up in Vinci, Italy. In his formative years he developed a love of nature and from an early age displayed his remarkable talents and capacities. Read more

Andy Warhol was born Andrew Warhola in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1928. In 1945 he entered the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University) where he majored in pictorial design. Upon graduation, Warhol moved to New York where he found steady work as a commercial artist. He worked as an illustrator for several magazines including Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and The New Yorker and did advertising and window displays for retail stores such as Bonwit Teller and I. Miller. Prophetically, his first assignment was for Glamour magazine for an article titled "Success is a Job in New York." Read more

Paul Klee was born in Münchenbuchsee near Bern on 18 December 1879. In 1898 he decided to move to Munich, where he studied etching and drawing under Heinrich Knirr. Read more

Pablo Picasso (1881 - 1974) was a Spanish artist whose name is almost synonymous with 20th century art. No artist was ever as famous as Picasso was in his own lifetime, or has been since. The controversies over his personality, arrogance, affairs with younger women, and unwillingness to be classified in the art world only added to his fame. Read more

The Russian painter and graphic artist Wassily Kandinsky was one of the great masters of modern art, as well as the outstanding representative of pure abstract painting (using only colors and forms) that dominated the first half of the twentieth century. Read more

is a Chinese-born painter. Born in 1955, Wu grew up in Guangzhou City, China. and he received his BFA from Guangzhou Academy of Fine Art China and his MFA from the Academy of Art University, San Francisco. Read more

Salvador Felipe Jacinto Dalí Domènech, Marquis of Pubol or Salvador Felipe Jacinto Dalí Domènech (May 11, 1904 – January 23, 1989), known popularly as Salvador Dalí, was a Spanish (Catalan) artist and one of the most important painters of the 20th century. He was a skilled draftsman, best known for the striking, bizarre, and beautiful images in his surrealist work. His painterly skills are often attributed to the influence of Renaissance masters.[1] His best known work, The Persistence of Memory, was completed in 1931. Salvador Dalí's artistic repertoire also included film, sculpture, and photography. He collaborated with Walt Disney on the Academy Award-nominated short cartoon Destino, which was released posthumously in 2003. Born in Catalonia, Spain, Dalí insisted on his "Arab lineage," claiming that his ancestors descended from the Moors who invaded Spain in 711, and attributed to these origins, "my love of everything that is gilded and excessive, my passion for luxury and my love of oriental clothes." Read more

French Born in Paris, Monet was the leading French Impressionist landscape painter. Read more

George Stubbs was classified in his lifetime as a sporting painter, and as such was looked down on by the art establishment. He is best remembered for his paintings of horses and his conversation pieces. He studied anatomy, and his pictures of horses are among the most accurate ever painted. Read more

The greatness of Peter Paul Rubens is one of life's mysteries. As famous artists go, this relentlessly grandiose painter doesn’t fit any of our notions of the romantic genius. Rubens, born in 1577 into an exiled Antwerp family, was trained as a courtier-artist in Italy, and went on to become the most prestigious painter at all the courts of Europe. He worked for the monarchies of France, Spain and England; promoted orthodox faith and the absolute right of kings and queens to rule; and nowhere are his affiliations clearer than in his paintings set into the ceiling of the Banqueting House on London's Whitehall. Read more

Well this is novel and a bit of a departure for me. This book is fiction! Read more

From the popular TV series, this title contains step-by-step instructions for making things from everyday objects, such as turning a piece of Clingfilm into a see-through picture, or making a gargoyle doorknocker from a cardboard box and pebble. It also includes a DVD. Read more

Any title like this is a bold claim and something of a hostage to fortune, but a quick flick through the pages reveals a pretty thorough cornucopia of subjects and techniques and a well-designed layout based on a series of 2-page spreads that allow you to see everything at a glance. Trudy Friend is an experienced author and this is an approach she has used to good effect in previous books, so you can fairly say that it's tried and tested. Read more

This is a really rather charming book of the type which doesn't get published often enough. The danger, I suppose, is that of appearing to fall between two stools, of being neither enough of an instructional course nor of being a work of botanical record. However, if you want a basic introduction to botanical illustration that goes somewhere beyond the flower portrait but doesn't get bogged down in a lot of technicality, then this is it. Read more

This is a well-informed book, thoroughly researched and beautifully laid out for the reader to leaf through at random, letting the eye linger over the many visual treats the book holds between its covers, or quickly flick through it in one go until a particular picture takes your fancy. Read more

Denis Thorpe's career as a photojournalist has spanned 5 decades and his subjects range from gritty landscapes to celebrity portraits. Read more

The first and best of Matthew Collings's brilliant modern art books, Blimey! is probably the most readable book in the English language. "Start where you like, it's good all the way through," it says on the back cover, which is true, but it's so good you'll want to read it from the front to the back and then start again. "For every long word there are dozens of short ones," the back cover continues, in the breezy Collings style. Read more

The story is infamous, and one that echoes perpetually across the city. Friends are staying with you at the weekend and they casually fling “seeing some art” into the conversation of plans. You live in the capital but rarely make use of the galleries on offer, so how do you know where to take them to look suitably cultured and knowledgable? Alternatively, you live out of town and want to make the most of a trip to the smoke, where can you go to get the best of the bunch for an art fan? Read more

The bit of art history usually mentioned with regard to Hitler and the Nazis is the desire to to rid Germany of 'degenerate art'. But the Nazis also had a campaign to gather the best of Europe's art from occupied territories for the Fatherland. Read more

ILLUSTRATED SURVEY OF CONTEMPORARY DIGITAL ART FORMS Digital technology has revolutionized the way art is now produced and viewed. Traditional forms such as painting, photography and sculpture have been transformed by digital techniques. Entirely new forms such as software art, digital installations, and virtual reality have emerged, and they are now collected by major museums, institutions, and private collectors. Read more

Willem de Kooning is one of the most important artists of the twentieth century; a true “painter’s painter” whose protean work continues to inspire many artists. In the thirties and forties, along with Arshile Gorky and Jackson Pollock, he became a key figure in the revolutionary American movement of abstract expressionism. Of all the painters in that group, he worked the longest and was the most prolific, creating powerful, startling images well into the 1980s. Read more

Bruce Cole's introduction to Renaissance art is most worthy of praise for the way it helps us understand the ritual purposes which different types of art objects fulfilled. Cole's organizational schema distinguishes between art which was intended for the home, art which was made for the church, and art which was designed for public, communal purposes. We learn that each of these three spheres of life-domestic, religious, and civic-had its own characteristic genres of art objects Read more

A celebration of the artist, mystic, and Nobel nominee Nicholas Roerich, whose life and work significantly influenced the development of modern art and culture. Messenger of Beauty opens the door to the mystical world of Nicholas Roerich and invites us to witness his far-reaching vision. Artist, writer, educator, archaeologist, explorer, mystic, and peacemaker, Roerich (1874-1947) left a rich legacy of some 7,000 paintings, drawings, and set and costume designs (most notably for Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring); 30 books on the mystic East; and countless articles and lectures. Read more

Have you ever had an autograph literally fade away and disappear? How about an important card or picture yellow? Ever seen brilliant colors fade? Of coarse all of these not only affect you emotionally, but also can be felt in your wallet! If it's worth framing, then it's worth protecting! You have heard about conservation glass and UV acrylics, but now there is an easier and less expensive alternative with the new Picture Shields UV inserts. Read more

Framing art has always been painful for me — worse than eyebrow waxing. Several times I have subjected myself to the frame shop experience: I bring in a humble piece, say a watercolor I bought with grocery money from a starving local artist at a street fair. A seemingly innocuous clerk greets me and carries on about how fabulous the art is. A deep discussion about matting options begins, followed by deeper discussion of liners and frames. Read more

Choosing the right frame: what your money buys You may think you want the cheapest frame but remember that low-cost framing can actually damage your picture. Some art should be protected for future generations. A professional framer will be able to advise you on the appropriate level of framing for your artwork - and will know how to make even a modestly priced print look its best Read more

Using a combination of gilt, mirror, unusual mounts, braid and coloured washes will create frames that are works of art in themselves- and give prints and etchings a completely new dimension. Read more

With collectors being more selective than ever, it stands to reason that anyone left in the game is watching his or her cash more carefully than ever. While no one is certain how to make money in this environment, I guarantee the following examples are nine sure-fire ways to lose money. Read more

Quick, convenient, and safe describe the online shopping experience. Online supersellers know that the Internet is a retail heaven with secure servers, credit verification programs, and direct shipping. But, how does the Average Joe cash in with just a click? Read more

Once upon a time there was an avant-garde art world in New York where artists created work unlike anything we had ever seen before. A few people loved it, but the general public was appalled. As a result of World War II, European artists migrated to America enlarging the scene and diminishing Paris as the center. Read more

Probably the highest profile of all modern auctions are the art auctions. Record prices for major works by big names are broken regularly making the newspapers and evening news. The buyers are usually museums or very rich private collectors. Those auctions are just the tip of the iceberg. There are many auctions where you can buy artwork for much less than millions of pounds – auction houses like Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Bonham’s don’t have a complete monopoly of the market. Read more

Before you start Artists specialise in a wide range of subjects - from animal portraiture to abstract murals – as well as a range of techniques, including watercolour, sculpture, video art etc. Their prices also vary widely. Before setting about finding an artist, you need to clearly consider: Read more

1. Buy from a reputable source Do some research. Find out how long the business has been trading, check whether the owner is a member of a local business group and ask friends who they recommend. Gallery members of the Fine Art Trade Guild abide by a code of ethics, so look for the Guild logo. Read more

The definition of art is controversial in contemporary philosophy. Whether art can be defined has also been a matter of controversy. The philosophical usefulness of a definition of art has also been debated. Contemporary definitions are of two main sorts. One distinctively modern, conventionalist, sort of definition focuses on art's institutional features, emphasizing the way art changes over time, modern works that appear to break radically with all traditional art, and the relational properties of artworks that depend on works' relations to art history, art genres, etc. The less conventionalist sort of contemporary definition makes use of a broader, more traditional concept of aesthetic properties that includes more than art-relational ones, and focuses on art's pan-cultural and trans-historical characteristics. Read more

The purpose of the Guild Print Standards is to protect the interests of consumers and maintain confidence in the art and framing industry. Artists, publishers and fine art printers are encouraged to promote their high production standards and the integrity of their limited editions by following Guild Standards and should ideally be used in conjunction with BS 7876:1996. Only prints by fully paid up members of the Guild conforming to Guild Standards can use the Guild logo. Read more

It is amazing how the art world seems to have taken a hold of general society. Many more individuals are inclined to start collecting their own unique art pieces for their homes and offices. Are you interested in starting your own collection of original art? If you do not have thousands of pounds to spend on famous original artwork then you may wish to consider some other ideas and sources for your art pieces. Read more

Contemporary art is forever making the headlines, which shouldn't be surprising as everyone has an opinion about what art is and what they think that it should be. Art is one of those subjects that people say that they know nothing about, and then spend the next ten minutes pontificating on. Most of the public look at contemporary art, as seen for example at events like the Turner Prize, and believe that the up and coming artist deliberately looks for controversy and sensationalism. Read more

Is an ‘online art supermarket’ a contradiction in terms? Read more

featuring historic images of the people and sights of New York, Paris, San Francisco and London as well as some Man Ray photography and images of steam trains and jazz bands. All of the new imagery can be found here. Read more

The Metropolitan in New York, The Louvre in Paris, and London’s Tate Modern– in the world’s top art museums, the surrounds are as evocative as the art itself. Follow our guide to see the world’s finest art works, in the world’s most spectacular art museums. Read more

It appears that art is combating dementia and Alzheimer’s. For many the creative emotions are undamaged and, given the right opportunity, can still flower, despite the onset of such illnesses. A study in Brighton has shown that half of Alzheimer's Disease sufferers who took part showed a significant improvement in their symptoms by the end of the ten-week course. Read more

From Hogarth's bawdy depictions of London slime to fine art and views of the Thames, London's always said cheese to every snapshot offered Read more

Nineteenth Century artwork is a useful tool for studying coastal erosion, according to a retired coastal engineer. Robin McInnes assessed the accuracy of geological and topological features in more than 400 paintings of the Isle of Wight and Hampshire coastline. Dr McInnes said such old masters gave engineers the chance to see coastal features before they were changed by industrial development. Read more

Hope by George Frederic Watts the Victorian visionary artist is Barack Obama's favourite painting: It is said that this painting set the President-Elect on his long path to the White House Read more

Guardian readers entered into a discussion with Jonathon Jones about the 50 works that demand to seen at least once in a lifetime and here is their top 50 Read more

6 February 2008 marks the anniversary of the tragic Munich air crash, in which eight Manchester United players died. The date is likely to be commemorated by Manchester United and England fans around the world. Read more

When you're selling your house, you want to maximize its value. Competition is always fierce when it comes to selling your home and getting the best price. However, there are different opinions on what will sell a house. Many agree that a properly staged home that is well designed can sell a lot faster then a house that is not staged. Read more

Here are some common mistakes that during designing the interior, ranging from the selection of furniture that does not fit (too big or vice versa), to the decorations that are too focused on the decorating trend curve. Please note that the trend decor is something to recur, choose the decor trends you like, make a plan, and follow your plan wisely. So you do not need to throw too much money on parts that do not actually need. Read more

For Renters who can Paint ! Read more

If a room in your house lacks character, by simply placing some fine art prints on the walls can actually make quite an impact. Wall pictures are a necessary accessory in your home and are great to tie in with the room's style and color accent. Before you go off to buy some new pictures for your walls there are a few things you need to plan and decide upon. Here is a quick guide on how to decorate your space with wall art. Read more

BLINDSINABOX are cheap, temporary blinds that are easy to install and require no tools. Just peel off the adhesive strip and hang, covering bare windows quickly and cheaply...simple! Read more

When buying curtains or decorating materials take a cushion from the sofa shopping with you to ensure you get the right colour. Use string covered with chalk to mark straight lines on walls for shelves, wallpaper etc. When planning a child's room get down to their level to see if from a child’s perspective. This will prevent placing hooks etc. too high for them to reach. Never get a tall person to hang pictures for you as this will result in them being fitted too high. Read more

by Alyssa Davis What is the single most effective way to add wall art to a room? Unfortunately, no .magical. method exists. However, we can experiment to determine which blend of methods will create a .perfect. arrangement of art that complements other decor in the room The key is to keep trying and tweaking different techniques, until you find the right ones for a particular room. Here are some methods that you should add to your repertoire: Read more

The bathroom is one of the most important rooms in the house. It may sound funny, but it’s true. Modern design is moving away from the Spartan simplicity of most bathrooms and are focusing more on making the bathroom comfortable, and convenient. People spend a lot of time in them, so why not improve so that the time you spend there is pleasurable and not merely tolerable. When remodelling your bathroom you have to keep in mind that your bathroom is not just a place to wash in. It is an integral part of your home experience. Read more

We decorate everything in our lives, from our appearances to our desks to our homes. Even as children we were taught to decorate boring school text books and we were given a room in our house - our own space where we kept all our toys, clothes and decorations of our lives. Read more

Hanging a picture on a wall is a home improvement project that is often taken for granted. It is not that difficult, but there are a few things that need to be considered and planned out before you attempt to properly get the picture up on the wall. Some may find the following tips quite useful, especially if you have been one that has hung pictures before by the trial and error method. Read more

Planning a weekend of decorating? Avoid last minute dashes to the DIY store and kit yourself out with these decorating essentials before you start: wallpaper table, paint tray, paste brush, dustsheet, steamer, paint roller, paint brushers, wire brush, paper hanging, scissors, masking tape and sponge ... Read more

Not all home decorating ideas require a heavy investment of time and money. If you're looking for a few affordable home interior decorating ideas to freshen up a room over a weekend, try these ten: Read more

Nowadays, there is no more luxurious commodity than space. For example, in London, Bristol and Manchester, where property and land costs per square metre are very high, homeowners are looking to make the best use of every centimetre. Getting more form your space... Read more

We always want our homes to be perfect. That is understandable since our home is our abode, our personal sanctuary, the place we look forward to go to after a whole day of stressful work. This is why, one of the most important things a homeowner has to do is to decorate his or her home in such a way that it will be a nice and relaxing escape. This article reveals top 10 home decoration secrets that you surely would want to know. Read more

Discover 6 improvements to add value to your home These are the improvements that add value, but always seek an estate agent's advice to make sure the added value will apply to your property. All homes have a ceiling price so it's vital to make sure that the cost is not so expensive that you won't make a profit – or even lose money – on your investment . Read more

There are some ‘mistakes’ I see regularly when I visit peoples homes – these are fixes to some of the most common ones –Marie Grainger, Senior Designer, Apiffany Interior Design Ltd. Read more

1. Why use an architect? An architect will do all or some of the following: Help you decide what to do with your building. Translate your ideas into a design to suit your budget. Help you get planning permission and meet all required building regulations. Manage the construction phase, from choosing builders to keeping within budget. Read more

Above all else, the furniture in the living-room should make it livable. It should be grouped so that it offers centers of interest, convenience and comfort. Look for upholstered seating with homespun-type fabric, or toss a pieced quilt over plain fabric or leather. An old rocker is a great addition. Read more

You have decided that rather than go for DIY, you are going to rely on the professionals to do what they do best when it comes to decorating your home. While it is likely that this could work out well, there are no guarantees when it comes to choosing a service provider so you must be sure that you have exercised due diligence is choosing a service provider that can offer everything that you are looking for. Read more

Designers add special touches to holiday decor A little creativity and extra attention can transform a traditional Christmas tree into dazzling holiday art. Decorators and artists offered tips on how to trim the perfect tree -- be it thematic, monochromatic or nostalgic. Read more

Just because the art on your sofa wall stands alone, that doesn't make it a standout. If your art looks lonely, get a little help from some friends -- bring in other well-sized framed pieces to ensure safety in numbers. For smooth nailing, sketch a plan on paper first. Read more

With attention to scale and balance -- and our examples -- your framed collections will be a visual feast, rather than a meager afterthought. Read more

Define a stairway and bring to life its dead wall space in one artistic swoop of picture arranging, rather than the scattershot approach. Coax art to climb the wall stair-step style (gradually moving art a level higher with each picture) to highlight the diagonal railing. Or, anchor the banister with pictures. Let the stairs guide you. Read more

You have just moved into a new home. Perhaps it's your first real home that you plan to invest time and money into decorating and styling. You are eagerly looking for ideas to help make your home comfortable and beautiful. Read more

INSUFFICIENT OR INEFFECTIVE. Do you have insufficient storage space or ineffective storage space? There's a big different. Insufficient storage space means you don't have enough space for your things. Ineffective space means you have enough space for your things, but you're not making the best use of that space. Most closets and cabinets have the volume to hold twice as much as they are usually constructed for. And you probably have quite a few nooks and crannies for storage that you haven't even thought of. Of course, it's important to make sure you don't have things you don't like, are outdated, etc., but it is also important to have effective storage space for the things you do like and enjoy. Read more

Are you tired of waiting for your children to grow up so you can finally let go of your tired, worn couch? Have a real dining room set? Or even lighter toned furnishings? Read more

Boost Your Confidence with Accessories that say “Funky Can Be Fun!” As the old adage goes, “Simplicity is beauty,” one cannot simply surmise that being simple could also mean boredom. Read more

In rooms like the living room and the dining area, the sitting area comprises much of the space. This means that most of the design that can be incorporated into the room must come from the sitting area, if it is to make a visual impact. Read more

One of the biggest problem areas in a room is a large blank wall that stares back at you as you enter. These walls create a feeling of emptiness within a room, and sometimes act to disrupt the flow of colour and design that’s already in place: or they do not fulfil their potential of creating visual impact in a room. Wallpaper is an inexpensive and popular way to decorate walls and bring them to life. Depending on the size of the wall, its coverage, and what image it wants to portray, wallpapers lend versatility to a room and allow for your creativity. Working with wallpaper is easy when you know how to do it, and here are some tips. Read more

Whether you are renovating your home for your own personal pleasure or in preparation for its sale, the internet can help you in many different ways. Aside from the usual websites where you can gather simple tips and instructions on how to repair and improve specific areas in your house, there is also vital information that you can get to ensure that you will buy or hire the best tools and supplies. Searching the internet for specific information can be a little hard, so here are some of the things that you should look for in order to save time and guarantee useful information in the quickest time possible. Read more

Your home could sell for about 20% more! Yes, it’s possible. You don’t have to employ any underhanded techniques to accomplish such. Simply improving how your home looks and creating an illusion that appeals to home buyers can make your home look drastically more than what it is currently valued at. Read more

Did you know that you could drastically increase the value of your home without having to invest heavily in having your home remodelled or refitted? Yes, it’s possible! And you won’t even have to spend as much just to make it happen! Read more

Is it time to decorate your new home? Or are you planning to have a major home improvement soon? Are you thinking of how to have your wall finished? Are you considering having wallpaper or painted mural instead? There a number of ways for you to finish, or refinish, your wall. Wallpaper and painted murals are two of the more popular options now because of their decorative style. Choosing between the two may be difficult as they are both very appealing. There are several factors you also have to consider when making your decision. Here are some advantages and disadvantages of each to help you decide on which to choose. Read more

Everything you need to know about decorating with colour you didn't learn in kindergarten! However, the job of choosing and using colours can be fun and even easy. It's worthwhile, too, because color is the most emotional and compelling element in any setting. Read more

Interior decorating is that medium which can make your closed spaces convey to the observer a lot about you and your lifestyle through strategic use of elements which range from the visual (colour, lighting, form) to the tactile (surface, shape, texture) to the auditory (noise, echo). The more alluring the result, the more the aesthetic, practical and technical appreciation for these elements the designer must have. Read more

Upgrading your bathroom is one of the best ways to increase a home's value. A bathroom with updated interior design style shows off this much-used room. Design in the bathroom should be both functional and comfortable. Here are ten tips for decorating a bathroom that will impress: Read more

Yes, it’s time to think about returning to or starting college or University. It is important for students to decorate their room to help them ease into student life, relax and make them feel at home. We have a few key tips to spice up their space – Read more

You have just found a beautiful painting that you know would look wonderful in the living room. So now you have it at home and you hammer a nail into the wall above the couch and hook the painting over it. Easy! Pleased with your purchase you stand back. You tip your head to one side and then the other. Then you squint at the picture. Something is definitely not right but you can't put your finger on it. If you've ever found yourself dissatisfied with the appearance of the art or family photos on your walls you're not alone. Many people make the same common mistakes that the eye can read as awkward but the individual does not know how to fix. Here are some guidelines to keep in mind when arranging art on a wall: Read more

Decorating a room in your home does not need to be expensive or difficult. Often you can achieve fantastic design results by spending a small amount of money on items that make a big difference, or by using items you already own. Read more

However, buying art for someone else can be quite tricky. The last thing you want happening is to buy something that doesn’t suit the décor of your friend’s house. And your friend might end up quietly putting the art piece away into the store room after a while. You have to make sure that the art piece that you buy must compliment the décor of his home. Read more

In most interiors art photographs are brought in as the finishing touch. It's one of the elements that can instantly warm up a space and make it feel like home. Photographs can expand a space both visually and emotionally, give us a window to the world, bring interest and colour to the wall spaces, and generally liven up the place. Read more

Because drawing is often self-taught, you tend to keep making mistakes much longer than when a teacher is available to help. Here are the 10 most common mistakes beginners make when they learn to draw. Some big, some small, all fixable. Check and see whether these errors crop up in your drawings, and get some tips on fixing them. Read more

You’ve seen them at amusement parks, corporate trade shows and even wedding receptions - the caricature artists who sketch a lovely rendition of your pronounced chin or schnoozola. These freelancers aren’t just drawing cartoons. It takes some talent and skill to draw caricatures. Whether or not you’ve always aspired to become a caricature artist or are just now, for the first time entertaining the idea, once you understand a few of the basic keys, you too can draw caricatures. Then maybe you can spend your summers in amusement parts earning money for your renditions of extra large foreheads and Dumbo ears on the vacationers. Read more

When it comes to decorating our homes, pieces of art are a staple feature of our properties, whether it’s a print of a favourite painting, a piece we’ve created ourselves or a family photograph preserved on canvas. Read more

Michael Jackson will be remembered, most likely, as a shattered icon, a pop genius who wound up a mutant of fame. That’s not who I will remember, however. His mixture of mystery, isolation, indulgence, overwhelming global fame, and personal loneliness was intimately known to me. For twenty years I observed every aspect, and as easy as it was to love Michael — and to want to protect him — his sudden death yesterday seemed almost fated. Read more

Simply put, I went blind. Because of a rare genetic disorder my sight deteriorated and by 40 I was in a daily blur, unemployed, swinging a white cane to keep from tripping over the pavement cracks and adjusting to the "sighted" chapter of my life being squarely behind me. Read more

You don`t have to own an original Monet or Constable to have an art collection that is of high value. The cost of replacing limited edition pieces, professionally framed work or canvasses can quickly add up. That`s why insurance is so vital to protect the items we treasure and ensure we`re not left out of pocket if we suffer a burglary, a fire or if our collection is damaged in transit or while on display at an exhibition. Insuring art, however, is rarely a straightforward task and requires a specialist policy. Read more

Reviewed by Kathy Brewis When Herbert Wernham died, he left – surely against his better judgment – a curiously personal archive. Wernham was a botany curator in what was then, nearly 100 years ago, the natural history section of the British Museum. He was not good with money, colleagues recalled. He had greater success with women. We know this because he recorded all his “conquests” in alphabetical order in a card index. The lucky girls weren’t just named. On each card was a neatly pinned sprig of pubic hair. “Once a curator, always a curator,” muses Richard Fortey in Dry Store Room No 1, his affectionate portrayal of the institution in which he spent his working life. Read more

The men in dark suits have had a brush with inspiration. Deciding that a splash of colour may put their rivals into the shade, British executives have doubled the amount they spend on corporate art since the dot-com boom to more than £10 million a year. Read more

With the increased use of the Internet, shopping is becoming a truly global experience, with more and more consumers turning to their computers to buy things like software, CDs and books. Like mail order, people appreciate the convenience of not having to walk around the shops, and can browse among a huge choice of goods in their own time. Read more

Spiritual Origin The majority of countries that celebrate Mother’s Day do so on the second Sunday of May. On this day, it is common for Mothers to be lavished with presents and special attention from their families, friends and loved ones. But it hasn’t always been this way. Only recently dubbed “Mother’s Day,” the highly traditional practice of honoring of Motherhood is rooted in antiquity, and past rites typically had strong symbolic and spiritual overtones; societies tended to celebrate Goddesses and symbols rather than actual Mothers. In fact, the personal, human touch to Mother’s Day is a relatively new phenomenon. The maternal objects of adoration ranged from mythological female deities to the Christian Church itself. Only in the past few centuries did celebrations of Motherhood develop a decidedly human focus. Read more

For all its popularity history doesn’t give us any guarantees as to the origins of Valentine’s Day, but we know that it contains vestiges of early Christian Church and ancient Rome. Read more

Turn your art prints into a ready to hang canvas. Canvas transfers offer an affordable and available alternative to an original in fact the process can give a paper print the look of an original by transferring it onto a canvas. The canvas transfer process makes the artwork look like an original painting and this is why they have become so popular. Read more