Amazon takes on the art world with new section selling everything from prints

ict reporter:::Amazon has taken aim at the online art world with a new section selling everything from £130 prints to a £3.1m Norman Rockwell oil painting. The new Amazon Art service, which launches today, includes 40,000 pieces of art from 150 galleries and dealers, including London’s DegreeArt. Artists such as Damien Hirst, Salvador Dali and Andy Warhol are already being offered for sale. "We are excited to bring one of the largest selections of fine art direct from galleries to our customers," said Amazons’s Peter Faricy, vice president for the Amazon Marketplace. "Amazon Art gives galleries a way to bring their passion and expertise about the artists they represent to our millions of customers." Customers can buy photographs by Clifford Ross starting at £130, Andy Warhol’s ‘Sachiko’ for £29,000, Claude Monet’s ‘L’Enfant a la tasse, portrait de Jean Monet’ for £945,000, and Norman Rockwell’s “Willie Gillis: Package from Home” for £3.1m - all without having to leave their computer. "We’re excited to list our artwork on Amazon to make it more convenient for our existing clientele, and to help us reach new clientele," said Holden Luntz, owner and founder of Holden Luntz Gallery. "We operate a wonderful fine art gallery, yet realise that the models for dealing in contemporary arts have evolved in this digital age and ecommerce is a channel to reach more clientele." The move comes just a day after Amazon boss Jeff Bezos announced he was buying the Washington Post.