An artists take on Artflock.com

Artflock is an online gallery for artists and art buyers. They are UK based but don't let that scare you. The site is primarily made for a UK audience but it also has a growing number of international and US artists and buyers. The site is professional looking, and feels like a place you feel comfortable purchasing from. The artwork selection is varied from amateur to professional work but there are some fantastic artists like Pete Nawara (I'd really love to do a collaborative work with him).

The site launched in May 2007, and even though the site is relatively new it has attracted a strong and wide selection of artwork. To date paintings and jewelry have been the biggest sellers, but being a young site that could be open to evolution.

The home page features top rated artwork by visitors and a promotion for a spotlighted artist. I think it's nice but I'd like to see the promoted artist rotate out a bit more frequently. Also the top rated art doesn't change enough for repeat visitors - I might reduce the size of this and offer up other featured artwork.

My wishlist for this site would be a better way to search - maybe a parametric search widget or something else. I also wish the site was a little more US friendly (I really hate converting inches to cm manually). I love the color green, but personally I like a neutrally colored site so the art pops off the page more. The site also feels a little too quiet and serene - there's some action in the blog, but I'd love to get the skinny on the UK art scene, hot emerging artists, competitions, art raves or other events, maybe drum up more community interaction like Etsy. I really think sites like this can use their voice to help drive buzz and awareness around emerging artists. Overall I'd like this site to feel more like an event or a scene rather than a catalog - kind of like Threadless.com. And I think that kind of stuff is on Artflock's radar.

Like any of these sites, browse around a little and make sure it's a good fit for you. But I think ArtFlock is definitely one to start getting involved in.