If you appreciate art, try searching for online art galleries on the Internet and you will be amazed at the rich and varied offerings that are available to you. The parade of art is more than just a display of great artwork. There are auction sites, listing of important art events, informative sites that narrate the history of the great artists of all time. And, of course, there's gallery after gallery of timeless and awe-inspiring paintings.

A typical art website contains thousands of art pieces, while the more popular among these sites boast of stirring masterpieces in the hundreds of thousands. Meanwhile, other sites display paintings by subject matter, whether landscape, still life, figurative, impressionist or abstract. There are websites dedicated to showcasing the works of Pablo Picasso , Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Claude Monet, Henri Matisse, Vincent Van Gogh , Edgar Degas and the other great masters. Others focus on discovering the outstanding artists of today and are a God-send to young and aspiring artists everywhere because it gives them more opportunities to get that elusive first break.

With over a dozen websites dedicated to lucrative art auctions, one gets the sense that the art scene is a thriving business where millions of dollars exchange hands. And the good fortune seems to have trickled down to the artists as well. Week after week, these websites announce the latest sales by today's artists (with photos showing the beaming artist beside his work) in a seemingly endless parade. There is also room for the small and medium-sized entrepreneur in the online art world. At this end of the spectrum are the websites which charge $400-800 for a hand-painted reproduction of select art pieces at varying sizes to boot.

A notable aspect of the online art industry is that it provides artists with a dependable source of income, making the pursuit of art a more viable endeavour. Online art galleries typically commission new artists to assemble artworks for an exhibit. Payment is either in the form of an agreed-on amount or a commission of sales that the exhibit will generate. Meanwhile, established painters have an entirely different arrangement. They pay the gallery a rental fee up front and retain all proceeds of their exhibit.