SA Rocks

A few weeks ago I got wind of ArtRevision.com and immediately loved the idea and had one of those “Why didn’t I think of that” ideas. I love the concept and think it has a lot of legs to go far and keep the founders very, very busy.

So I thought that I’d get in touch with some of the people behind the idea. And this is what I got out of them:

First off, tell me exactly what Art Revision is and how it came about.

Nicola Perk: The big idea of Art Revision is to provide affordable hand-crafted oil paintings. Art Revision is a website that allows anyone to upload their digital photos or select old masters’ paintings that they’d like replicated. Our team of artists complete the painting, and then we deliver to anywhere in the world. It was Yolande who started it and the team from World Wide Creative who evolved it into a web-based business.

Yolande Roed: It started by accident. My husband, Fred, always had canvasses and paints lying around the house, so when my first child was seven months old I was at home, bored, and wanting something to do while baba was sleeping. I picked up a paintbrush and started painting.

Nicola Perk: …and everyone was amazed!

Yolande Roed: Well, it was my husband who’s really the artist, but I really enjoy painting. My first attempt was a copy of a Renoir.

Nicola Perk: It was so good; Fred didn’t talk to her for a week.

Exactly what is art?

NP: I think people have different views on this. Me – I think art is something that people enjoy looking at.

YR: Art is an experience, whether participating or viewing.

Aren’t you just copying other people’s work?

NP: For the masterpieces, yes. Not everyone can afford a Van Gogh original. We only make replicas of artists whose works are in the public domain.

YR: In the case of the digital photos, nope. This is more than copying. It’s a conversion of an image to another medium. In the case of the artworks, it’s a way of honouring the original work. None of the work is signed as an original. In Italy, there are respected schools where apprentice artists are taught to reconstruct the famous masters.

The cost of the paintings are fairly priced, why is that?

NP: That is the opportunity that Art Revision is exploiting. Every painting we deliver is hand painted, which is something that usually costs a lot of money. Our model allows us to harness economy of scale and keep the costs down.

Yolande Roed: It’s not one painter anymore, which would make it more expensive – it’s a team of painters. I don’t actually do any painting anymore. When I’m not with my kids, I spend much of my time phoning resellers and making sales. We outsource the paintings to a variety of highly skilled painters.

How long does it take to reproduce an average order from the website?

NP: Paintings take 3-4 weeks from the order – just enough time for the paint to dry.

Yolande Roed: If delivering outside of South Africa it may take longer for the actual shipping.

Why did you decide to launch this idea / company on a web platform?

NP: It’s what we at World Wide Creative call an ‘Accelerator Project’ which is part of our whole Heavy Chef philosophy of ‘Never Trust a Skinny Chef’. We all spend 1 day a week on projects of our own in order to flex our creative and technical muscles, as well as to educate ourselves. In this way, we experiment with our own ingredients, so to speak.

YR: It’s also something that allows someone like me – a stay at home mom – to gain additional income. Anyone can sign up as a reseller and then make money just by referring a painting. This becomes so much easier online.

What has the response been so far since your official launch?

NP: Unbelievable!

YR: The thing that really makes people excited is when they see a real painting.

What is the most interesting piece that you have been asked to reproduce?

NP: Our first sale via the new web system was to my father-in-law who is an avid racer. He got emotional when he saw his photo of him racing an old car transformed into a large oil painting. Yolande painted a Gaugin replica and all the responses were focused on how amazing the lady’s bottom was.

YR: Also, I painted a Gustav Klimt, which got stolen from our garage. I was so honoured.

Who does all the painting? Just one person?

NP: Yolande used to be the sole painter, but as demand grew we used our network to find suitable artists.

YR: The artists who paint the oils from photos are very specialist in their skills, and so are different from the artists painting the replicas.

And finally, the existential art question: “Does art imitate life, or life imitate art”, what do you think?

NP: I am not a very deep thinker, so art imitates life.

YR: Well, I tend to, at this stage of my life experience, agree with Heidegger who aptly put it this way : “The artist and his work are equally primordial. The artist is the origin of the work. The work is the origin of the artist. Neither is without the other.” It’s impossible to trace art to a single principle and the consequent danger of generalizing that would follow. Other than that, if it matches the couch, it’s good.

Thanks to the ArtRevision team for getting involved in this interview. I can’t stress enough how great it is to see such a unique idea coming to fruition and proving to be fun as well as profitable.

For more information about ArtRevision and how to get your paintings done visit the ArtRevision website. But as a closing here are some steps that the site provides about how to get from your photo to a painting:

1. Select the “Create oil paintings from your photos” on the home page
or click here.

2. Press the browse button & find your image file.

3. Press “Upload” & wait for your image to appear

Please note the file size should be around 500kb & in jpg format

4. Fill out the required details e.g. size and quantity, along with any additional details.

5. Add to cart and either carry on shopping or start the buying process.

6. Payments can be made via EFT or via Credit Card.

7. Before shipment we will send you a photo of the painting for approval.

Please note that the size is constrained to the original ratio of your image. If you require a bespoke size please send us your request via email sales@artrevision.com.

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