Case study · E-commerce concept · Art
Linia: a concept for selling original art online that answers the buyer’s doubts before checkout.
A Wiserwires R&D concept for an artist or a small gallery: a catalogue of originals and limited editions, artwork pages built around trust, and an order flow that covers certificates, returns and VAT.
- Client
- Wiserwires R&D
- Service
- E-commerce · web design
- Timeline
- 2026, concept
- Stack
- Astro · Stripe · Postgres · headless CMS
01
Why we looked at it
Online is now a steady part of the art market: in 2024, 18% of global art sales by value were made online, about $10.5 billion [1].
What holds buyers back is the gap between a screen and a painting. Among people who had not yet bought art online, 70% worried the work would look different in real life, 66% that they could not see it first, and 63% about trusting the seller. 91% said detailed condition reports would make them more confident, and 90% said the same about being able to trace a work’s provenance [2].
In the EU the shop also has to get the rules right: buyers in a distance sale can withdraw within 14 days, though works made to order are exempt [3]; artists are owed a royalty when a work is resold through the trade [4]; and works of art have their own VAT rules [5].
02
What we designed
-
Artwork pages built around trust
Several photos per work, including a close-up and the work in a room at scale; size, medium and year up front; a condition report and the certificate of authenticity stated before checkout.
-
Originals and editions
An original sells once and leaves the catalogue. A limited edition shows its size and how many are left, and sells out cleanly.
-
Checkout and records
Card payment, VAT handled per buyer country, a certificate issued for each sale and the 14-day return window built into the order. Commissions go through a request form, because work made to order follows different rules.
-
The artist’s side
Orders, stock and payouts in one admin view, so the shop does not run on email threads.
Screens · Architecture
-
Four layers, from an artwork to a delivered parcel.
Screens · Concept screens
Concept-
Catalogue with filters. Sample artworks and artists. -
Artwork page: photos, framing, trust details.
Screens · Buyer research
-
What holds buyers back. Source: Hiscox Online Art Trade Report 2023.
Screens · Mobile
Concept-
The work shown in a room, on a phone.
03
Where it stands
-
4
layers designed: catalogue, shop, order, people
-
4
trust signals on every artwork page
-
3
concept screens: catalogue, artwork page, mobile
-
2
languages, with prices in lei and euro
Status, October 2026: design concept by Wiserwires R&D. It is not a client project and has not been built; the artists, artworks and prices in the screens are samples.
04
What building it would take
An artist or gallery with photographed works, a decision on shipping (crating, insurance and which countries), and an accountant to confirm the right VAT treatment for their case.
The trust signals only work if they are real: condition reports need real close-ups, and certificates need a signature the buyer can check.