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Stephen Timms supports small business set to make big impact on UK art market

Thursday 10 July 2008

An east London company is aiming to revolutionize the way in which contemporary art is understood, appreciated, marketed and sold in London and across the UK.

Art-Switch, based at the Stratford Workshops, offers a unique online lending library, enabling clients to borrow artworks for up to three months at a time. Businesses and individual clients pay £365 a year to register – only a pound a day – and can choose artworks to test out in their offices and homes before taking the decision to buy.

Stephen Timms, MP for East Ham and Minister of State for Employment and Welfare Reform, recently visited Art-Switch’s offices to discover how the company is aiming to improve levels of art literacy and trading conditions for artists.

Parag Shah, founder and director of Art-Switch, said: “It’s fantastic that Stephen could visit and see for himself how our innovative library works. By enabling clients to borrow artworks at eminently affordable prices, we're helping to fill thousands of blank walls across London and around the UK.

“We're also creating better working conditions for the artists themselves, involving royalties, better financial terms and equal opportunities for emerging artists. Ultimately, our aim is to create a fairer, more accessible market and increase understanding of contemporary art.”

Artists who market their work via Art-Switch receive £1 a day while their art is borrowed, plus 75% of the sale price. Prices are regulated by a stock market system based on the popularity of the work.

Art-Switch clients already include Imperial College, St James Place Bank Partnership, Morgan Sindall Investments, Arbor Ventures and the University of East London (UEL), where Fine Art students are already benefiting from marketing their work through the site.

Pete Cobb, Subject Director for Fine Art at UEL, said: “Art-Switch offers a great opportunity for our students to get exposure and regular payment for their work before they’ve even completed their degree.”

UEL’s Knowledge Dock enterprise development service has supported Art-Switch’s development by offering business advice and training, as well as becoming a client of the company and borrowing artworks for their offices.

Martin Chan, Communications Manager at Knowledge Dock, said: “It's been great to work with Art-Switch and see their innovative idea develop into a successful new business. We've also had a lot of fun deciding which paintings to choose for our offices."

For further information, contact Parag Shah on 020 85550037 or parag.shah@art-switch.com, or visit www.art-switch.com.

For details and pictures contact Daniel Cherry: 020 8223 2194

Notes to Editors

The University of East London (UEL) is a global learning community with over 28,000 students from over 120 countries world-wide. Our vision is to achieve recognition, both nationally and internationally, as a successful and inclusive regional university proud of its diversity, committed to new modes of learning which focus on students and enhance their employability, and renowned for our contribution to social, cultural and economic development, especially through our research and scholarship. We have a strong track-record in widening participation and working with industry.

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