Art connoisseurs don't always have the time or energy to schlep to Basel or New York and the other myriad contemporary art fairs that have sprouted in the world's cultural capitals. Enter Viewing in Private, the first exclusively online international contemporary art fair.

This isn't an amateur Internet startup endeavor: VIP is attracting an elite set of informed collectors — although nobody has to know they're wearing pajamas when they place a claim on that Pollock.

It's a one week-only Internet affair, and Contemporary Arts Museum Houston senior curator Valerie Cassel Oliver is lending her advice to online attendees with a tour of 20 artists that she hand picked by browsing the virtual booths. Along with other curators the world over, she was invited to curate a selection of artwork "to give people some opinions and different perspectives."

"I really wanted to make it a true mix," Oliver tells CultureMap. "It's a representation of the things I'm interested in aesthetically." The curator culled works by a range of young, mid-career and under-recognized older artists. Included on her tour are Houston artists Trenton Doyle Hancock and Robert O'Neill. She also recommends the work of Brooklyn-based William Villalongo, a young African American painter who creates "densely mythical narratives" on shaped canvases.

"There are artists to keep tabs on, and people who should have a second look," she says. "Maybe they have been in the field creating awhile, but haven't received a substantial evaluation."

For example, Oliver selected a piece by video and performance artist Joan Jonas, who is currently enjoying a resurgence. "If you didn't make it to Venice to see her beautiful installation, then you definitely want to see this," she says.

"Then there are also stalwarts who paved the way we understand contemporary art, like William Kentridge's most recent video." Oliver also included Donald Moffett, who will receive a survey at CAMH in October.

To create her tour, Oliver navigated what felt like a physical building inserted into a web browser. In some respects, the computer screen can't convey the glory of certain works of art. For the work of photographer Erin Shiress, which appears in the curator's tour, the depth of prehistoric-looking clay tools simply can't be perceived.

However, the online format presents perks like live chat with gallery owners. The organizers of VIP are betting that the week-long fair will draw millions, and if it's any indication, blue-chip dealers like Larry Gagosian and White Cube are among the founding galleries. The participating galleries don't have to pay the initial costs of shipping art work to a physical fair — but they do have to invest between $5,000 and $20,000 for that shiny virtual booth.

"I think it's a successful exercise to see if the art fair can be translated," Oliver suggests. "It's an interesting template."

She predicts that the format may also be applied to specialty art fairs, such as San Francisco's Fine Print Fair, or international book fairs. While admitting that she prefers physical art fairs, Oliver is eager to observe the VIP's impact on the celebrated Armory Show, taking place in New York in March.

"It really will be interesting to see how this will resonate in the future," Oliver says.

The Viewing in Private art fair is accessible at VIPartfair.com through Jan. 30.