You're Gonna Need More Wall Space
On-demand service lets shoppers buy their favorite Museum of Fine Arts, Houstonpainting
Auguste Renoir’s The Dancer looks breathtaking in the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston gallery, but just imagine how good it would look hanging in the bedroom of a pint-sized ballerina in training. Or perhaps your taste runs more towards William Bouguereau’s The Elder Sister, a painting synonymous with the MFAH? If so, both paintings and thousands more are available through 1000 Museums, an on-demand archival print service that recreates some of the world’s most famous works of art.
The MFAH quietly launched the service in February 2010, giving museum visitors access to paintings by Vincent Van Gogh, Frederic Remington and others from the MFAH permanent collection. Each painting is approved by a curator before being released and the goal is to make up to 30 paintings available each month.
Shoppers search by artist, subject or period, choose a print and then customize the framing options.
Shoppers search by artist, subject or period, choose a print and then customize the framing options. The paintings are reproduced on archival paper, frames are handmade and archival 8-ply matboard and premium acrylic glazing finish the process.
Prints start at $19 and depending on the size of frame, the finished product is under $350. Pieces can be sent directly to a shopper’s address.
A 1000 Museums touch screen kiosk is located at the MFAH shop in the Beck Building, but shoppers can also go online to make purchases during the holiday season and beyond. The service is also connected to museums around the world such as the Louvre, the Guggenheim and the Van Gogh Museum.
“Everybody loves looking for a neat piece of art and with this, you take the museum with you,” Patricia Smith, MFAH retail operations director says.