Many people consider art to be something that occurs within galleries and museums, and of course on the walls of those who enjoy everything from Banksy to Picasso, be they art critics or wealthy Cheeky Bingo players. But what does the online space have to offer those who love to create art?

Well, two things, primarily – commerce, and a larger audience. These are both due to the fact that the world wide web is just that – a world-wide network of computers that enable you to show new art to potentially huge numbers of people almost instantly, and with very little fuss. Art galleries are no longer the be all and end all of showcasing and selling your art.

The commerce side to art is a huge draw for artists who know that sometimes, the only way to see work sell is to have it exhibited, and as there are more artists than gallery spaces, this isn’t an easy task. But with the internet, all you need’s a Flickr account, or a basic website, and you can show off scans, photos, even 3D Flash-enabled content where someone can see your sculpture from three hundred and sixty different angles.

The audience numbers you usually get will also rise, as people have a far higher change of running into your art when they’re on the web – they don’t have to walk into a specific gallery. Someone might like it and tweet about it – that then gets retweeted, and again, and again, and soon thousands of people are checking out your art on the web and you’ve made a name for yourself.

Twitter’s not the only community, of course – Flickr, DeviantArt, art forums – all of these are viable platforms for promoting to and sharing your work with others. So get your work out there, and who knows – you could be selling you art online.