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| A woman washes her hands in clean water from a well in India. |
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Compassion Gallery, a newly established fine art gallery, says a picture is worth a thousand lives, and then some. Coming on the heels of a successful Kickstarter campaign, Compassion Gallery captures the emotions of people who have a combined love for beautiful images and helping others. Their business model: Sell beautiful limited-edition fine art photography prints, and donate 100% of the after-tax profits to charity.
The concept of selling fine art photography isn't new. Photographers like Steve McCurry ("Afghan Girl" / National Geographic) and Peter Lik have already tapped into the multimillion-dollar industry by selling their prints to art-loving consumers. In fact, the New York Times reported in February 2015 that Lik alone had sold more than $440 million dollars in prints.
So can Compassion Gallery run with the likes of Lik and McCurry? Only time will tell, but they're off to a positive start. Founders and photographers, Ray Majoran and Brian Klassen, tested the waters through Kickstarter to see if their photos and idea would hold up. Not only did it hold up, but they were featured by Kickstarter as a "Project We Love." That meant prime-time viewing on a site that gets millions of visitors each week, and has raised over $2.7 billion for independent projects (source: kickstarter.com).
"Our hope is to marry Compassion Gallery with people who love art and want to make a difference in the world," says Majoran. "We believe that hanging something on a wall is about more than just décor; it's about making a statement. And if hanging something on your wall helps some of the world's most vulnerable people, then that is quite a statement."
Compassion Gallery sells all of its work online. Recognizing the dilemma of not being able to touch a physical piece of art before it's purchased, they developed a virtual reality Room Preview tool. Using the VR tool, customers can preview any piece of art in multiple rooms, frame styles, wall colors and sizes, before they buy it.
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| Virtual reality room preview tool. Customers can preview any Compassion Gallery art in multiple rooms, frame styles, wall colors and sizes, before they buy it. |
Compassion Gallery exists to document the world with fresh eyes, to inspire humanity with God's beauty, and to bring hope to the most vulnerable. For more information, visit compassion.gallery. Download brand assets and photo samples from compassion.gallery/press.
SOURCE: Compassion Gallery
