A virtual gallery is offering Sussex artists a place to trade on the web.

Hove-based Artprintz.net provides an alternative to traditional gallery exhibitions with a web site displaying artists' work.

Administrator Ember Stone-Pierce said: "We charge considerably less than even the smallest permanent galleries to show work on our web site.

We are able to pass on the savings by not having to run a full-time venue with all the related costs.

"It's not the galleries' fault they are forced to charge such high commissions but we can afford to take a commission of only 25 per cent."

The site aims to attract unknown artists trying to gain recognition in their fields.

Mrs Stone-Pierce said: "Last year's Brighton Festival was an inspiration.

It revealed some of the hidden talent in the city. "We could see there was a big hole in the market with many fantastic artists not getting the opportunities their better known colleagues enjoy.

"The internet seemed a good way to level the playing field.

There is so much unique art in Sussex, we wanted everyone to experience the magic."

The site went live in February with a selection of five artists' work. It now has about 40 artists online and a sign-up rate of three new exhibitors a week.

The site is split into sections for different types of art. It has a broad selection of media covering ceramics, sculpture, watercolour, oils and sketches.

Mrs Stone-Pierce said: "Each artist may display up to six pieces of artwork in each category at any time.

"We levy a nominal charge of £2.50 for each piece. The artists supply us with digital pictures of their work or we arrange for photographs to be taken in digital format, so visitors can clearly see what is being offered.

The work is kept by the artist in their own premises until payment has been received."

The prices for a work can vary from £100 to £2,000. Mrs Stone-Pierce said: "It's a big price range because every creation is different. It can be a great investment to buy a piece of original art from an artist when they are starting out."

Brighde Stewart is a Brighton-based ceramics artist.

Her work, which she describes as "sculpture celebrating the voluptuous sensuality of the female form", was added to the ceramics section of the Artprintz site this week.

Ms Stewart said: "Four years ago, I was diagnosed with ME and I had time to work on my art as I was too ill to do a fulltime job.

I found out about Artprintz after exhibiting at one of the Brighton Festival open houses.

Preparing for the open house had been too strenuous and I suffered two relapses trying to get everything ready in time.

It was wonderful to hear someone was prepared to do all the marketing and administration I needed while all I had to do was create the pieces. "It has enabled me to carry on with my passion knowing I might be able to build a career despite my illness."

Artprintz arranges contracts to lease works for people to display them on loan.

The artist agrees to hand over his or her work to a third party for a given time and receives a monthly payment for the lease.

www.artprintz.net