Almost every day, someone will say to us: "I want to start buying art and building my collection, but I have no idea where to start." For most people, collecting art can be a very intimidating process, with "art" being something that you find in museums and galleries, not in your own home.

One of our favorite "places to start" when it comes to art collecting is 20X200, a groundbreaking website launched in 2007 by a tech-savvy entrepreneur named Jen Bekman. 20X200's concept is simple: Depending on the week, the website offers new work by either an emerging or established artist. 8"x10" editions of 200 sell for $20 (hence the name 20X200), while 16"x20" editions of 20 sell for $200, and 30"x40" editions of 2 sell for $2,000. As 20X200 has grown over the years, along with discovering new talent, Bekman has attracted to the project such blue-chip photographers and artists as Todd Hido, William Wegman, Lawrence Weiner and many others.

What Bekman, a former dotcom media executive, understands best is that they key to selling art today is to use technology and social media to make buying and collecting art accessible and fun--two qualities that are not likely to be associated with buying art from most galleries. The idea of an online gallery selling high-quality collectible artist editions with prices starting as low as $20 is something that would have been unheard of a few years ago.

With 20X200, Jen Bekman, our Character Approved pick this week, has revolutionized how people buy art, allowing everyone to an art collector, no matter what their budget.

[Image: Jeremy Kohm for 20x200]