Who We Are
Seabird Online Services is a managed web services company based in the Chicago area. We design, build, host, and maintain websites for visual artists — painters, photographers, and mixed media artists.
We're not an agency that hands you a website and walks away. We're not a DIY platform that leaves you to figure it out. We're a partner who handles everything — design, hosting, security, updates, SEO, eCommerce, print fulfillment — so you can focus on creating your work.
Why We Exist
Seabird was founded by a working oil painter with over 30 years in technology — someone who spent years frustrated with every platform available to artists. Fine Art America buried the work. FASO couldn't handle prints properly. Art Storefronts locked you into their printer and the color quality suffered. None of them delivered real SEO or gave artists genuine control.
So he built the solution himself. Then other artists started asking for the same thing, and Seabird Online Services was born — at the direct encouragement of a master printmaker who saw the same gap from the fulfillment side.
Why We're Different
Most web design companies want volume. They want to build as many websites as possible, collect payment, and move on to the next project.
We take a different approach. We're selective about who we work with. We look for artists whose work we can genuinely champion — people who are serious about their craft and ready for a web presence that matches the quality of what they create.
When you work with Seabird, you're not getting a vendor. You're getting someone who actually cares whether your website helps you succeed.
Most of the artists we work with were introduced to us by someone who knows us — a printmaker, a fellow painter, another client. We've never chased volume, and we don't intend to start. A small roster means every artist gets the attention their work deserves, and it means we only take on people whose work we're glad to stand behind.
Who We Serve
We work with visual artists — oil, acrylic, gouache, and watercolor painters, pastel, graphite, and charcoal artists, mixed media artists, and photographers. People who need a professional online presence that showcases their work and actually sells it, without giving up commissions to a platform or wrestling with technology that wasn't built for them.
We understand the creative process because we live it. We understand the technology because we've built enterprise systems for decades. That combination means you get a partner who speaks both languages.
The Seabird Philosophy
We only manage what we host. We only host what we manage.
This isn't a limitation — it's a commitment. When everything is under one roof, we can actually stand behind our work. If something breaks, we fix it. If something needs updating, we handle it. You never have to coordinate between a designer, a hosting company, and a maintenance provider who all point fingers at each other.
You make the art. We run the website.