In conversation with Penelope Sonder, a distinguished curator at the helm of NALA, we explore how this data-driven platform is reinventing art commerce — signalling a new era in which digital discovery and real-world engagement seamlessly converge.
Sublime: NALA sits at the intersection of art and advanced technology. What led you to join a platform that uses data science for discovery and allows collectors to buy directly from artists, bypassing traditional galleries?
Penelope Sonder: I Joined NALA (Networked Artistic Learning Algorithm) because I had experienced the problem from both sides. Seeing artists trying to gain international visibility, I saw how much success in the art world can depend on gatekeepers, geography, or simply being seen by the right person at the right moment. Those factors are often unrelated to the quality or emotional power of the work itself.
At the same time, from the perspective of collectors and interior designers, the system can feel overwhelming and fragmented. People want original art, yet discovering and purchasing directly from artists can be surprisingly difficult.
NALA was created to address this disconnect. The platform uses data science to understand what someone is drawn to visually and emotionally and connects them with artists globally whose work aligns with that taste. The goal is a more efficient ecosystem where artists can build sustainable visibility while buyers discover work they genuinely connect with.
S: Many industries have digitised, yet the art world remains relatively opaque. Which barriers around access and purchasing were you most focused on solving when developing NALA?
PS: The biggest issue is access. Less than two percent of artists work with galleries, yet most of the major online art platforms operate exclusively through galleries. This means the vast majority of artistic talent is effectively excluded from the global marketplace.
For collectors, the result is that they are often seeing only a very small slice of the available art. The process also involves many intermediaries, which can make the experience feel opaque and intimidating.
NALA addresses this issue by allowing artists to participate directly while using technology to organise discovery at scale. By matching people with work, they are likely to love, we reduce friction for buyers while expanding opportunities for artists.
S: “Democratising the art world” is a widely used phrase. In practical terms, how does NALA make buying art more transparent and accessible in everyday life?
PS: For us, democratisation begins with participation. Any artist can join the platform, which immediately expands the diversity of work available to collectors.
From the buyer’s perspective, the focus is on making discovery intuitive. Many people feel they need specialist knowledge or vocabulary to buy art, but most simply know what they respond to visually or emotionally.
NALA’s technology allows people to search and discover work in more natural ways, through images, language or browsing personalised feeds. This makes art discovery feel closer to everyday digital behaviour while maintaining a direct connection to the artist.
S: NALA is built around a very advanced discovery model. How does the technology work, and what makes it difficult for competitors to replicate?
PS: At the core of the platform is our proprietary Art Recommender Engine. It learns a user’s taste based on real behaviour on what they click on, save, share or spend time viewing and then matches them with artworks using both visual analysis and semantic understanding.
Rather than relying on keywords or popularity signals, the system optimises for taste alignment. Over time it develops a much richer understanding of what someone genuinely responds to.
We also built tools that allow people to search by intention rather than art-world terminology. Echo enables users to upload a reference image and discover visually similar works based on palette, texture or composition. Voice Search allows collectors to describe what they want in natural language, and the system translates that intent into meaningful results.
Because the platform learns continuously from user behaviour and operates at the artwork level rather than the artist level, the system becomes increasingly precise as the dataset grows.
S: Many platforms prioritise popularity or price. How does NALA platform surface emerging and underrepresented artists while ensuring it does not interfere with the artwork or artist copyright?
PS: At NALA, the technology is not generating artwork or interfering with the creative process. It is routing attention.
The system analyses visual characteristics and user preferences to connect collectors with works they are likely to appreciate. Because discovery is based on taste rather than trends or popularity, artists who might otherwise be overlooked can appear alongside more established names.
Importantly, the art remains entirely human. The technology simply helps the right people find each other more efficiently and on a global scale.
S: For emerging artists, what measurable difference does selling directly through NALA make compared with the traditional gallery route?
PS: The most immediate difference is visibility. Artists are able to reach a global audience of collectors, designers and art lovers rather than relying solely on local networks or gallery representation.
Platforms like NALA also create clearer feedback loops. Artists can see which works are receiving attention, which audiences are engaging, and where there is genuine purchase interest.
Ultimately it allows artists to participate directly in the market and build relationships with collectors who connect with their work.
S: Interior designers are a key user group. How are they using NALA, and how does the platform support art integration into designed spaces?
PS: Interior designers often need to source artwork efficiently while managing budgets, client preferences and project timelines.
NALA provides professional tools that support these workflows, including shortlists, budget management features and the ability to curate client-ready collections. Designers can explore personalised feeds, save works for projects and present curated selections to their clients.
Because discovery is driven by visual matching and natural language search, it also becomes easier to find artwork that complements specific interiors or design concepts.
S: Collecting art can feel intimidating for new buyers. How does NALA make discovery more intuitive and relevant for digitally native collectors?
PS: Many younger collectors are already comfortable discovering culture through digital platforms, whether that is music, film or fashion. Art should feel just as accessible.
By learning from user behaviour and offering intuitive tools such as image-based and voice search, the platform removes the need for specialist knowledge. Collectors can simply explore what resonates with them.
The result is a discovery process that feels personal, global and engaging, rather than exclusive.
S: Your recent show in Mexico City was an important milestone. How did the exhibition support your growing focus on live events and the link between digital discovery and physical experience?
PS: During Mexico City Art Week we hosted a group exhibition called Pantá rheî koiná: Everything Flows in Common at CASA NALA.
The show brought together artists from Latin America and beyond across a wide range of styles and mediums. Much like the platform itself, the exhibition explored how different artistic voices can coexist while still finding shared threads.
The residency created a lively environment for conversation, community and exchange between artists, collectors and visitors. It also demonstrated how digital discovery can extend into physical experiences that deepen engagement with the work.
S: Looking ahead, what does success look like for NALA over the next five years as the platform and technology continue to evolve?
PS: Over the next five years we expect the art and science of discovery to become even more sophisticated and increasingly distribution across a wider array of creative industries.
For NALA, success means continuing to refine the technology so it can translate human taste into meaningful recommendations while keeping artists at the centre of the ecosystem.
If we can expand opportunity for artists, improve how collectors find work they love, and make art discovery more open and global, then we are moving in the right direction.
