A UK-wide Museum Data Service is to be established to pool records on millions of objects so they can be shared for research and public use.
The initiative, a three-way partnership between Art UK, Collections Trust and the University of Leicester is scheduled to launch in autumn 2023.
Art UK, which already brings more than 300,000 artworks, from 3,400 collections, to an online audience of more than 4.5 million people each year, said the new data service will allow it to scale up its operation adding millions more artworks over time.
The work, funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies, will also involve the creation of a new state-of-the-art e-commerce platform which it is hoped will support Art UK collection partners to substantially grow commercial income from their image assets.
Andrew Ellis, Director of Art UK, said: “The benefits to our audiences and participating collections will be significant in terms of the growth in artworks joining Art UK and the growth in commercial income.
"But the real excitement here is to be working with Collections Trust and the University of Leicester on such a transformational initiative for the wider sector, one that will do so much to reduce silos and grow knowledge sharing”.