By Bonnie Hall July 4, 2021
In a changing world, relationships can lose the flexibility or adaptability they need or could become rigid or so degraded by distrust and factionalism that social cohesion is lost as chaos ensues. Particularly in desperate times, people look for magic and easy answers. Today, everyone is questioning what an NFT (Non-Fungible Token) is about and why there is a booming market. What is an NFT? Why are people purchasing NFT? And what is the result or outcome of this new developing digital art genre and what is behind the NFT market?
NFT is a digital file made by artists and placed on a Blockchain platform for public viewing. Most of the available platforms are bidding or auction type where the public can discover exclusive digital art. These platforms offer the potential to buy, re-sell or discover an NFT. There are a multitude of platforms to research in order to consider the best option.
Blockchain provides permanency for this digital file or art as it cannot be copied or changed. All NFT’s are always available for public viewing. Some of these platforms have fees, some are free, some are by invitation only, and some will take a small percentage of the sale. All of them use crypto currency for the purchase or for a sale and resale as the official exchange mode. It is important to note that NFT is a new genre of art with pros and cons.
In fact, the money in crypto currency along with the digital NFT all seems imaginary. As a digital keepsake, the ownership is awarded yet there is no physical manifestation of the art, and there is no storage. This is an advantage for collectors who normally purchased many items of various art mediums over the years and when their space comes at a premium. Many collectors are forced to pay a monthly fee for storing their art which does not always fit in their homes.
Some artists see their life transformed by huge amounts of money coming in from the sale of their NFT. Others struggle as they ponder two choices of should get on board or accept getting left behind. Still, many people online are purchasing art from unknown artists. Even notable artists have jumped into the NFT market like Damien Hirst, Banksy and a range of artists in North West Oregon who are reaping ridiculous amounts of money for their NFT creations.
The most notable sale recently of an NFT called, “Everyday’s; The First 5000 Days” created by Mike Winkelmann, a digital artist who goes by the name Beeple, was purchased through a Christies sale that sold the work for sixty-nine million dollars. This market is booming for crypto currency but the question remains, is NFT good for art. Most of the work is rather ordinary and uninspiring, yet there are exceptions as always.
For example, the NFT by Tofer Chin follows the parameters of his well-defined artistic direction. His NFT called, “Moment” can be seen at this link: https://foundation.app/toferchin . Tofer has a long background of making art in a variety of media including painting, prints, sculpture and video. His practice activates a process in the viewer’s mind that furthers an understanding of their surroundings and challenges their perception of permanent concepts such as form, color and scale. Each work wants to open the door to greater possibilities, seeing only a portion of something while knowing there is more beyond. The intent is to enter into the viewer’s internal architecture, the ego, thoughts and emotions. This insight animates the movement of his work to begin a cross disciplinary conversation with the goal to shift mood and consciousness, and amplify awareness of being intimate with reality.
The Andy Warhol Foundation is also getting into NFTs. His Foundation is offering five digital works Warhol created on his Commodore Amiga in the mid-1980s as tokens. What is rather amazing is Warhol worked in technology before the internet had become a reality, which only happened in the 1990’s. These digital works made by Andy Warhol are being sold at Christies auction house with a starting bid of $10,000. Christie’s will accept payment for the entire purchase price in Ether or USD. The online-only sale ended on May 27 running on Christie’s website. NFTs certainly keep generating news. Surely there will be more NFT buys in the future. See one of Andy Warhol’s NFT’s here: https://artdaily.com/news/135867/Christie-s-offers-five-digital-works-created-by-Andy-Warhol-in-the-mid-1980s
Created in a paint program on Warhol’s Commodore Amiga personal computer includes a group of five works which includes two self-portraits, his signature flower, his famous Campbell’s soup can motifs and a rendering of a single banana on a blue background. Each of the digital drawings or “machine works” were minted as NFTs in advance of the sale conclusion, then transferred ownership certificate to the new owner’s digital wallet upon completion of the sale. Technology was always part of Warhol’s practice. When Warhol was gifted an Amiga 1000 personal computer as enticement to act as a brand ambassador for the company, the gift came equipped with ProPaint from Commodore International, an electronics manufacturer attributed with playing an important role in the development of the personal computer.
