Blog entry | 31 August | 2022

NFT’s from a visual artist’s perspective.
How I interpret it + do I think it’s fad, or will it fade?

Well, there is so much to uncover around NFT’s and how they marry into the whole crypto + metaverse (aka web3) world that I figured I would begin to cover the very basics first. NFT stands for “Non Fungible Token”. The best way for me to explain what I understand to be the difference between fungible tokens and non fungible tokens – think of fungible tokens like exchanging a US$1 bill for 4 Quarters. The exchange is 1 for 1.

With non-fungible tokens, however, the philosophy behind it is similar to when you purchase a home or a vehicle, for example. You exchange currency for an asset of some kind, but the assets aren’t necessarily interchangeable once purchased, because of the ever changing market value of those assets. With NFT’s, the token is non fungible because of the utilities (aka perks) attached to it that define its value, as well as how the cryptocurrency value is performing at any given day. Hence, becoming a type of investment of sorts.

Speaking of which, before I begin to dive into what I have learned thus far, I must caveat on the following:

• My observations could be totally wrong since I am super new at this myself. I began my NFT research + journey a little bit over one year ago. So as expected, my Opensea account is barely a year old, if that. Everything that I plan to share with you is a direct reflection of my own personal journey navigating through what I am learning everyday.
  
  

• None of which I plan to share is to be used as financial advice in any way, shape, or form. I encourage everyone who may be interested in learning more about it, to do A LOT of research + homework on your own, before coming to your own conclusions on whether this is something that resonates.
  
  

• By the time I’m done writing this up, more things will likely have evolved, so don’t hold my feet to the fire. I am merely figuring things out from one visual/digital artist’s perspective. The more I discover, the more ideas are being born out of all this so-called craze. I suspect this phase we are experiencing will be forever marked as something like the, “Wild Wild West of the early 2020’s”, despite its early beginnings dating back to around 2011.

Now back to the Non Fungible Token bit. To make this as easy as humanly possible as it relates to my body of work, the type of NFT’s I create + sell are either a jpg format or a gif format (High Resolution). Other commonly known NFT’s can also appear as png’s, .mov’s and even mp4’s (like music, movies clips, etc). Yes, they are literally digital assets of some kind that anyone is able to upload and put it up for sale on a marketplace platform.

From what I’ve gathered so far, there appears to be roughly 4’ish overarching types of NFT’s genres I’ve been seeing – Experiential, Gamification/Avatar, PFP (Profile Pic), and fine art. But to complicate things, there are also a lot of crossover between these NFT types. NFT’s felt like an awesome area to look into for the type of mixed medium I enjoy working with. I’ve been mainly focused on exploring how to use NFT’s as an added level to a certificate of authenticity that is forever connected to a corresponding physical art piece. My ultimate goal is to eventually transition from a limited edition of 02 or 03 on to what is referred to 1:1 (one of a kind), once collectors feel more comfortable with how cryptocurreny will work in the future.

There are a handful of high profile artists already exploring digital elements as a new medium which is exciting to see. Great example is the collab between RTFKT + Takashi Murakami + Gagosian to create these incredible little artistic moments like this particular NFT. Huge difference here is that Takashi most likely had a team to work with, unlike most artists out there (myself included).

A good example of experiential would be Veefriends, where you buy his NFT’s for the utilities (fancy work for “perks”). Gary provides some interesting offerings as part of his utilities.

Gamification/Avatar is a very interesting aspect of the NFT world that I don’t necessarily understand it all that well. However, I did a collaboration last year with CryptoMibs, by creating marble designs for people to collect + use during a game of marbles. What was so great about this collab – once a marble begins to sell or trade, I will receive a small commission from every transaction in perpetuity. But for those more familiar with CryptoKitties, who’s been around since 2017, have a very well thought out gamification/rewards programs around their project.

Last but not least, I suspect the PFP realm (aka generative art) is the most commonly known to most folks. Great examples of PFP/Avatars are none other than the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC). BAYC have utilities (example of that crossover I mentioned earlier). The fascinating part behind all this, is that by owning the NFT, the art in itself is becomes a means to flex (in other words, bragging rights). Reason being – if you haven’t noticed by now, experiential exclusivity is the new jam.

If you think about it, a personal experience will forever be as unique as the individual experiencing it. It’s not tangible like a Gucci purse. A good example, we may all be in the same room experiencing a concert together, but my perspective of that concert will never be the same as the perspective of the of the person seated next to me. Well, now you know what I know, and how it can get very convoluted at times, but for a fuller timeline on how NFT’s were born, here’s a great link I found to be super helpful.

So what opportunities do I see with creating + selling my own NFT’s from a visual artist’s POV? Here are some, in no particular order:

• Ability to set a royalty percentage that I will be able to receive in perpetuity.
  
  
• Embracing the meta will allow me to be in the position to sell my art via web3 by creating my own virtual gallery (something I’m already working on putting together as we speak via Spatial).
  
  

• Added certificate of authenticity. This is a great example of digital transformation, if you think about it. Current conventional art pieces still rely on a physical certificate of authenticity that are stamped, signed, etc. These pieces of paper can be lost, destroyed, or even replicated, if someone really wanted to. Selling art as an NFT, on the other hand, once a collector purchases the art piece, it will forever be on the blockchain, validating its authenticity.
  
  

• Like I mentioned a little earlier, bespoke experiences is the new black. It is as intangible as an NFT. So for the time being, I currently offer a corresponding art piece as part of my utility, along with freebies throughout the year for anyone who owns one of my NFT’s. Eventually, I also see myself exploring other digital aspects that I want to incorporate into my body of work. And those who invest on my pieces will be the ones with access to these particular moments.

But unlike a lot of NFT projects out there, I don’t have a white paper or road map, per say. I do, however, have a goal of how many art pieces I want to create as part of my emojions collection + I am still committed to donating 10% of proceeds to Trees for the Future. This is to help lessen the impact on our environment (definitely a future blog topic). Something also worth mentioning, I do not do is relinquish creative control to my art pieces like I’ve seen with some NFT projects.

I think this is a good first introduction to NFT’s. Do I think they’re fad? Absolutely not. They are here to stay. When brands like Nike, Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci, Tiffany, and Adidas are some of the top selling branded NFT’s, this is very indicative that we are only in the beginning. Think of the introduction of the internet, for example. The first few years, not many understood its purpose or its potential. But look at us now! It has become an extension of our everyday lives. Besides, I am still a big believer on a decentralized, autonomous financial system, so what better way to attain that through the purchase of digital art, right?

I do feel like the art industry is evolving through a major disruption of digital transformation. With anything new, there will always be resistance against it. I, on the other hand, am mesmerized at the digital movement we are experiencing. I see a lot of potential opportunities, but will keep those to myself for the time being.

For more updates on my art life journey, don’t forget to follow me on Instagram (@mundodaromi).

xoxoxo

Blog entry | 31 August | 2022