One of the great upheavals brought about by the NFT economic marketplace has affected the art sector.
In a trail that grows ever larger, the possibility of monetizing one’s art on the Web has become the central pivot of a new conceptual and stylistic development that has led to new definitions that have nothing to envy traditional art: we are talking, in fact, about crypto art.
Indeed, it, like its traditional sister consisting of magnificent paintings and works displayed all over the world, feeds on the genius of artists who offer their works in the same way with the only difference being that the latter are created digitally.
What is Crypto Art or NFT Art?
Thus, crypto art is digital art; in fact, we deal with a market that is unparalleled in terms of its economic rise and the hype generated from day to day.
Crypto art represents the indissoluble union of art and technology, more properly virtual, which bases its success and credibility on the security of the blockchain and the technologies developed for the buying and selling of NFTs and cryptocurrencies.
In other words, crypto art bases its essence on a veritable movement of digital artists who operate in this field by uniquely creating digital art and selling it on platforms created specifically for this purpose.
We can credit the authorship of crypto art to Monegraph, which back in 2014 became the first startup that made available to anyone the possibility of monetizing their works, both digital and digitized.
As everyone knows, in 2021 the numbers made by Beeple (nearly $70 million on Christie’s for a single work) increased the flow of attention and interest of artists and investors to crypto art and the world of NFTs.
The close connection between art that has developed in the digital world and the security provided by NFT technology has led many to the coining of the term NFT art-that is, art that makes security and reliability based on NFT technology its strong suit.
A digital work bases its uniqueness at the very moment it is placed on a blockchain.
At that moment, in fact, the work is secured by a strip of code that makes it on the one hand usable to all users who have access to that platform but on the other hand unchangeable and therefore secure.
This protects the author essentially forever or as long as the work remains on the blockchain.
In fact, every transaction or block of information created on a blockchain cannot be modified or attacked by software.
How the art market is changing
The sheer size of the crypto art market is such that its implications are different and extended to all actors within it than even its traditional art counterpart.
First, it changes the role of the artist personally.
Individuals who want to operate in crypto art choose a life in which he or she becomes both artist and manager, a world in which the art that is created contributes to an unbreakable bond with one’s image and brand.
Thus, there is no longer a separation between those who create art and those who monetize and manage it over time.
On the other hand, many count the fact that crypto art requires a minimum of digital skills in order to operate at a higher degree of quality.
While this datum may be an undeniable general starting point, it must be remembered that Beeple himself has often stated that for his most expensive work he used what we might today call minimal digital skills.
Another difference relates to the very approach to visualized art in that through crypto art there has been a breath of fresh air in the cultural market of graphic and artistic representation, a field that has been more slow than others to come to grips with the potential offered by digitization.
Indeed, the first fully digital exhibitions where users can view artworks and participate in auctions via VR technology on an online platform are no fantasy now.
Where to buy and sell Crypto Art
A rapid development of the industry has unequivocally led to the creation of platforms that are increasingly rich in works and purchasing possibilities.
Today we can compile a list of the most accredited platforms for sharing and purchasing crypto artworks.
How can we fail to mention OpenSea, among the first platforms to be developed for this purpose, this marketplace in some respects plays a pioneering role that has ferried the NFT market in general for a long time towards continuous developments.
Today OpenSea can boast a 400% increase in sales with over $30 million in revenue.
SuperRare complements OpenSea in that it is now a good reference point for the art market in particular and the NFT market.
On this marketplace it is possible to “tokenize” one’s art on the Ethereum blockchain while all collectors have access to a very large catalog of works.
Nifty Gateway is, on the other hand, more recently founded.
In fact, it was born in 2019 from the Gemini exchange and wanted to make its NFTs personal under the name Nifties.
This platform boasts prominent collaborations such as those with Michael Kagan, who created a high-quality limited-edition collection here.
Rarible, on the other hand, represents true rising success in the crypto art market.
Founded in 2020, this marketplace has succeeded in empowering many users to sell, buy, and create artwork through NFT.
Last mention concerns Makersplace, a very interesting platform that is steadily increasing enrollments by 30 percent per month.
The most famous artists
After broadly analyzing the crypto art industry and how the NFT art market develops, it is useful to find out which are the most prominent names in order to recognize the most influential artists in this field and creators of the most expensive NFTs.
Undeniably, data in hand, Beeple, stage name of Mike Winklemann, is the artist with the highest numbers in the recent history of NFT art; this record comes from a work of his that was auctioned for $69 million at Christie’s.
After Beeple, we mention Blake Kathryn, who has often made 3-D works with a futuristic and surrealistic vision of things.
This artist boasts luxury collaborations such as with Paris Hilton, Jimmy Choo, and Fendi. Giant Swan, on the other hand, is an artist focused on creating virtual worlds departed from a real art education in both painting and sculpture.
In the NFT arts world, one cannot fail to mention Jose Delbo already involved in art with early DC and Marvel comics and the creation of the Transformers series.
Conclusions
The NFT market had already heralded a great future, but this phase has given way to another revolution that has affected and is increasingly affecting the art world in every aspect.
Every actor in this sector plays an active role, from the artist to those who invest their resources to purchase works.
The numbers are at least encouraging, and this bodes well that NFT and blockchain technology may soon revolutionize other sectors.
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