Non-fungible tokens are reaching more and more followers and have contributed to bringing issues related to Bitcoin, blockchain and decentralization to the mainstream.
Professionals involved with art, games and sports found in NFTs a way to monetize their content directly with the public, without the need for intermediaries and can now receive a fairer value for their work.
But what caught the most attention in recent weeks was the record obtained by one of the main artists who joined this new market. Mike Winkelmann, better known as Bepple, sold an NFT for $ 69,346,250, making it the third most expensive piece of art sold by a living artist in history and the most expensive NFT sold to date.
The work “Everydays: The First 5000 Days”, is a compilation of digital drawings created during 5000 days (13 and a half years) and has become a unique work in the history of digital art. The sale was carried out by Christie’s, a traditional London auction house, which for the first time in history sold digital art.
“Rabbit”, a stainless steel sculpture, created by Jeff Koons in 1986, it was sold for $91.1 million by Christie's in 2019 and was the most expensive work by a living artist ever sold, surpassing the David Hockney brand.
The painting "Portrait of an artist", by the British David Hockney, was negotiated for US$90.3 million in 2018, also in Christie's of New York.
Beeple grew up in North Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, USA. Your father
he was an electrical engineer and his mother worked at a senior center.
He graduated from Purdue University in 2003 in computer science, but without any specifically artistic training. The Beeple nickname is in honor of a 1980s toy whose nose lit up in response to light and sound.
After a brief career creating corporate websites, Winkelmann developed his splendid talent for graphic art. Inspired by a UK artist who sketches his creations daily, Beeple started creating animations using software called Cinema 4D and carrying out daily studies, which he called "Everyday".
The series was launched on May 1, 2007 and, in the following years, it evolved from rudimentary cubes to images of a dystopian future, full of colors and creativity. Despite the scope of his art, Beeple never considered selling any of his works. In fact, he didn't know how to do it, a very common problem among artists.
This problem can now be solved through NFTs and many super-talented digital artists, who do not fit the model of the contemporary art world and who have now found a way to monetize their work and get closer to their audience.
Although some NFTs will lose their value over time, many have the potential to be worth more and more, and this innovation will undoubtedly continue to provide autonomy and opportunities for many artists.
Among the Brazilians joining the NFTs is Will Conrad, a renowned Brazilian artist who designed for major international publishers such as DC, Marvel, Dark Horse Comics, Dynamite Entertainment and Top Cow Productions.