An NFT painting of Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin dressed as a jester has sold for 200 ETH, equivalent to $392,308 at the time of sale, on the secondary market—injecting another glimmer of hope into the long-sluggish NFT ecosystem. 

The digital painting, a one-of-one NFT titled “EthBoy” made by the crypto artists Trevor Jones and the late, pseudonymous Alotta Money, broke records when it first sold at auction in November 2020 for a whopping 260 ETH, making it at the time the most expensive NFT artwork ever sold. Based on fluctuations in the price of ETH over the intervening years, though, the value of that sale—about $140,000 at the time—pales in comparison to that of this week’s resale.

When “EthBoy” was first minted, it entered an NFT ecosystem very different to today’s. Crypto art and PFP NFTs consistently broke sale records on their ascent to the eventual crescendo of the 2021 NFT bull run.

Critically, also, the novel medium was so eagerly embraced by traditional artists like Jones (a painter by trade), due to its prioritization of creator royalties—fees, typically between 2.5% and 10%, that were then mandatorily tacked on to any secondary sales of an NFT, and given to the piece’s creator. 

In the last year, creator fees have become the focal point of an escalating crisis in the struggling NFT ecosystem. Once considered a key incentive for artists enforced by all major NFT marketplaces, the fees have now become optional at major platforms like OpenSea, which have struggled mightily to attract customers and keep revenue steady amidst the current bear market. 

Though “EthBoy” was sold this week via the OpenSea marketplace, it does appear that the NFT’s new owner opted—of their own accord—to pay the work’s creator fee, despite not being obligated to do so. The 10% creator royalty of 20 ETH, automatically paid to Async Art, the platform that coordinated the piece’s creation, constituted what’s essentially a $39,230 tip.

When “EthBoy” was first minted, its creators—then intent on demonstrating the unique selling points of on-chain art sales—committed to sharing one third of creator fees generated by the artwork’s future sales with the piece’s first buyer, in perpetuity.

That first owner, the pseudonymous MaxStealth, has held on to “EthBoy” since 2020. In addition to the base revenue they collected yesterday from the work’s sale, they should thus also soon be receiving just over $13,000 worth of ETH as their portion of the creator fee. It’s an enticing, but potentially soon to be outdated, taste of the NFT art market’s economic potential.

Edited by Andrew Hayward

Delta’s commitment to increase representation in the travel industry and authentically showcase diverse travelers experiencing the world in extraordinary ways “popped up” last week in Los Angeles. Our “Inspired Journeys” digital art installation took place at Westfield Century City, an open-air entertainment plaza, and at the ADCOLOR conference, the premier diversity gathering for professionals of all levels across creative industries. 

As an extension of our Faces of Travel initiative, Delta invited employees and members of the Los Angeles community to share accounts of memorable travel experiences, which were brought to life in real-time via digital sketch by seven commissioned emerging artists with diverse backgrounds. Among the selection of talented artists were Delta employees Andersen Cupid, Designer – Window Seat and Cedric Smith, Lead Supply Attendant – TechOps. 

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While Delta has intentionally increased representation within its own marketing assets, Faces of Travel is a program that continues Delta’s long-term commitment to increase representation that the larger travel culture can tap into: from social media to tourism ads, and everything in between, while pushing against stereotypes that have been created and upheld.

“The Inspired Journeys experience has generated such meaningful impact that is two-fold,” said Andersen. “For our artists, it’s created an opportunity to share their craft with a new audience, and for the community, it showed them that Delta sees value in capturing their stories and experiences while traveling. The art we created was a fresh take on storytelling and showcased our different perspective on some of the participants most memorable moments – we’ve seen tears and shared laughs through this experience.” 

For Cedric, the Inspired Journeys experience was a literal expression of Delta’s ethos to connect and reflect the world we serve.  

“Internalizing the stories of our guests and translating their memories into art has allowed me to be part of their experiences – it’s like traveling to places I’ve never been,” said Cedric. “We can have such powerful conversations through art and create pieces that are not only aesthetically pleasing but reflect the most unique parts of us.” 

From summer weddings in Lake Como, to annual family ski trips in the snow-covered peaks of the Rocky Mountains, Delta created over 200 digital illustrations for members of the Los Angeles community and attendees of the 2023 ADCOLOR conference. 

To further reinforce Delta’s ongoing commitment to show and promote greater diversity and inclusivity in the travel industry, Delta created a Cultural Moments Travel Guide Series. The guides were created in collaboration with organizations and creators in diverse communities and our partner LATAM to share travel recommendations through an inclusive and welcoming lens. The travel guide series was awarded the 8th Annual Shorty Impact Awards, in the social movement category – honoring the most creative and effective campaigns in support of cultural moments and/or social activism.  

“Delta’s commitment to amplify the stories and faces of diverse travelers is more than an initiative,” Ashley Sherman, General Manager – ESG Marketing. “Travelers from every part of the world and every walk of life have always been part of Delta’s story and our success. Faces of Travel reinforces our commitment to all travelers who have helped shape Delta’s culture and that of the travel industry.”  

Visit the Faces of Travel homepage to learn more about Delta’s commitment to increase diverse representation within the travel industry. 

The groundbreaking James Webb Space Telescope and its predecessor the Hubble Space Telescope have collaborated on a new cosmic composite teeming with colorful galaxies. Using infrared observations from Webb and visible-light details from Hubble, astronomists stitched together an astonishing, panchromatic image of the MACS0416 cluster located approximately “4.3 billion light-years from Earth, meaning that the light from it that we see now left the cluster shortly after the formation of our solar system,” a release from the European Space Agency says. Our solar system is nearly 4.6 billion years old.

Both telescopes register wavelengths in black and white and in a manner that’s different from the way humans see light, so researchers assigned colors to galaxies to mimic our eyesight. “The bluest galaxies are relatively nearby and often show intense star formation, as best detected by Hubble, while the redder galaxies tend to be more distant, or else contain copious amounts of dust, as best detected by Webb,” the team says, noting that the image captures an exceptional range of wavelengths, from 0.4 to 5 microns. Intermediate galaxies are shown in green.

Because of gravitational lensing—this happens when an enormous celestial body, like the cluster shown, bends the path of light into a curved shape—this image of MACS0416 also magnifies light from additional galaxies even farther away, along with supernovae and individual stars. With its vivid, illuminating colors, the image is thought to be one of the most colorful depictions of the cosmos in existence. (via PetaPixel)

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article One of the Most Colorful Composites of the Universe Highlights Galaxies 4.3 Billion Light-Years from Earth appeared first on Colossal.

This week: the New York auctions. Tim Schneider, The Art Newspaper’s acting art market editor, joins us to discuss two weeks of major sales in New York and whether they have calmed a jittery art market.

Multiple Realities: Experimental Art in the Eastern Bloc, 1960s–1980s, an exhibition exploring radical art made in six countries under communist rule in Central Eastern Europe, has just opened at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, US, before travelling to Phoenix, Arizona and Vancouver. We talk to the curator in Minneapolis, Pavel Pyś.

And this episode’s Work of the Week is Terry Adkins’s Last Trumpet (1995). This sculptural installation is included in the latest edition of Artist’s Choice, a regular series of shows exploring the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, selected by notable figures outside the museum. This latest iteration, Spirit Movers, has been chosen by the fashion designer Grace Wales Bonner. We talk to Michelle Kuo, a curator of painting and sculpture at the museum, who has worked with Wales Bonner on the show.

• Multiple Realities: Experimental Art in the Eastern Bloc, 1960s–1980s is at the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, until 10 March 2024. It then travels to the Phoenix Art Museum, Arizona, US, 17 April-29 September 2024 and then the Vancouver Art Gallery, Canada, 2 November 2024-23 March 2025
• Artist’s Choice: Grace Wales Bonner—Spirit Movers, Museum of Modern Art, New York, 18 November-7 April 2024

When the coronavirus pandemic hit, artists around the world faced a challenge. With museums, exhibitions, and art forums closed, they suddenly had nowhere to present their works to the public.

At least not in analog form.

“Many artists were left wondering how to sell and market their work,” says Alexandra Cozgarea, art curator at SAP. “That’s why we saw a great deal of hype around digital art at the time – and especially about artworks in the form of NFTs.”

SAP’s latest exhibition entitled “The Poetry of Blockchain” is the first it has staged exclusively for NFT art and features 47 works by 18 artists. But what exactly are NFTs?

NFT stands for non-fungible token. This is a unique, non-replaceable, and non-interchangeable digital object stored on a blockchain that acts as a certificate of authenticity and ownership of a physical or digital asset, such as a picture. It takes the form of a digital identifier composed of a unique string of characters.

NFTs in the Art Market

If you want to buy NFT artworks, you need cryptocurrency and a crypto wallet – installed on your smartphone or other device – to store them in. You’re then ready to visit one of the many open platforms on the Internet, known as “NFT marketplaces,” where people can browse NFTs or search for works by specific artists. One of these marketplaces is OpenSea.

“These platforms work a little like galleries,” says Cozgarea. “Artists wishing to offer their work for sale there upload their pieces to the underlying blockchain to create NFTs in a process known as ‘minting.’”

These tokens can represent a single, unique asset or multiple copies of the same asset, in which case the image displayed on the platform will be identical but the digital identifier will be slightly different for each copy. This means an artist can mint an entire series of artworks and put them up for sale on an NFT marketplace.

“Many of the works on these marketplaces are created digitally and added straight to the blockchain as NFTs,” explains Cozgarea. “But it’s also possible to create NFTs from analog artworks such as oil paintings or sculptures. You would do this by photographing the artwork and uploading it as a JPG file.”

When you have selected an artwork you wish to buy, you place a bid for it on the platform or, if a fixed price is specified, make an offer. If the artist accepts your offer, the NFT is released and payment is made using the cryptocurrency deposited in your wallet. You then receive a link containing the address of the NFT and can transfer it to your wallet.

The acquired piece can be displayed at any time – as a JPG, video, or other file – by clicking a link or scanning a QR code. But the token itself stays in the buyer’s wallet.

“The artists exhibiting their NFTs at SAP in Walldorf copied their artworks onto a USB stick as files,” says Cozgarea. “The original artwork remains securely on the blockchain, so if the stick is lost or stolen, it makes no difference to ownership.”

“Many of my works are the result of several years of research, during which I investigate and change gaps in history, the background of coding, and the opaque influence of databases on the development of algorithms and the resulting creation of images. At every stage, I ask, ‘Who are we and what shapes our identity? What makes a person? What traces do we leave behind in the places where we live?’”

Johanna Reich, exhibiting artist

SAP Working on an NFT Management Solution

NFTs are having an impact way beyond the art market. The business world has recognized their potential, too. At SAP, a team spread across three continents is working on an NFT management solution that focuses on customer engagement and loyalty programs.

To showcase the possibilities of the solution, visitors at the opening night of the SAP art exhibition were invited to access NFTs created by SAP. Sven Haiges, a software developer at SAP Labs Munich, explains the background: “We are working with MetaBrewSociety, based in Bavaria, Germany. It’s a startup that has financed itself partly by selling NFTs. By scanning a QR code on one of the beer cans we ordered with them, customers and visitors at SAP events can now claim one of our own NFTs, created with our NFT management solution.”

“At the moment, only about 5% to 10% of the population understands crypto and NFTs, and they tend, of course, to be younger people,” says Haiges. But he fully expects the level of interest and engagement to grow.

Cozgarea sees NFTs as a response to digitalization and what she describes as its promise of openness, exchange, and – to some extent – democratization. “NFTs present a concept of ownership for the digital age. People are looking for something exclusive,” she says.

There are 47 works of art by 18 different artists on display at the SAP training center in Walldorf – all on monitors. The organizers decided against streaming the works live from the blockchain because that would have been very energy intensive.

“This exhibition contains exclusively digitally produced works,” says Cozgarea. “But it also includes works that are based on traditional art forms and play with the possibilities of digitalization, such as augmented reality.”

Reinhard Schmid, one of the exhibiting artists, says: “I created my first cryptoart in 2018 and have featured in many publications and exhibitions since then. ‘The Poetry of Blockchain’ is a massive highlight for me. The fact that a global player like SAP is exhibiting NFTs is an important milestone for both me as an artist and for the entire Web3 community.”

The exhibition runs until February 23, 2024. Check out a digital 360° tour of the exhibition.

Top image courtesy of SAP employee Juelma Guerreiro.

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MACON – McEachern Art Center (the MAC) will get into the holiday spirit with two special December programs at the art gallery, the Winter Artist Market and a Holiday Window Display. The displays will be available beginning Dec. 1, and the Artist Market will take place Dec. 9 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., the same day as Christmas in Downtown.

This will be the first-ever open community artist market held at the MAC, opening the gallery to vendors in Macon and surrounding local cities to both fine artists and crafters looking to sell their goods for the holiday season. 

The MAC gives 100% of all sales to the artist and takes no commission.

“We are excited to create an opportunity for all creatives to share their passion for art-making and to be able to call the MAC their home,” said MAC Director Johnny Cohen.

The window display concept comes from Cohen’s expertise as a window designer and sculptor for retail concepts in Atlanta before taking this position. Passersby on 2nd Street will be able to see the bright, holiday-themed artwork as they walk around downtown Macon during the Christmas Lights Extravaganza.

“The window display was created as a way to present a strong curb appeal and have people stop and see the importance of art, not just from the inside but from the outside,” explained Cohen.

In the spring, art lovers can look forward to a Fluxus show featuring interactive works of performance art as well as visual spectacle, including a work of famed 20th-century conceptual artist John Cage. Cohen also says viewers can look forward to a speaker series that will handle niche topics in the art world.

While the interior of the gallery will be closed in December, other than for the artist market on Dec. 9, the window display will be open to the public at any time during the month. The MAC is located at 332 2nd Street, Macon. Admission is always free and open to the public. Media and educators may access the gallery outside of normal hours by appointment. Find out more at macmacon.com.

Here are 3 things to do for the weekend of Nov. 18 and 19, 2023, curated by WGLT’s Lauren Warnecke. You can find more coverage on our Datebook – Arts & Music page or by subscribing to WGLT’s Weekend Scoop email newsletter, which goes out every Friday.

Have yourself a funky little weekend: The pandemic-born collective Artists of the Corn set up shop in Shirley. What’s more, this tiny town off the Mother Road and its neighbors, McLean and Atlanta, have mobilized for a full weekend of holiday shopping and outside-the-box fun. The “Shuckin’ Awesome Holiday Art Market” takes place 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Funk Farms Premium Beef. Nearby attractions like Pinball Paradise and the American Giants Museum are listed at artistsofthecorn.com.

Chuck’s Papas at the Castle: This promising college band with a post-grunge vibe gets a big break, locally speaking: headlining the Castle. They’re joined by two bands from Champaign-Urbana, Kangaroo Court and Emily How, plus Peoria’s Grey Slush—all worth a listen. 7:30 p.m. Saturday (doors 6:30 p.m.) Tickets $15 at thecastletheatre.com.

Cantus Novus is back: This local choir gives its first public performance in three years after a prolonged pandemic pause. It’s not all “Silent Night” and “Jingle Bells”—though there will be some songs to get you in the holiday spirit. Cantus Novus is also committed to deeper cuts, including seasonal and secular songs by living composers. 3 p.m. Sunday at the Mennonite Church of Normal. Free (donations accepted). Details at bncantusnovus.com.