Mike Winkelmann – digital artist known as Beeple – sold a non-fungible token (NFT) of a digital work of art – a collage of his digital works over the past 13 years – for US $ 69 million on the Christie’s platform. The sale positions Winkelmann among the three most valuable living artists on the planet.
This is the greatest value obtained by an NFT at the moment when this material was written. More possibly, it will be overpassed in a short time given the hype on this subjetc.
NFTs are unique files on a blockchain capable of verifying the ownership of a digital work of art. In practice, the owners buy the right to say that they have the “original” work of art and can resell it later.
“He showed us this collage, and that was the moment when he knew it would be extremely important,” said Noah Davis, a specialist in post-war and contemporary art from Christie’s, to The Verge. “It is monumental and indicative of what NFTs can do.”
Why is Beeple’s work valuable?
Some factors explained why Beeple’s work became valuable. On the one hand, it developed a large fan base, with about 2.5 thousand followers in Canadian social networks. He is notoriously prolific: as part of a project called “Everydays,” Winkelmann creates and publishes new digital art every day. His project is in its 14th year.
At the same time, the NFTs are being seen by many as the future form of the market for works of art or fine arts and digital art will be acquired and negotiated here for the front. For collectors who certify that it is true, the prices are nothing compared to what NFTs are worth in the future, when the rest of the world perceives its value.
Christie’s also a legitimizing force for Winkelmann’s art and NFTs as technology. At the 255-year-old auction house he sells some of the most famous paintings of history, from the only known portrait of Shakespeare created during his life attached to the last painting uncovered by Leonardo da Vinci.
How was it sold
Even though it was sold, Everydays: The First 5000 Days, is a collage of Winkelmann’s work that goes through years of evolution of forms and digital cenarios at the beginning of this year.
The auction winner doesn’t take much: a digital file, mainly, plus some directives to present the image. But Winkelmann hopes to work with the buyer to find various ways to monetize it.
