Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) can also be used in socially-oriented initiatives. This is the promise of the Favela Carioca image collection, which contains 96 illustrations, each representing a community in Rio de Janeiro. For each NFT sold, the name of the community concerned will receive help.
The images for sale on the OpenSea trading platform were produced by Newtokenblock. The platform itself highlights that “this is one of the few projects and collections with this purpose in the world, a true innovation”.
The illustrations are for sale for amounts ranging from 0.005 ETH (equivalent to about R$ 65 at the January 28 exchange rate) to 1 ETH (R$12.957,00). So far, however, none of them have been sold.
What is OpenSea?
The platform is a marketplace for NFTs, created in 2017, which functions as a virtual art gallery – currently, OpenSea has approximately two million collections and over 80 million NFTs. On it, digital artists hold auctions of their works.
After only four years of operation, OpenSea has become the world’s leading trading environment for these tokens, valued at US$ 13.3 billion. The boost came mainly from 2021 onwards, with the metaverse applications and valuation of NFTs.
Recently, the company received US$ 300 million in an investment round led by Paradigm and Coatue Management. Before that, it had already raised more than US$ 100 million, including contributions by the investment company Andreessen Horowitz and actor Ashton Kutcher.
How to buy an NFT on OpenSea?
If you are interested in one of the illustrations from the Favela Carioca collection or any other NFT from the platform, click on the image and then on details to check its features, such as the blockchain in which it was built, price history, among others. Then, it is possible to buy directly at the displayed value or make an offer to the artist.
The transactions on the platform are done in Ethereum. Therefore, you need to have the cryptocurrency in a digital wallet and connect it to OpenSea. The simplest way to do this is by linking your MetaMask.
After that, when you enter the platform’s homepage, click on “my profile” and log in with your Metamask wallet. Next, complete your profile by choosing your username, photo, and background image. Then, the system will ask for confirmation/authentication to complete the transaction and purchase.
Why buy an NFT?
There are various reasons. It can be an investment because there is the possibility that the work will become valuable in the future or that the artist will become famous. Or it could be a desire to collect particular art, or even a social purpose, as in the case of the illustrations in the Favela Carioca collection.
