For Uno de Oliveira, a visual artist with forays into the digital market, NFTs represent a way to monetize art. In partnership with musician Andre Abujamra (Abu), he produced the work “Coélhek”, whose name is derived from the expression “What’s up, kid” in Portuguese, which was sold to a collector for the equivalent of US$ 3,200.00 in ether (ETH).
The sale of the animated illustration and music produced by Abujamra, which depicts a young resident of a favela in Rio de Janeiro with a big beating heart, was made on the Markesplace platform, a kind of virtual gallery specialized in cryptocommerce.
Coélhek is part of the Tropicalfuturism series, along with the works Lampião and Mãedagua, which are already getting bids.
Why are NFTs on the rise?
With the success of Coélhek’s sales, the duo is excited. The UnoAbu project (in which the musician makes soundtracks for the illustrations) has now developed into AboUno (with the artist illustrating the songs), and is present on the Rarible and Foundation platforms.
The great interest in the format is the exclusivity of the works, since each NFT is unique. In other words, the same piece, in another media or digital channel, could be heard/seen countless times, while NFT guarantees that only its owner has this possibility.
In other words, the option works as a certificate of authenticity and ownership over collector’s digital items. Thus, for sure, the artist needs to have quality and be known to be able to monetize the piece, because the appreciation is tied to his name.
Several artists are already walking the same path and betting on customization to have their works valued. In early March, the American band Kings of Leon became the first to release an album by NFT. For a limited time, fans were able to purchase a special version of When you see yourself, which includes a vinyl record, access to download tracks and other exclusive digital products, all for for US$ 50. In addition, the fans should receive 18 tokens, which would be auctioned and entitle them to a lifetime ticket to the group’s shows.
