NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are similar to bitcoins in their digital form; however, they’re not exactly the same.
Non-fungible essentially means that an item is unique and not interchangeable. NFTs are items, usually of digital art, music, or writing, which are exactly that: unique and not interchangeable.
The rise in cryptocurrency gave way to not only new forms of money, but new ways people sought after and thought about art.
“It’s essentially a disruptor in the art space,” CEO and founder of Artist Uprising, Merrick Porcheddu, states. “You have to pay attention to it. Whether it trends and it’s a bubble that’s going to pop; or, if it morphs and it changes over time, it’s here and it’s now and it’s definitely disrupting the art world.”
The value of NFTs, according to Porcheddu, lay in their digital track records, the increasing trend of collectors not wanting to miss out on unique pieces and early bids, and the royalties the previous owners are entitled to because of NFT regulations on selling and owning. She elaborates on using an analogy.
“Let’s say the first person to buy your painting, ‘Abbey’ buys a piece for $500, and your second buyer, Alex, buys the piece from her at $1,000. Then Alex goes and he sells it for $50,000. Every single person that has owned it down the blockchain, all the way back to the artist, gets a 10% kickback.”
Porcheddu is responsible for overseeing the operations at Artist Uprising. The organization works primarily as a curator and consultant, connecting artists and investors with each other, people, and organizations that are interested in buying or learning about art pieces.
She believes the surge in demand for NFTs has the potential to both dilute the art world, as well as challenge artists to come up with new ways to get their work known.
“If you follow music trends, this is very similar to how music got away from album releases and radio, you see that it’s very similar; it creates a huge playground,” Porcheddue states. “It’s going to push creators to find more innovative ways to capture people’s attention. And that’s what’s truly inspiring to me because that’s what we’re looking for as a company: Artists who are thinking outside of the box.”
Recently, Artist Uprising hosted Dallas’ first physical NFT pop-up art gallery at the Landmark Center. This was the third physical NFT art gallery ever in the United States, according to Porcheddu.
Using vertical standing TVs, guests wanting to learn more about NFTs were able to scan QR codes and find out more information about a piece and its track record.
For more information on Artist Uprising, please visit their website here.