If you’ve spent a few milliseconds on “crypto Twitter,” chances are the acronym NFT was plastered all over your hype feed. Standing for “non fungible token,” NFTs are a digital representation of ownership, with blockchain technology underpinning the economic scarcity. The concept sounds gimmicky and confusing, but you’ve probably heard of NFTs before - CryptoKitties, blockchain domains, gaming skins, etc. Digital ownership is paving the way for a fully-integrated metaverse, and artists are here for it!
According to CryptoArt.io, the total value of digital art NFTs is around $489 million and for the first time, artists can monetize their digital artwork in a sustainable, provable way. Just look at Beeple, the artist who sold a work for $69 million on MakerPlace! This frontier is truly exciting and revolutionary, especially for artists whose work was often overlooked or copied in the digital realm. With the explosion of NFTs, augmented reality and Ethereum scaling solutions, the way in which we think of fine art and transact with it is changing rapidly - and arguably, for the better.
To get an NFT artist’s perspective on this swirling blockchain landscape, Phoenix Crypto spoke with Showdeer (aka Chris Bigalke), an artist based out of Portland. Showdeer is a self-proclaimed “surrealist artist using vintage imagery and a pastel palette” specializing in band posters, beer labels, collages and more. His work is absolutely mesmerizing and trippy, with extraordinary scenes like desert shamans and supple lips dripping from a psychedelic sky. Showdeer transports his audience from a dull reality into a retro metaverse, with headless ostriches and mega trombones belching blue steam - perfect representations of this virtual cusp we’re living on.
Catch our conversation below to see how a successful NFT artist views this bizarre, lucrative space, and check out his artwork on OpenSea and Foundation!