NFT collector

Ex TradFi guy VonMises has built up one of the best NFT collections on the planet by selling when he can, not when he has to.

When it comes to prolific NFT collectors, VonMises is in the upper echelon. His catchphrase unquestionable provenance and provable scarcity is the backbone of his conviction that NFTs are true game changers and havent even scratched the surface yet. 

Coming from a traditional finance background with strong experience in an array of collectibles, VonMises name originates from Austrian-American economist Ludwig von Mises, who wrote extensively on the societal contributions of classical liberalism.

This concept of viewing the world resonates strongly with VonMises, the NFT collector, and was a big reason the American was lured into researching and ultimately buying Bitcoin back in 2011. 

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Tyler Warner (Tyler Did It) convinced himself he was a rock star trader in the bull market but failed to hold on to his gains: NFT Collector.

Tyler Warner, aka Tyler Did It on X, has become one of the top content sources about whats happening in NFTs and crypto. He first dabbled in crypto in 2017, with the NFT mania of 20212022 capturing his imagination and sending his career in a new direction.

Tyler caught the Art Blocks wave, as well as Azukis, Moonbirds and Pudgy Penguins. At the top, his NFT portfolio was worth around 1,000 ETH, but like so many JPEG enthusiasts from this time, he handed back the majority of the paper wealth as NFTs hit a brutal bear market.

I round-tripped it all. I think I ran up to about 1,000 ETH, or about $3 million, at peak in August [2021]. I will admit I fell into a little bit of a rock star complex during that first full cycle, thinking Im the best trader out there, and Im so good at this. It truly was like everyones a genius in the bull market; it was easy to get caught up in a moment, says Tyler.

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Pudgy Penguins now has 1M Instagram followers and is stocked in 2000 Walmarts. CEO Luca Schnetzler, 25, explains where everything went right.

Pudgy Penguins minted in July 2021, but quickly saw high drama after its former founder came under suspicion he was going to rug the project. 

A few months later Luca Schnetzler stepped in. With an entrepreneurial streak since his early teens he had a history of building internet businesses and bought the project and its intellectual property of 8,888 cute little Pudgys for $2.5 million in April 2022.

It was an instinct and intuitive decision. I saw this thing that I was hugely invested in before I bought it that I thought had all of the potential. I was complaining and crying on a daily basis to the founders about how they sucked, and how they could do better. Rather than just doing that, I just stepped up to the plate, Schnetlzer says.

The narrative of quickly shifted from a rug that could trend to zero to one of hope and optimism when Schnetzler set out a vision for the project the community could rally behind. 

Schnetzler became one of the standout PFP project leaders during the NFT bear market, and the Penguins bucked the trend of cratering floor prices. Since he took over as CEO, the Pudgy Penguins floor has risen from around the 1 ETH mark to 6.32 ETH. Holders and the wider NFT community believe that Schnetzler has a game plan for success and the ability to execute it.

He says the decision to snap the project up wasn’t as risky as it may have seemed.

We bought something that netted almost $10 million in six months for $2.5 million. Royalties were making it half a million dollars per month. It was a pretty good business on its face. Intuitively, I think it just comes down to the vision when you close your eyes and you picture Pudgy Penguins, it’s pretty easy to see where this thing can go. 

Constant momentum and growth has been key to Pudgys ascent into one of the top PFP projects, with the cute penguin brand spreading across social media outside of traditional crypto channels like X and Discord. Pudgys Instagram has just crossed 1 million followers, while its GIF strategy has been highly effective, only days ago crossing the 10 billion views chasm.

Schnetzler thinks its a little bit sad that he gets such praise, when it just highlights how little effort other PFP projects put into trying to grow their brands. 

Everyone’s been saying that their NFT project is a brand, they have hundreds of millions of dollars that they raised from the community and venture capital at ridiculous valuations. Yet none of them are actually doing the basics of building a brand, he says. 

Some people really sing my praises, and it’s actually pretty sad because I do think we do some things really well, dont get me wrong, but I mean, this should have been the bar all along. The fact that we are doing so many things that so many projects are not doing when they have 10-20 times the resources and 2-3 times the experience is pretty shameful.

Finding the entrepreneurial spirit

Despite only being 25 years old, Schnetzler actually started his entrepreneurial journey over a decade ago. Growing up poor and bouncing around couch to couch at friends places, Schnetzler says he needed to start earning at a young age.

I’ve really been out of school working for 10 years and it’s pretty crazy to say, but thats what its been,” he says, noting most people dont even start working until they finish college in their 20s

Then you do 10 years after you leave college and you’re 33, and then people start to see success in their 30s. That seems to be the time horizon. I think my childhood forced me to start early. I didnt have the luxury of chilling out or having a childhood where I could just go home and play video games and not worry about anything. I was forced to go work and figure things out.

Character building versus brand building 

To date, most PFP projects are built around a centralized character with a variety of different traits to give each NFT a slightly different look and feel. Take the OG collection CryptoPunks, the Bored Apes, and it is also true for the Pudgys. But it’s not the case for Gary Vees VeeFriends, which boasts 270 individual characters.

Schnetzler believes character building around one individual character is the easier of the two options. 

At the end of the day, I think Gary is trying to tackle a tougher challenge. It’s part of the cards I was dealt and have, and he created his cards. I think he’s doing a great job with VeeFriends. I think ultimately he has to create familiarity. Creating familiarity around a character is a lot easier than creating familiarity around a brand, says Schnetzler.

Theyre two different things and because his universe isn’t predicated on one character, but a multitude of different characters and different animals in different shapes. He is betting and taking a shot at the brand, and the brand name versus the character. 

I’m going after the character first and then worrying about the brand because I believe there’s enough people that love penguins and few enough penguin brands out there.

A brave new world – Walmart pallet program 

In September this year, Pudgys announced a groundbreaking deal with retail giant Walmart that saw Pudgy Penguin physical toys available for sale and in prominent locations in over 2,000 stores throughout the U.S.

The pallet program is one of the most prestigious places you can get because it gives prime real estate to people walking the floor. It signals Walmart’s belief in the brand and their belief in NFTs and Web3 being a vertical for their retail locations, says Schnetzler.

If that can become a general norm in the worlds biggest retailer it gives us a real shot to succeed. Its one thing to be in the crevices of the toy shelf, its another thing to be front and center for everyone to see. That program doesnt happen for brand-new brands. Its normally a program for Barbie, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or people that have movies and TV shows off the backs of their releases.

Building a legacy brand with no playbook 

One of the most common questions consistently thrown at a PFP project is “how do you drive value back to holders?”

In response to criticism about its toy product extension, Schnetzler laid out his plan on how Pudgy Penguins are thinking about value accrual to holders using a classic funnel diagram.

The funnel is not something that I’ve really invented. I mean, you can throw Star Wars and any other big legacy IP onto that funnel, and thats the strategy. The idea, though, with NFTs is the value of the first edition collectible is a huge anchor to the business. If you put any first edition collectible at any legacy brand on the bottom of that funnel, it still makes the most sense, he says.

I want to build a legacy brand, the likes of a Hello Kitty, a Star Wars and a Pokemon.

That’s easier said than done, he admits, saying theres no roadmap to follow for a PFP project.

Hello Kitty took 60 years to build. My holders dont have 60 years for me to go build something. If I lose momentum and traction within the holder base, then I ultimately lose everything because I dont believe you can build a successful Web2 business while your Web3 business fails.

Rapid-fire Q&A

Your entrepreneurial inspiration 

I love everything that I think Steve Jobs represents. For me personally, I’ve tried to be my own man, but the one person that I found huge inspiration from, you can kind of tell it in my leadership style, is really Steve Jobs.

The intense pressure of a founder 

It’s not easy, but it’s also not the worst thing. One of the reasons why we got here is because of the community. I think I’m in a great situation because I bought the project and I didn’t take any money from them. The nature of people who hold Pudgy Penguin PFPs, theyre good people.

You cant really be an angry, miserable person and then go click buy on a Pudgy Penguin. The art kind of creates a culture that already filters a lot of that nonsense out. Now, I empathize with a lot of other people who I see go through the chaos.

What you would tell a Mom about Pudgys

What I would tell a Mom is, hey, this is a great value proposition for your son or daughter. This is way more fun than any other $10 toy.

Why? Because they unlock a bunch of things in the digital world that not only entertain them when they go to bed or when theyre at recess or on the playground. But also entertains them when they are at home on their iPad and computer. It’s a 2-for-1 bang for buck special.

Were the Pudgy gifs planned?

The gifs were totally random. But the second we saw it, we quadrupled down, but it was totally random in the beginning. It was a sheer accident but a happy accident.

I don’t need people to know about Pudgy Penguins now, but you want to know something when NFTs are the talk of the town again, and all those people have been using Pudgy gifs the whole time, that’s going be a really good source of credibility for them once everyone starts to want to buy NFTs.

Whats your position on royalties?

It shouldn’t be 0% and it shouldnt be 5%. I think it’s somewhere in the middle. I think the number is between 1% and 1.5% is where I think the enforceable royalty should stand. The reason being is because you just have to incentivize the creator. [That’s] what made YouTube great, what made TikTok great.

Are you a Wim Hof fanboy? 

Every day I do his breathing technique and I get high doing it. I recommend it because it’s the quickest way you can get high for free. I’m also setting up my cold plunge now. 

Where are Pudgys three years from now?

We’re the face of NFTs, we’re the face of Web3. We have brought the most value to holders emotionally and fiscally. Three years from now were probably launching a movie. The movie is close.

Links:

X: twitter.com/LucaNetz

Website: http://www.pudgypenguins.com

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AI art is gaining acceptance while Squiggles inch closer to the finish line.

Greg Oakford, co-founder of NFT Fest Australia, is your guide to the world of NFTs from a collector and fans perspective.

Seventeen years ago, Pindar Van Arman built a robot that, like him, painted with a brush on canvas.

He has built several robots since, with each iteration possessing a more sophisticated artificial intelligence that tried to paint “more like I painted.

The term OG can be thrown around often undeservedly, but Van Arman is truly that when it comes to AI art.

He created his first crypto art project in 2015 titled bitPaintr and minted his first Ethereum nonfungible token (NFT) in 2018 titled AI Imagined Portrait Painted by a Robot on SuperRare. 

It was really hard in 2015 because I had the challenge of trying to explain the tech in an emotional way. It triggered a visceral reaction where people would say, Well, wait, these are robots that can’t be emotional, says Van Arman. 

I’d got hate mail back then when people would say it’s hard enough for artists to make a living. Now, we have to compete with robots. There were a lot of barriers back then. 

Validity of AI art

For the cynics that question the validity of AI art, Van Arman agrees with them to a degree but makes a distinction between AI being labeled as an artist versus being creative. 

The thing I agree with them on is that AI can’t make art. But AI is a tool that can be used to make art by an artist. When you put it in those terms, no one can really disagree with you. They may not like it, but its hard for them to disagree, Van Arman says. 

Here’s where it gets controversial though, heres the middle ground that I claim which I know is true because I see it and I program it; AI cannot be an artist. AI can be creative. Creative in a very similar way that humans are creative.

Van Arman is no stranger to having peoples eyes glaze over when explaining his work.

All the questioning and doubt over the years told me I was on to the right thing because when you have artists in the art world saying that your stuff is too weird, you sort of know you’re on to something. I mean, artists are the most avant-garde, forward thinking group of people there are, says Van Arman. 

For artists and art curators not to get something that you know is true and for them to say something’s impossible, you just know the time hasn’t come yet and just keep on pursuing that.

Freedom to transact

Van Arman has frequently spoke in favor of royalties, supporting the current writer’s strike in the United States.

I’m always in the middle of the royalty debate because I 100% support them and I support them because they exist in the writing world, they exist absolutely in the recording world. Hollywood’s on strike right now because the writers stopped getting royalties on streaming services. This has significantly impacted their lives and now they’re being taken advantage of again. The whole Hollywood strike is about royalties on streaming services like Netflix and others, Van Arman says.

Van Arman notes the difficult of keeping track of royalties, claiming that the Ethereum network has provided a better means to guarantee the “Freedom to Transact.

It’s a new philosophy that the asset has to be 100% sovereign. If you own something, you have total control over it, you should not be forced to pay royalties. I went hard early on against people that were saying royalties are like tips, Van Arman says.

I agree with freedom to transact and that means that artists have the right to say, there are royalties on my artwork and if you don’t like it, you don’t have to buy it. No one’s forcing you to buy it and it makes perfect sense to me. But for some reason I have a hard time explaining that to people. They say no, no, no, the asset is worthless unless it has no encumbrance. They might think it’s worthless, but it might be worth something to someone else.

Notable sales

Rapid-fire Q&A

When someone looks at your art, are there any particular emotions you hope that they’re experiencing?

The goal for me of making AI art and the emotion I’m after is for people to not know it was AI art. To feel something and observe something and not know that the image was painted by a robot. And then only afterwards they realized it was painted by a robot, then that becomes part of the narrative. They can do a double take, they learn the story through that. 

Who are the influences on your art career to date?

I don’t want to answer here. I don’t want to answer because I’m friends with some of them now and I don’t want to give them the satisfaction of knowing that they were my influencers haha. 

If they found out, they’d become intolerable which is absolutely true. This is what I love about this space, I am hanging out with my big influencers and it’s really fun. Love it. 

Who is a notable collector of yours that makes you smile knowing they own one of your pieces?

There’s one collector I have and thats unusual and I really enjoy how unusual this collector is because this collector is silent and has possibly the largest AI art collection in the crypto space but has no social media presence. Zero. 

This collector is ironically named Blur, not the platform. Why Blur really brings a smile to my face is they are so conscientious about their collecting that they don’t want to influence other people, they don’t want to ape into something and then have other people ape into it because they aped into it. I think that’s really noble, the collecting is coming from the heart and they never advertise their bags yet collect like mad. 

Whats your favorite NFT in your wallet thats not your own NFT?

The one that gives me the most joy is my CryptoPunk. I own punk 7627. That’s actually a really obvious choice when I think of my collection.

What does Pindar listen to when creating art: 

A lot of EDM music. Also Pink Floyd once in a while.

Whats hot elsewhere in NFT art markets

Winds of Yawanawa, a co-creation between the Brazilian Indigenous Yawanawa and Refik Anadol collection, is on fire. The floor ripped through a 10 ETH floor earlier in the week and has more than doubled in the last two weeks. 

Other big sales include:

Only two fresh Squiggle mints remain

The iconic Chromie Squiggles collection has nearly finished minting. On August 30, founder Erick Snowfro Calderon tweeted that 66 fresh Squiggles would be out into the world, leaving only two Squiggles remaining for the 10,000 collection. 

Snowfro distributed the 66 to a selection of family, artists, collectors, institutions and friends while announcing Squiggle #9998 will be a special commemorative mint with further details soon and #9999 headed to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. 

Day 0 Squiggles occurred on November 28, 2020 with approximately 9,000 of the total collection being minted in the first two months after the initial mint. Snowfro decided to keep the remaining mints up his sleeve and has been releasing those at various stages over the last few years as the popularity of his artwork continues to skyrocket.

Tomorrowland surpasses $2 million in NFT sales

World-renowned EDM festival Tomorrowland generated over $2 million in NFT sales on Solana. 

Tomorrowland superfans were able to secure pre-sale tickets, access secret gigs, become eligible for giveaways, and be treated to exclusive tours of the festival ground. 

Tweet of the week:

The tweet of the week goes to Justin Trimble commenting on Refik Anadols work being spectacularly displayed on the new Vegas Sphere. The Sphere was first covered in this article of NFT Collector.

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Melbourne NFT artist Giant Swan used to sit in his car crying because he didn’t fit in. Now he’s found his place as a gothic VR dream creator

From sitting in his car crying before work every morning to becoming a successful digital artist, the story of Australian-based VR painter and sculptor Giant Swan is one of persistence, timing and pushing boundaries. 

In a world where a digital artist can now monetize their work through NFTs as opposed to cheap likes and comments on Instagram, Giant Swan stands out from the pack, being the first artist to put a 3D object on-chain and for his truly unique and immersive pieces that have captured the attention of collectors all over the globe, including renowned whales such as j1mmy.eth, Moderats Art and Whale Shark. 

For me, crying in the car before work was a lot to do with knowing that you should be somewhere else. I knew I didnt fit with what I was doing. To be where you suddenly belong, I think, is what every artist is probably striving for in some way, Giant Swan says. 

After minting his first NFT on Nov. 30, 2019, on Known Origin, Giant Swan caught the initial wave of interest in digital art. He credits the likes of David Moore from Known Origin for helping him take the plunge. 

Dreamlike states 

You can get lost viewing Giant Swans art; the depth of his work often needs to be seen to be believed. OG Crypto artist Josie Bellini described it thus: 

When I look at Giant Swans work, you cant stop thinking, and you start to feel a certain way. I can see the blood, sweat and tears. I can see that hes put his heart in his canvas and the way that every stroke he builds them in VR. They have so much depth and so much emotion to them. 

Giant Swan states, A really simple goal of my art has always been that I want you to experience it and feel like you had a dream, or you have to describe it like you try to describe a dream. 

To create the art he does via VR, the Melbournian from Australia uses a PC VR headset and gaming rig, but said a basic Meta Quest VR headset could do the job for most people. 

I create art by turning my movement into shapes and color. I do that by wearing a virtual reality headset that places me into an empty void. Theres no roof, there’s no floor, there’s no walls; it’s just endless. That movement can be filled with an endless amount of material shapes, color, density, size, and scale. I feel that until I have a space that I’m happy with, Giant Swan says. 

From there, I explore that space to see how I can capture a story and share that with other people. I like to make art this way because traditionally, we look at computers of digital art and we judge it by its perfection.

Its the pursuit of perfection were hiding or imitating how we look at the world until it’s digital or not. VR art lets us explore imperfection, and in that, it enables a very digital art medium to become one of the most organic digital art forms available. I’d be surprised if you could find someone else who does what I do now.

Notable sales

Rapid-fire Q&A

How would you describe your style as an artist?

I’d like to think that it’s a balanced emotional take on surrealism in art. Really thrash, almost impressionistic kind of take on 3D art. I love to hit gothic notes and symbolism. I like drawing from a lot of things, but I wouldnt know how to name it. That’s why it’s Giant Swan style. Thats why people can pick me out in the crowd because you can’t put it in a bin.

Who are the influences on your art career to date?

Ive got lots of influences, but to name a few. Ashley Wood worked on Tank Girl, which is a loose inky comic book style. Also Jamie Hewlett, who does all the imagery behind The Gorillaz and Tank Girl. 

The Gorillaz were an influence on me in that you used to get their CDs and to get all the extra stuff out of it. You had to put it into your PC but they never said that; you just put the CD in, and you’d explore and find all the cool stuff. It was an experience. That really informs how I see my work. Now I want my work to be experienced. 

Is there an up-and-coming artist/s you think people should be paying attention to?

Theres a Melbourne artist named Mysterious Al. He is a muralist that you’ll probably recognize the moment you Google him. Hes an incredible artist.

Who is a notable collector of yours that makes you smile knowing they own one of your pieces?

When I think of people like Pranksy, j1mmy.eth, Josie, Whale Shark, Moderats Art and Deej, it brings a smile. These are all big whales, but they are also entrepreneurs and extremely successful people. They all saw that in me before my works became really expensive.

Whats your favorite NFT in your wallet thats not your own NFT?

My favorite NFT in my wallet is a pair of shoes for Cryptovoxels that n0shot made. It was so early in the crypto art culture wed all meet up in Cryptovoxels. That was probably the first time sneaker culture really kind of teased its way into the space.

Whats hot elsewhere in NFT art markets 

Notable recent sales from Tyler Hobbs include an Incomplete Control and Fidenza that was sold via Sothebys and a pipe Chromie Squiggle that collector DGMD picked up. 

OpenSea in royalty race to the bottom

For the majority of 2023, amid a bloodbath for NFT collection prices, the creator royalties discussion has felt like a race to the bottom and OpenSea all but confirmed this with their announcements the marketplace will move to optional creator royalties on secondary sales. 

This unpopular decision probably doesnt come as a surprise, however, with Blur marketplace continuing to dominate market share. 

From Aug. 31, OpenSea will sunset the filter it introduced in November 2022 as a response to Blur and other marketplaces allowing collectors and traders to bypass creator royalties. At the height of NFT mania, the issue was heralded as the big game changer in an emerging new creator economy. 

The technology remains the same, but when the market was booming for most of 2020 through 2022 paying out creator royalties along with OpenSeas 2.5% marketplace fee was rarely questioned. 

OpenSea CEO and co-founder Devin Finzer said:

In November 2022, we launched the Operator Filter: a tool designed to give creators more control by restricting the sale of their collections to Web3 marketplaces that enforce creator fees in secondary sales. It was meant to empower creators with greater control over their Web3 business models, but it required the buy-in of everyone in the Web3 ecosystem, and unfortunately that has not happened. So were making a few changes to our approach to creator fees.

There doesnt seem to be any great solution to be able to enforce royalties without compromising on true decentralized asset ownership, with many having their two cents on the matter, including OpenSea VC backer Mark Cuban, artists Matt Kane and Beeple and NFT influencer Wale Swoosh. 

Yuga to the rescue?

Arguably one of the most influential voices also had its say on the OpenSea announcement, with Yuga Labs the creators of Bored Ape Yacht Club and the owners of CryptoPunks, Otherside, Meebits and many other collections coming out strongly against OpenSeas decision. 

The statement from CEO Daniel Alegre already has most of the NFT community speculating that a Yuga marketplace will launch as part of the response. 

13-year-old helping disadvantaged kids with Blueberry DAO x Nouns DAO

In a heartwarming pocket of the NFT landscape, 13-year-old Lilpurpberry from Brisbane has embarked on a philanthropic initiative in collaboration with Variety childrens charity.

Blueberry DAO, backed by funding from Nouns DAO, was created by Lilpurpberry to build a treasury, including sales of Lilpurpberrys NFT pixel art. The treasury is to support local childrens charities, and Variety was the first recipient, with funds being channeled to the Bikes for Kids program, which delivers brand new bikes and helmets to kids experiencing disadvantage who would otherwise miss out. 

Tweet of the week

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Andy Murray, UFC, women’s golf and NBA embrace unique NFTs as the interactive future for sport fans, and meet NFT Creator tjo.

Greg Oakford, co-founder of NFT Fest Australia, is your guide to the world of NFTs from a collectors and fans perspective.

Andy Murray x Wimbledon x Refik Anadol

A special open edition NFT collaboration between tennis star AndyMurray, Wimbledon and well renowned digital artist, Refik Anadol. To commemorate the 10th anniversary of tennis star Andy Murray winning Wimbledon.

The Exposition describes itself as a world first exploration into the marriage of fine art, high performance sport and data science. In the teaser video it reveals how the artwork is a visual representation of points played including body movement across Murrays illustrious career at the last remaining grass court tennis major. 

At a price point of $147, 248 editions have been minted to date with the mint window closing on 16 July. Buyers can mint using crypto or via a credit card on Manifold. Holders of the token will also later be afforded the opportunity to buy a physical print edition of the artwork.

The Exposition describes itself as a world first exploration into the marriage of fine art, high performance sport and data science. In the teaser video it reveals how the artwork is a visual representation of points played including body movement across Murrays illustrious career at the last remaining grass court tennis major. 

At a price point of $147, 248 editions have been minted to date with the mint window closing on 16 July. Buyers can mint using crypto or via a credit card on Manifold. Holders of the token will also later be afforded the opportunity to buy a physical print edition of the artwork.

I believe what we are witnessing here is the early signs of a trend for where sports memorabilia and general fandom is headed. The collaborative nature of digital art/collectibles and the ability to layer utility on top is too big of a value proposition for sports administrators and athletes alike to ignore. 

The future will start with digital first. Scalability and accessibility are huge drivers for sports that command a global audience. As NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said last week at NBA Con:

Because our buildings are essentially full, we cant scale our arenas, 99.9-something of our fans only experience the NBA through our media. Through technology, how can we extend beyond that products like NBA Top Shot are ways to do it.

US Womens Golf Open ArtBall

Last week, golf followed in the footsteps of the Australian Open tennis grand slams NFT project the AO ArtBall, rolling out a similar concept for the US Womens Open. Using the same name ArtBall the USGA teamed up with some of the same architects on the project, which ties a piece of the surface area of the sports field to an NFT.

More than 3000 people minted an NFT for free that correlated with a plot of the 17th green at host course Pebble Beach. In the tennis version a match point landing on your area saw your NFT upgraded, but the US Womens Open opted for a variety of ways to provide upgradable traits including landing points, closest to the hole and longest hole out. More here on how the mechanics worked.

The ArtBall concept is a strong one where we see the integration of existing highly sophisticated sports data tracking technology and a new way to engage with fans by blurring the lines between physical and digital experiences. 

Kudos to artist Amy Goodchild who spearheaded the generative art on the golf balls. They look very clean and crisp. This is another example of sport and art blending together via NFTs.

UFC to integrate collectibles with a mobile-first game

The UFC announced a new multi-year partnership with Concept Labs to help build upon the already launched UFC Strike collectibles product built on Flow. 

Cornerstones of the new deal include UFC Strike: Fight Camp a mobile-first roster management game compatible with UFC Strike digital collectibles, holders will also participate in matchmatcher sweepstakes where you can meet UFC president Dana White to pitch a dream fight matchup, plus other exclusive digital and IRL fan experiences.

Whats hot in NFT art markets

Some big sales for Fidenzas at 75 ETH and 71 ETH, Ringers #514 went for 88 ETH and a Bold Chromie Squiggle sold for 28.5 ETH.

Also read: Fidenza: Tyler Hobbs wrote software that generates art worth millions

But the past week has really belonged to Terraforms by Mathcastles with more than 145 sales for the onchain land art project that launched in December 2021. By comparison, the previous week saw 50 sales. The collection floor moved from 1.2 ETH up to 2.17 ETH the past seven days.

NFT Creator: tjo

We meet a genius of mixed media artists, tjo from Quebec, Canada.

Who is tjo?

Originally introduced to NFTs by friend Wally Sajimi around the end of 2020, tjos truly unique art is an outlet for his diagnosed OCD condition and strives to shine a light on mental health. He minted his first token on 23 February 2021, saying he understood very little about NFTs at the time but found it mesmerizing.

My own emotions and experiences with pure OCD greatly influence my art. I don’t want people to feel a particular emotion when engaging with it, rather I hope it forces them to look into a deep place within themselves and get out feelings that were always there. 

I also hope that the people who have dealt with mental disorders feel better about their differences by sharing these experiences.

tjos style and influences

With a background in physical paintings and photography, tjo, like many other artists minting works on the blockchain doesnt like to be pigeon holded as a particular type of artist. 

I don’t particularly appreciate how we discuss style in markets like NFTs. It is weaponized as a vehicle for speculation without regard to historical context. If forced to pin down my art into a category, I would fall under mixed media. It is straightforward; I mix a variety of mediums and approaches, both digital and physical, says tjo. 

Greek mythology and anime are two big influences on his work. 

I get more and more influenced by Greek mythology. Something about those stories gets me fired up and curious. I also love anime like Cowboy Bebop, Ghost in the Shell and Neon Genesis Evangelion. 

To find myself and a visual language I felt was proper to myself; many artists greatly influenced me, such as Francis Bacon (Irish-born British figurative painter), Jean-Michel Basquiat (American artist part of the neo-expressionism movement), Tim Walker (British fashion photographer), Frank Ockenfels (American photographer and artist of celebrities) Kazimir Malevich (Russian avant-garde artist) and many more.

Rapid fire Q&A

Whats your favorite NFT in your wallet thats not your own NFT?

My Mathcastle Terraform. It is just a perfect crypto art piece.

Is there an up and coming artist/s you think people should be paying attention to?

There are thousands of artists people should be looking into, but if I had to point people towards a starting point, the Kula Collective and Making It are groups of amazing artists.

Who is a notable collector of yours that makes you smile knowing they own one of your pieces?

An OG that collected one of my early pieces was Path. I think that brought a lot of eyes to me, and I’m grateful that he still owns the piece he bought.

Do you have any favorite pieces of your own work?

I would say farther reaches, mon sanctuaire and my latest interactive artwork, “Prozac Youth“.

Vegas Sphere captures imagination of digital art enthusiasts

Las Vegas captured the imagination of the sports world last week with the debut of No.1 draft pick, 75 Victor Wembanyama in the NBA Summer League and T-Mobile Stadium playing host to UFC290 during international fight week. But for digital art enthusiasts the only game in town was the imagery coming from the Vegas MSG Sphere. 

The $2.3 billion construction is the home of a new 17,500 seat stadium that doubles as the best interactive billboard youve ever seen.

As digital art continues to push the boundaries in a rapidly accelerating creative environment layered on top with provenance via NFTs, a big unanswered question remains of how to best display digital art to truly do the work justice. 

Weve seen the introduction of premium screens such as Danvas and digital galleries around the world like JRNY that just opened in Vegas and Oshi Gallery in Melbourne, Australia but it feels like were still scratching the surface. Well, what bigger surface area than 580,000 square feet of the Sphere. 

Surely its just a matter of time until we see iconic digital art such as CryptoPunks, Fidenzas, Ringers, Chromie Squiggles, XCOPY having their moment on the Sphere, or maybe Jake Frieds Ball. Could only imagine what a giant ball rolling down hill at you on the Vegas strip might look like as you jump into the Uber after a few drinks.

What do artists listen to when they create work: tjo edition.

Recently I have been listening to a lot of Violett Pi and Yves Tumor.

Snoop Dogg’s NFT passport is a blueprint for concert merch of the future, Sotheby’s NFT VP says The Goose drew Millennials to auction house.

Greg Oakford, a co-founder of NFT Fest Australia, guides you through the Web3 digital art world from a collectors perspective. 

Turning concert merchandise and memories digital 

Snoop Doggs recent announcement of the Snoop Passport an evolving concert tour collectible is a trend I believe well see get more and more traction among musicians and entertainers. 

They tap into those fan moments weve all had: whether its dusting off an old concert T-shirt, rustling through a shoe box full of ticket stubs from sporting events and concerts youve attended or putting your favorite musician/band poster on your bedroom walls as a kid.

All these examples create feelings of nostalgia; they take you back to a moment in time and act like the timestamps of your life. But they are fragile at best over time, and at least half of my cherished ticket stubs are dog-eared with fading ink. 

So storing nostalgia on the blockchain in durable digital goods is just the base case for why were likely to see more artists after Snoop follow suit. But there are plenty of other reasons for artists and fans to get on board 

Whats in it for the musician? 

Ability to token gate exclusive and dynamic content to fans. 

  Open up a new line of digital merch (alongside physical merch).

  Deeper engagement between artists and fans with new experiences and access. 

  Collaboration with Web3 and digital artists (hip hop is well known for its collaborations over many decades, so this natural extension into a Web3 context makes sense). 

  Reward fan loyalty and the ability to add additional utility to the holder.

New revenue stream from minting. Snoop opted for $42 (approx) or 0.025 ETH, which re you can pay via credit card or via crypto. 

Royalties on secondary sales. 

Whats in it for the fan?

  Creates nostalgia through collectibles on the blockchain. 

  Dynamic content and exclusive behind-the-scenes access. 

  Exposure to artists and collaborations (i.e., Terrell Jones and Coldie). 

  Access to drops, events and experiences.

  The new era of displaying fandom (many collect vinyl when they dont even have a record player) 

  Integration with social media, a continuation of social signaling in our digital lives. 

  Ability to trade it on secondary NFT markets. 

Whats hot in NFT art markets 

Its hard to go past The Goose from artist Dmitri Cherniaks Ringers generative art collection. This iconic piece sold as part of Sothebys recent Grails II event (an auction of NFT art seized from bankrupt crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital) for a whopping $6,215,1000 to Punk6529. Going into the auction, the sale price was estimated between $2 million to $3 million. 

Originally minted in February 2021 for 0.1 ETH (the equivalent to $131 on the date of sale), The Gooses price appreciation continues to ascend into the stratosphere. 

The history of the piece includes a sale from TheCryptonite to Pixelpete for 1.26 WETH ($2,220) on 4 February 2021; a transfer from Pixelpete to 3AC for 1,800 ETH ($5,896,566) on 27 August 2021; and a new owner in Punk6529 via Sothebys auction after 3ACs demise for 3,237 ETH ($5.4 million), plus a buyers premium in excess of $800,000. 

Other notable Sothebys Grails II sales

Sothebys moves from museum pieces to the metaverse 

Following the successful Grails II auction with 37 lots going under the hammer, Cointelegraph sat down with Michael Bouhanna, a Sothebys vice president and head of digital and NFTs, to discuss the pivotal auction and why the brand continues to lean in heavily to art on the blockchain. 

Grails II exceeded our expectations in every respect. The total of $11 million from the 37 lots is more than double the high estimate, which was $4.8 million. Every single lot sold in excess of the high estimate, and that data is very impressive, says Bouhanna. 

There was tremendous excitement in the lead-up to the auction. We ended up having over 1,000 bids across the entire sale and had artists like Beeple and other members of the community take to Twitter to voice their excitement about the sale of The Goose. It was a very important movement, and I think that speaks to not only the importance of the work of The Goose but also to the collection and its significance to the market. 

Sothebys dates back to 1744 but only started its foray into NFTs in early 2021. Bouhanna believes the move is helping to usher in a new generation of collectors. 

Since early 2021, weve been committed to digital art and NFTs as an important part of our overall fine art strategy. We really see digital art and NFTs as a natural outgrowth for us, he said.

He points out that 61% of the buyers in the Grails II auction were new to Sothebys, and most were under 40, well below the average age of its usual clientele.

With so many new collectors coming through our digital art sales, I think that is definitely opening up the world to many people who would have otherwise felt intimidated by participating in a sale at Sothebys.

Constitution DAO

Sothebys is getting good at drawing attention to the NFT and crypto space via high-tension live streams. In November 2021, it was host to the sale of a first edition of the U.S. Constitution, with Constitution DAO drawing international headlines with its narrowly thwarted attempt to secure the highly sought-after artifact. 

When Constitution DAO attempted to purchase the first printing, that really demonstrated how excited the community was about live auctions. Even today, it remains one of the most viewed live streams of all time. It also shows how the crypto community, the NFT and digital art community is excited about how auctions are run and how very new they are to many people in this community, says Bouhanna. 

Prestige at a price

Sothebys applies the same traditional buyers premium revenue model to their digital art auctions as their physical art auctions. But Bouhanna points out the Sothebys brand helps artists attract premium prices too.

We play the same role in the market in bringing carefully created selections of our art to sale, he explains. On Twitter, there was a poll following the auction asking the question if The Goose would have achieved the same price if sold elsewhere. A significant percentage of respondents agreed that it would never have achieved as much as that amount had it been auctioned off on OpenSea or another on-chain NFT marketplace. 

Sothebys and the 99-year-old art pioneer

On 28 June, Sothebys announced its new generative art program, which will be fuelled by the ArtBlocks engine. 

The program will be headlined and launched with generative and computer art pioneer Vera Molnr.

The 99-year-old Hungarian artists groundbreaking on-chain generative art project, titled Themes and Variations,” will feature 500 unique artworks. 

They will be sold in a Dutch auction, for the first time in Sothebys history. 

Tweet of the week 

What Coldie listens to when creating art

Coldie dropped NFT Collector a link to his “Inspired whispers only you can hear” Spotify playlist:

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