NFTs spark collaborations in art world

Artists, galleries, auction houses, and collectors have developed a deeper enthusiasm for buying and selling non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, as the world has opened up after the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Many went online to buy and sell NFTs when they first gained popularity on the global art scene, and now more artists are embracing this new digital medium.

"There was an explosion of interest in NFTs during the pandemic, as blockchain technologies are a way for artists to control their own work and its distribution and to reach a wider global community of collectors," said Celina Yeh, executive director of VIVE Arts, which promotes groundbreaking art with cutting-edge technology.

The current slump across the cryptocurrency market has not reduced interest in NFTs, Yeh said, adding that she is seeing a more critical and thoughtful engagement with NFTS as a medium.

This is from "artists, who are creating increasingly thoughtful and complex works, and from both the art world and the general public, who are learning more about web3 and also the art historical context, of computer and new media art".

Yeh pointed out there is now an "understanding and appreciation" for this growing digital medium.

VIVE Arts NTF platform was launched at the end of 2021, with the aim of "working with artists and cultural organizations more holistically, enabling them to utilize the limitless creative opportunities of all forms of digital art".

In one of its latest projects, VIVE Arts partnered with Hong Kong-based art collective Screen Art on Metaverse Avatar, a unique NFT collection curated by Screen Art and featuring 19 NFT works of art by 15 emerging and established Chinese artists.

"This was a really exciting collaboration for us as this project was dedicated to promoting a new generation of Chinese digital artists, who are not only using cutting-edge digital tools to make imaginative, innovative artworks but are also critically engaging with the artistic expression and identity in the virtual world," Yeh said.

Metaverse Avatar was presented as a virtual exhibition, with an online auction of the NFT artworks and it was also exhibited at Shanghai's West Bund Art and Design Fair.

Yeh said digital technology enables artists to think beyond the constraints of the physical world and to make the impossible possible.

"We have worked with a number of artists to use VR and blockchain technologies for the first time, where these tools have not changed what their art is about but have offered the opportunity to bring their vision to life or extend their practice into new directions," she said.