NFTs: The Crypto Art of the future or a bubble?

Photo by ETC

Art or a bubble?

“Why should I pay for something that I can just download” – has been one of the arguments that I heard most when discussing NFTs, then isn’t it the same as when you buy an original physical piece of art and I buy a copy in an IKEA or a printout of that same piece?

Some will say that it is not the same, and at least, for the physical piece, you can appreciate it on your wall, but then what stops you from displaying your digital art on a screen in your living room or making a printout.

Basically, what I see is that people want to make a difference all based on their own points of view, forgetting all the similarities, like how this specific artwork wakes something inside of you.

I will not go into what is considered “art” and what is not because there are many definitions and constraints and will focus on what I think that art is. Art is a social activity and is created based on representing that group of people and can be expressed in many ways.

As such, we can say that if a GIF of Nyan Cat of Chris Torres has value in front of a group of people and they are willing to pay for it any quantity they render correct, then this is, by my definition, a piece of artwork.

The important thing here, like in physical pieces, is how to validate that this artwork I acquire is a legit one and an original one. Most people will think that such is the real value in acquiring an artwork, the prestige and opportunity to brag about that piece like an original.

In comparison with traditional ways, you have to go with a curator to validate it and in some cases exist the possibility that even after an evaluation, you get a copy and not the original one. The crypto art has made this much transparent and easy to verify. I´m not saying that it is perfect, but it is a technology that is getting better.

This is such an evolution in thinking and taking advantage of the new tools that are available that. The case now is that artists and sellers offer to validate their work through blockchains and offer their pieces in physical or digital form. Allowing them more transparency and, in more growing cases, a direct connection with the artist.

While it is true that the market is still green and growing, like any new market, it still needs to perfect some points, but the community around it is working on it, fighting to get better marketplaces and ways to certificate the crypto art.

Something certain is that NFTs and crypto art are doing right now is to change the paradigm in how we validate and have ownership of artworks, blockchains and certificates of authenticity that anyone could validate through are getting stronger in the art community and are creating a hybrid.

Then NFTs are really the future of art? Well, as I mentioned before, art is a response to represent a certain group of people. Therefore, NFTs indeed will be a part of the art world, but they will not replace all the art market.

If you really start thinking NFTs and traditional art are not that different, it all depends on your perspective and how you perceive that specific piece so that none can replace the other. We live more and more in an online world, so I would like to say that it is not a trend or a bubble but a step that adds to our art necessities.