Project 7 - Robert Alice's ON NFTs, Taschen
Review the book by Robert Alice "ON NFTs", published by Taschen (https://www.amazon.com/NFTs-Robert-Alice/dp/3836593459/), and placed on reserve in the library.
Read "On Quantum", pages 061-077. Select a few topics and discuss them.
Project 7 - Robert Alice's ON NFTs, Taschen
Project 7 - Robert Alice's ON NFTs, Taschen
George Legrady
legrady@mat.ucsb.edu
legrady@mat.ucsb.edu
Re: Project 7 - Robert Alice's ON NFTs, Taschen
On Quantum, by Robert Alice, in particular, surprised me to realize that the story of NFTs did not start with the notable Beeple case of 2021 but goes back further, including various tests of digitized ownership, blockchain technology, and even conceptual art. Three concepts that caught my attention while reading pages 61 to 77 are the importance of Quantum as one of the first NFTs, NFTs and ownership in the art world, and community within the NFT world.
Quantum and the Origins of NFTs
The first topic that interested me was the discussion of Kevin McCoy’s Quantum (2014), which Alice describes as one of the earliest NFTs.
Before reading this chapter, my understanding of NFTs was limited to their use in the sales of digital images. However, according to Alice, what made Quantum revolutionary was not its visual representation, but the fact that it linked the digital artwork with ownership records on the blockchain. This was done using a project called Monograph, which was created by McCoy and Anil Dash for registering digital artworks on the blockchain.
The most fascinating part about the artwork was its simplicity. Quantum is a digital artwork comprising pulsating colorful circles in a GIF format. However, its significance lies in the fact that the piece of work created a whole new paradigm linking art and ownership. As Alice notes, through Quantum, many of the ideas later associated with NFT culture were silently set forth.
https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-cu ... 235321?utm
Ownership, Provenance, and Conceptual Art
Another idea that stood out to me was Alice’s argument that NFTs are connected to a much longer history of conceptual art.
The chapter talks about Marcel Duchamp’s “Monte Carlo Bond” of 1924 and Seth Siegelaub’s “Artist’s Reserved Rights Transfer and Sale Agreement” of 1971. Initially, these two pieces appeared completely unrelated to the concept of NFTs; however, according to Alice, the history of artists pondering concepts of ownership and value dates back several decades.
Thus, this section has influenced my perspective on NFTs greatly. Modern popular culture tends to represent the phenomenon as brand-new; however, according to Alice, most of the things that were brought by NFTs already existed in conceptual art in general. The artists tried experimenting with certificates, contracts, and even entire systems defining ownership; blockchain simply gave an additional tool to document such relations.
The idea of royalties was also very appealing to me. The works of traditional artists hardly bring them any profit once sold to someone else, while NFTs have made it possible to introduce royalties within smart contracts. While the process is far from perfect, according to Alice, some possibilities could be explored further.
https://www.artchive.com/artwork/monte- ... -1924/?utm
Community, Games, and NFT Culture
The third topic that interested me was the role of community.
Alice suggests considering NFTs as social systems in addition to their function as works of art. Spells of Genesis, CryptoPunks, and Loot gained recognition for creating communities dedicated to collecting, trading, and interacting.
This concept is quite unusual for the art history museum. Traditionally, the focus is put on individuals – artists and artworks. In contrast, many NFT projects involve networks of users, collectors, developers, and others who contribute to the emergence of a community. It means that in order to gain success, an NFT project should have more to offer than just the artwork.
In this respect, I was very intrigued by the explanation of Loot. Unlike other NFTs, this particular one consisted solely of the description of fantasy items; there were no pictures whatsoever. However, based on the descriptions, fans managed to develop their own games and stories associated with the objects.
Beeple and the Mainstreaming of NFTs
Last but not least, Alice talks about EVERYDAYS: THE FIRST 5000 DAYS by Beeple. This piece can be regarded as the milestone where the world started to hear of NFTs. Before reading the chapter, my association with NFTs was tied up in the groundbreaking deal of Beeple. Nonetheless, Alice traces Beeple’s success back much further in the past.
What appealed to me most was how gradual Beeple’s rise was. It happened thanks to long-term practice, everyday image creation, and engagement in internet culture communities. According to Alice, Beeple became an icon of cultural evolution rather than its trigger.
https://www.christies.com/en/department ... d-nfts?utm
Having read On Quantum, my view on NFTs has become rather complex. According to this chapter, NFTs cannot be viewed just as investments or digital collectables. Indeed, issues of ownership, provenance, conceptual art, community, and technology are relevant to the topic. By discussing Quantum, the authors shed light on why blockchain technology became necessary in the field of digital art, while references to Duchamp, Loot, and Beeple show how wide a context NFTs are situated in. Far from being entirely detached from art history, it appears that NFTs have a lot in common with other phenomena that artists have explored for decades.
Quantum and the Origins of NFTs
The first topic that interested me was the discussion of Kevin McCoy’s Quantum (2014), which Alice describes as one of the earliest NFTs.
Before reading this chapter, my understanding of NFTs was limited to their use in the sales of digital images. However, according to Alice, what made Quantum revolutionary was not its visual representation, but the fact that it linked the digital artwork with ownership records on the blockchain. This was done using a project called Monograph, which was created by McCoy and Anil Dash for registering digital artworks on the blockchain.
The most fascinating part about the artwork was its simplicity. Quantum is a digital artwork comprising pulsating colorful circles in a GIF format. However, its significance lies in the fact that the piece of work created a whole new paradigm linking art and ownership. As Alice notes, through Quantum, many of the ideas later associated with NFT culture were silently set forth.
Ownership, Provenance, and Conceptual Art
Another idea that stood out to me was Alice’s argument that NFTs are connected to a much longer history of conceptual art.
The chapter talks about Marcel Duchamp’s “Monte Carlo Bond” of 1924 and Seth Siegelaub’s “Artist’s Reserved Rights Transfer and Sale Agreement” of 1971. Initially, these two pieces appeared completely unrelated to the concept of NFTs; however, according to Alice, the history of artists pondering concepts of ownership and value dates back several decades.
Thus, this section has influenced my perspective on NFTs greatly. Modern popular culture tends to represent the phenomenon as brand-new; however, according to Alice, most of the things that were brought by NFTs already existed in conceptual art in general. The artists tried experimenting with certificates, contracts, and even entire systems defining ownership; blockchain simply gave an additional tool to document such relations.
The idea of royalties was also very appealing to me. The works of traditional artists hardly bring them any profit once sold to someone else, while NFTs have made it possible to introduce royalties within smart contracts. While the process is far from perfect, according to Alice, some possibilities could be explored further.
Community, Games, and NFT Culture
The third topic that interested me was the role of community.
Alice suggests considering NFTs as social systems in addition to their function as works of art. Spells of Genesis, CryptoPunks, and Loot gained recognition for creating communities dedicated to collecting, trading, and interacting.
This concept is quite unusual for the art history museum. Traditionally, the focus is put on individuals – artists and artworks. In contrast, many NFT projects involve networks of users, collectors, developers, and others who contribute to the emergence of a community. It means that in order to gain success, an NFT project should have more to offer than just the artwork.
In this respect, I was very intrigued by the explanation of Loot. Unlike other NFTs, this particular one consisted solely of the description of fantasy items; there were no pictures whatsoever. However, based on the descriptions, fans managed to develop their own games and stories associated with the objects.
Beeple and the Mainstreaming of NFTs
Last but not least, Alice talks about EVERYDAYS: THE FIRST 5000 DAYS by Beeple. This piece can be regarded as the milestone where the world started to hear of NFTs. Before reading the chapter, my association with NFTs was tied up in the groundbreaking deal of Beeple. Nonetheless, Alice traces Beeple’s success back much further in the past.
What appealed to me most was how gradual Beeple’s rise was. It happened thanks to long-term practice, everyday image creation, and engagement in internet culture communities. According to Alice, Beeple became an icon of cultural evolution rather than its trigger.
Having read On Quantum, my view on NFTs has become rather complex. According to this chapter, NFTs cannot be viewed just as investments or digital collectables. Indeed, issues of ownership, provenance, conceptual art, community, and technology are relevant to the topic. By discussing Quantum, the authors shed light on why blockchain technology became necessary in the field of digital art, while references to Duchamp, Loot, and Beeple show how wide a context NFTs are situated in. Far from being entirely detached from art history, it appears that NFTs have a lot in common with other phenomena that artists have explored for decades.