Damien Hirst burns his own work after collectors choose NFT versions
Controversial British artist Damien Hirst has thrown his hat into the equally controversial world of NFTs as he chose to burn hundreds of his own artworks for collectors who opted to keep its NFT counterpart instead.
The NFTs- non-fungible tokens or blockchain-based assets representing digital images - are part of “The Currency,” the NFT collection launched by Damien back in July last year. “The Currency” is made up of 10,000 NFTs corresponding to 10,000 original artworks depicting colourful spots.
Collectors who took part in “The Currency” were given the choice to either keep the NFT version of the artwork or keep its physical version. The NFTs reportedly sold for $2,000 or PhP117,854 based on current exchange rates. Newport Street Gallery in London said that 5,149 collectors chose to keep the physical artwork, while 4,851 opted for the NFTs. The artist began burning the physical artworks in a livestreamed event last Tuesday, UK time.
On his Instagram account, Hirst said that the burning was “completing the transformation” of the physical artwork into NFTs.
The burning will continue until the end of “The Currency” exhibit on October 30.
NFTs have become a contentious issue in the art world, with critics decrying its environmental effects, while proponents see it as the future. The divide has resulted in conflicts that have even gone to court.
In January 2022, Hermès sued American artist Mason Rothschild for selling NFTs of “MetaBirkins,” which are digital artwork of furry bags inspired by Birkins.
Hermès claims that the “MetaBirkins” “rips off Hermès' famous Birkin trademark by adding the generic prefix 'meta' to the famous trademark Birkin.”
In July, LimeWire returned as an NFT marketplace, where “music fans and collectors can buy and trade a variety [of] exclusive music-related assets, such as limited editions, pre-release music, unreleased demos, graphical artwork, unseen live versions, as well as digital merchandise and backstage content.”
Local celebrities have also dabbled in NFTs, with Heart Evangelista being one of them.
MEANWHILE, CHECK OUT HEART'S COLLECTION OF DESIGNER ACCESSORIESIN THE GALLERY BELOW.
