One nearly gave up on an art career before trying his hand at crypto art. Another had to grapple with self-marketing in a space devoid of middlemen. Despite the varying experiences, however, everyone shared the same view that the new space is here to stay.
Three early Filipino crypto art adopters shared their experiences in crypto art in a recent online forum as part of the ongoing Art Fair Philippines 2021. Titled “The Artist Journey: A Chat with Three Artists and Their Journey into Making NFTs” under ArtFairPH/Talks, the discussion gathered artists Peter Corazo, known in the field as xlvrbk (@xlvrbk); Vyankka Balasabas, aka squirterer (@hidetheblade); and Shelly Soneja (@shellysoneja).
Xlvrbk is an experimental digital artist based in Cebu who explores the edges of digital art from VR to 3D video and sound design. He has been learning about cryptocurrency since 2012, drawn in by the promise of a decentralized blockchain technology creating “a more open space for people to build whatever they want.”
“With crypto art,” he said, “I noticed it during last year’s DeFi Summer, when crypto was starting to pick up again. I wanted to see if I could try it out, so I started doing 3D art again after a decade. I minted my works. A couple of weeks later, there were few sales. I saw it as a viable way to basically exchange value for my art.”
Mindanao-based artist squirterer has a more traditional art background. She graduated with a Fine Arts degree and has exhibited her oil paintings and video-based works in galleries around the country. In 2018, she started getting into cryptocurrency and blockchain. She first came across NFTs a year later, but mostly about game collectibles. A friend then introduced her to crypto art and she began minting her own works. Today, she creates pieces that explore human experiences and fantasies through traditional and digital paintings, GIF art, and photography.
Meanwhile, Soneja comes from the gaming industry as the art director for mobile and blockchain game studio Altitude Games. “I thought it’s something I really wanted to get involved in,” she said of crypto art and NFTs. “But, at that time, around 2018, 2019, I was just really busy with my day job and other projects. It was not until the lockdown happened that I finally joined.”
Soneja was introduced to the crypto art space by the founder and CEO of Altitude Games, Gabby Dizon, who moderated the panel discussion alongside Chris Fussner, director of project space Tropical Futures Institute.
Dizon got into crypto in 2017, discovered crypto art in 2019, and dove deep into crypto art collection last year. At one point, he was buying crypto art almost every day from artists in Latin America, the US, and Southeast Asia.
“One of the great things about crypto is that its primary use case is an exchange of value for money,” Dizon said. “So when someone pays via Ether, for example, the artist that sold the work gets the money immediately.”
Another feature of crypto art that Dizon cited is a built-in royalty structure for trading artworks. “For example, if I buy an artwork and sell it to another collector, then the artist is going to get 10 percent of the royalties. That’s programmatic; it’s enforced by the platform so it’s a great way for the artist to capture the value of their artwork, and I think that’s very revolutionary for artists.”
REWARDS
Digital art through NFTs has given artists a new opportunity to showcase and profit off their talents. Through the crypto art space, artists sell works directly and more easily. They also reach wider audience bases.
“To be honest, I’ve almost given up on an art career,” xlvrbk said. “I tried to not do art, but I couldn’t. I had to do art. When the crypto art space happened, I realized there was an exchange of value for my work.”
It was not just about the money, the artist said. “It’s also fulfilling in terms of validation for your work.”
Meanwhile, squirterer used her crytpo art earnings to further her craft by purchasing a high-end tablet she had coveted for years. The device has since allowed her to pursue other forms of digital art. For Soneja, who was an active participant in local comic conventions where she would present her artworks, it was being able to realize a dream that before had no signs of materializing.
“I would spend on expensive booth costs, market online, and print my merch. Even when I really hustled for it, I wouldn’t even breakeven, so before crypto art I knew this pipe dream of making good money out of my art would not materialize anytime soon,” she said, laughing. “When I got to crypt art, it gave me financial security, especially in times of emergency.”
CHALLENGES
Fussner maintains, however, that crypto art is not all roses.
“As a collector, I observe the ecosystem,” he said. “Some come in just for a quick cash grab. There’s a misconception that just because you enter the NFT space, everything’s going to change dramatically. There are still challenges you would experience in the traditional art world—it’s just mapped over more into a digital context.”
“There’s a different ecosystem, different collector base, different aesthetic value system,” he added. “With the global hype, it’s a lot tougher. The panel here have been early adopters.”
But even they had their own difficulties.
For squirterer, it was changing her focus from creating physical artworks to making virtual pieces. It was also about transforming from an artist getting marketed to an artist doing here her own marketing.
Meanwhile, Soneja had to deal with the mental aspect of crypto art. “Putting yourself out there, sometimes that kind of pressure can get to you if you’re not used to things like that. There’s so much new technology every day, every hour.”
Having overcome the challenges, the artists said they relish their place in the new platform.
“I like to have a personal connection with the people who buy my art,” xlvrbk said. “I think [crypto art] is even greater than traditional art markets because you have a direct connection right away with the buyers. I talk to them about whatever things we’re interested in; it’s not just about hard-selling my work. Also, when I started, I was pushing my works. Now it’s more about my ideas instead.”
From a collector’s perspective, Dizon said he talks frequently with the artists he collects and helps them gain wider attention among other collectors.
“It’s really fun just having that direct connection with the artist,” he said. “It’s a symbiotic relationship where you don’t just buy the art, but you’re actually helping each other.”
‘JUST THE BEGINNING’
The panelists and moderators believe that NFTs and crypto art scene will not go anywhere anytime soon.
“When people think about NFTs, they would just think about artworks or games,” Soneja said. “But it also has many applications in the real world, like documentation or medical records. There’s still so much more to do with it.”
“I do understand why people think it’s only a fad,” squirterer said. “That’s because people, like the media, is very focused on the sales, or like how much [artworks] got sold. But to me, honestly, I really see it as our future…. Just like Shelly said, there’s a lot of use cases for it, so I really think this is just the beginning.”