Cryptocurrency consultancy Innovation Without Borders LLC is launching the world’s first Impressionist NFT – piloting a new model for private clients who wish to sell their fine art outside of traditional fine art auction houses. The ImpressionistNFT collection pairs original Impressionist paintings with a corresponding NFT, or non-fungible token.
The first offering is the 1865 masterwork painting “Spring Sunshine,” which is the first tokenized Impressionist painting and first ever Impressionist work for direct auction via smart contract. The winner of the “Spring Sunshine” NFT will receive both the token and the original physical masterwork that it represents.
“We believe there is no better piece of art with which to facilitate this occasion, as Claude Monet and the Impressionists perfectly epitomize the pioneer spirit being carried forward by today’s cypherpunks and cryptocurrency enthusiasts,” Deschapell said. “Spring Sunshine is not just an impressive piece, but one of the few attributed to Monet that is known to be painted on wood, due to lack of funds for canvas in his early career long before the term ‘Impressionism’ had any meaning”.
The cryptographic protocols facilitating NFT auctions enable the first-ever alternative to establishment auction houses for new and traditional art, saving on fees and greatly increasing accessibility. Catalogue raisonnés, often the source of much controversy, also stand to be transformed by the open and permissionless nature of blockchain time stamping and its transparent record keeping. In offering such a notable masterwork via direct smart contract auction, Claude Monet NFT hopes to echo the spirit of Monet and break from convention, encouraging further interest and research into such areas.
“The task of fully realizing the possibilities of this technology is left up to a new generation of artists,” Deschapell said. “However, this new medium also allows us a chance to revisit and revitalize the works of previous generations of masters, whose contributions laid the cultural foundation we are familiar with today. There are lessons in the history of this art and the struggles of the artists that are more applicable today than ever before”.
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