NFT question
von Hobo
Posts: 1,383
I have a friend who is encouraging me to sell NFTs of my art.
I just don't see the upside with the overhead of listing them on a platform. It's expensive.
I keep thinking I'm missing out on something.
Does anyone have any thoughts on this?
Post edited by von Hobo on
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An NFT is a unique link to some digital content, the NFT does not contain the content.
The purchase history of the NFT (the link) is saved in the blockchain and can be tracked to the one that created it (usually some anonymous user)
As far as the digital content goes, the NFT does not provide proof of origin, uniqueness or even ownership of the content.
It's basically a (unique*) theater ticket that you can use to see the same movie over and over again until the film gets destroyed (the URL to the content dissapears), but you still own the ticket (the link) and you can provide proof of your ownership of that ticket (link).
*Unique as in, has a unique identity
You aren't missing anything; it works exactly the way it appears to. NFTs are very simple in form and function and so is the market for selling them. The pitch for selling NFTs assumes any fees will be more than offset by the profits from a the kind of huge sale you can potentially make. However, "can" and "potentially" are doing a lot of heavy lifting there and most NFT art does not sell. In this sense it's pretty much the same as any other mass marketplace--if you're not well-known or actively marketing your work, the volume of uploads makes getting attention (and buyers) difficult.
That's quite an article, Plasma Ring. Good points in your post, too.
Just because you place it there to sell, does not mean people will come and buy it. If you do not already have a following of people who buy your work (especially a group on the blockchain), it is very risky. And yes, there is a lot of startup cost involved so you either have to not do it or go all in because just trying a sample or two will more-than-likely lose money in all those fees. Oh ... and it is very time consuming to operate. And you may have people "attack" you because it is wasteful of resources.
For those who have everything in place and an internet following, it might work ... but that does not include many.
I think if I were to write my exact thoughts on this subject, the post would go missing... But a portion of it is more or less what plasma_ring said above...
Also, in addition to artists with big numbers of followers and vast numbers of lesser known artists to compete against, you are also seeing a significant amount of stuff that's not technically art... from auto generated low rez images to color swatches (I can't wrap my head around that last one)... not to mention that there is a sizable chunk of "individuals" out there that are selling NFTs of stuff they don't have permission to sell... it's a significant enough problem that DeviantArt has started notifying people when they discover their art might have been misappropriated... https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2021/09/deviantart-ai-stolen-nfts-artists/
In fact OpenSea an NFT site that allows NFTs to be minted for "free" (the buyer pays the gas fee) recently announced on Twitter that more than 80% of the NFTs minted for free are plagiarized work, fake collections or spam.
https://www.vice.com/en/article/wxdzb5/more-than-80-of-nfts-created-for-free-on-opensea-are-fraud-or-spam-company-says
Then again that's not even taking in to account the huge carbon footprint of anything crypto related.
Also you'll have to set up a "cryptocurrency wallet"... most software based wallets are free now, but they require a bit of investigation before you choose one, because each has a different approach and different trade-offs, and since none of this is insured, if you are a victim or fraud or hacking, once your coins are gone, their gone... there is no getting them back... and don't lose or forget your password either.
Since you get paid in crypto, you'll also have to decide what to do with it... and that's an entirely different can of worms... do you sell it and cash out, or Hold On for Dear Life?... HODL is like the mantra for crypto enthusiasts... like you should hold on to it until it's astronomically valuable before you sell, or you have succumb to FUD (Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt) and aren't a true worthy Crypto-Knight.
The NFT market really doesn't offer anything that traditional digital art markets didn't already offer... it's not more secure, it has new problems to deal with, it involves dealing with cryptocurrency which is wildly volatile and not environmentally friendly, it's rife with scammers, it's full of hype and realistically your chances aren't much better out there than regular digital art markets.
If none of that really matters, then it's really just a question of whether you want to roll the dice and see if you make some sales... just be aware that a lot of the fanfare is just hype using Fear Of Missing Out to promote this facet of crypto-world and others success or failure is no indicator or promise of future performance or expectations.
"individuals" out there that are selling NFTs of stuff they don't have permission to sell
Well this is what I had suspected. I might even find some of my artwork as NFTs. Not sure how I would search to find out.
www.michaelcreese.com
That's my website. It's oil paintings.
So I tried to tell my friend NFTs are mosty for 3D, digital art, animations, and things like concert tickets, etc. but that doesn't stop me from wondering if I missed out on the gravy train
I will stick to what I know and what sells for me.
Thank you! I sell prints of my artwork online, so I will just stick with that because I have been fairly successful with it at least to the point I am self-employed. I just keep having to listen to everyone telling me I need to get into NFTs. No one ever told me to get into prints when I was doing paintings. But for some reason NFTs have gotten their attention.
I went to your website and you've got a nice collection... I really dig the Yeti with a Machete.
You could do a Google image search to see if anyone is using your images...
And there is this thing I came across a while ago... it's pretty basic and probably most of the advice is nothing new, but there may be something in there that's useful...
https://drawism.com/nft-art-theft-protect-your-work-right-now/
Your work is beautiful! I'm really happy you've found success with it.
The unfortunate thing about NFTs and crypto--and the main reason I dislike them, because the "selling a thing that doesn't exist" part really doesn't bother me as long as everyone involved is aware and on board--is that they're primarily used as speculative assets. Very few people are buying them for sentimental value or enjoyment, because you can get that from looking at the image itself. The whole idea is that if you buy an NFT now and it turns out to have value down the road, you can sell it to someone else for much more than you paid. So the culture around them is very pushy and evangelistic, because if more people aren't constantly getting into the market, the assets can't appreciate in value. New people always have to be coming in to buy and sell them, or it falls apart.
This gets really insidious when people who know better intentionally oversell the possibilities and encourage well-intentioned people down the line to get everyone they know involved. Because there's so much peer pressure to be hyper positive, optimistic, and enthusiastic it's very easy to fall into it. Your friend is probably thinking that the quality of your art would make NFT sales a slam dunk for you, and in total honesty I imagine you could make some sales if you promoted directly to NFT enthusiasts. But for all the reasons folks have stated here I don't think it's worth it for any artist, especially since NFT pushing has started to become a third rail for many brands.
Thank you! I appreciate it.
I've decided not to sell NFTs for some of the reasons you mentioned.
I also retain the copyright to my work with the painting and print sales. The copyright around physical art is pretty straight forward and is there to protect the artists.
With NFTs it is not so clear to me. Is the NFT buyer getting the rights to the image, and in that case would mean I loose copyright? I have no idea, and I don't want to open a can of worms.
I think the NFT thing is especially exciting for 3D and digital artists who did not have the benefit of selling a physical product, such as a painting. That makes sense to me, but less so for traditional artists employing traditional mediums like oil or acrylics.
That is one of the marketing pitches - Buy this NFT and get "Total Ownership"... Yeah, You get Total Ownership of the link to the content, not the actual content.
The DAZ NFP's are a good example. You can buy the NFT and have "Total Ownership" for it, but the NFP behind the link is still owned by DAZ and you are only licenced to use it within the limits of DAZ Eula.
Slightly looser than that - for one thing you can sell the whole NFP package (NFT plus content licenses) which isn't the case for standard purchases.
Yes, but that comes from owning the NFT, which you can sell.
For the customers, it's an experience similar to Patreon and Fans services .
I want to turn pocket lint into NFTs.
NFPL... Non Fungable Pocket Lint... Sounds doable... somebody paid $18,000 for an invisible statue... I'm sure if you spun it well enough, you could sell NFPLs as the newest hottest crypto trend... lean heavily on Fear Of Missing Out.
If you are being sarcastic, then please excuse my inquiry.
But what is a "Non Fungable Pocket Lint" and where did you see the invisible statue that sold for 18K?
It was a concept art piece sold by Salvatore Garau. Not related to NFTs though as far as I'm aware, whatever you think of conceptual art it doesn't have the environmental impact NFTs and crypto are having.
If you actually meant to ask where they saw the statue, and not the story about the statue, well, no one saw it.
OK. Thanks!
That's pretty funny. It has to be up there with R.Mutt by Marcel Duchamp, and Ted Koppel's interview with artist Robert Rauschenberg.
Ted Koppel: "What do you say to critics that you use inferior art materials in your paintings?"
Robert Rauschenberg: "I've painted in air!"
Ted Koppel: [speechless look of confusion]
belly button lint is more of a rarible
hah ;)