Fellowship is a photographer-run organization and online community. In this presentation, Fellowship co-founder Alejandro Cartagena talks with Holly Hay (Photography Wallpaper) and artist Priscilla Munkei Monnier about how Web3 and NFTs provide artists with intriguing ownership alternatives. This event took held at the Paris Photo Fair 2022 on November 10 from 7:30 to 9:00.
Holly Hay, the event’s host, requested that Prisca Munkei Monnier, a Multidisciplinary Artist, Photographer, Film Maker, writer, and Performer, introduce herself and discuss how she became engaged.
Through her intuitive gallerist acquaintance, Prisca Munkei Monnier was encouraged to complete the project. He felt it was fascinating that Priscilla was exploring this new medium. She feels that in the realm of NFT, all you have to do is create, do your thing, and put it out there to see how it’s received or sold or anything, which is, essentially, free when you make an NFT, so a lot of the art she sells is now being sent into NFT since it couldn’t be framed. She stated that many individuals were more concerned with, well, I’ll put that in my living room. I adore your work or where we’re going to place it, and you need to ask such concerns because space is crucial, but with NFT, you don’t need to worry about that.
She believes you are more liberated in a digital environment. You need not consider physical obstacles. So you’re permitted to feel as though you’re permitted to love anything you didn’t anticipate, even yourself. Nobody sees you like anything. Additionally, there is this phenomenon of Oh, I like it. So, if that person enjoyed it, or I’m going to like it too, or whatever, it’s, you know, you discover it in digital space, but it’s the same thing in that it enables you to not just love what you love, but also afford the nerdiness in a financial sense. Because there is no impediment, nobody will ask, “Are you putting money into it, or are you simply looking at it?” Nobody will see you in your living room on your television screen.
Holly believes that what Prisca mentioned indicates that the smart contract tied to an NFT becomes a very valuable aspect of it because it holds the copyright information regarding who owns the image. Who owned it previously? But its content may also include interesting information about what the image depicts. Therefore, you may saturate the smart contract with as much data as you desire. Who is in the photograph?
Prisca continued, “it is” “as vital as being a photographer. Essentially, my foot ama photographs are under slave, i.e. the Queen’s and King’s, and it’s a pleasure to see them do their thing. And many individuals, even after a collector has purchased your photograph, continue to inquire about its meaning and your intent. And because it is digital, everything is viral, so it spreads quickly and retreats. And everyone understands what you intended to convey. Whereas, when you make your own show, maybe 10 people will be able to see you. Then one individual went home and said, “Oh, I went to witness that.” Priska produces extremely great work.”
In the rest of the interview, Fellowship co-founder Alejandro Cartagena joined them. Alejandro uses photography and film to investigate identity, location, and the environment. His work has been widely displayed and is included in the collections of prominent worldwide museums. Mexican Alejandro Cartagena (born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic in 1977) resides and works in Monterrey, Mexico. A curator from the transfer called him two years ago to bring him in touch with someone at Foundation. He has been a photographer for around 17 years. This is one of the largest NFTs platforms. They remarked, “Hey, there’s this Foundation team that sells digital items.” Alejandro could not understand his meaning at the moment. And he has been publishing; he has self-published books and publishes on behalf of others. Therefore, he has always sought to improve the distribution of photography as art. “When I first heard the concept of a digital item or digital original, it looked like a terrific chance to sell a limited number of prints, perhaps 5 to 10. Consequently, the number of individuals you can reach is restricted, hence the term Limited Edition “explained Alejandro.
He believes that with the NFT and the digital concept of a digital good, its global distribution will become enormous. Thus, he was drawn to the notion that he did not comprehend blockchains or anything else. He gave it a try. It did not work for him at all. It was initiated in October 2020. In the beginning, nothing occurred. A month later, when he returned, the website’s foundation was an improved version of what it is now. And he said, “Alright, that wasn’t for me.” Three months later, everybody was talking about NF T’s, and at the time, this was the case “I was using TikTok often. Again, I am attempting to establish communication with those that disseminate my work. And I thought, “Wow, I’ve heard of this before,” because they referenced foundation. I’m like, wait, I mean, these individuals with whom I was working.”
In October 2020, there were five artists on Foundation, compared to about 50,000 now.
At the beginning of the journey, digital animation was the most important item to develop and exhibit. They sold well, but photography was scarce. The Foundation Website suggested hanging three pieces. However, Alejandro felt inadequate. It took him four months to sell a single NFT, which is indicative of the market’s novelty. He believes that “often the biggest shock for a lot of artists with a distinguished history entering the NFT realm is that they’re like, hey, I’m here, pay attention.” It took him four months to locate a collector from Brazil, even though the majority of new crypto collectors have no knowledge of the art world and are attempting to educate themselves on what has occurred in the past. Alejandro had not followed the foundation’s instructions and had specified 50 pieces, but he had already purchased five pieces!
This collector then introduced Alejandro to all of his friends, and he, the collector, essentially sold all of Alejandro’s artwork in five days after it had not sold for eight months. Because Alejandro sold all of his artwork, he remained in the NFT space. And all of a sudden, all of his work’s collectors reached out, desiring to have a conversation about what his work was about and what they were holding as a digital asset.
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