NFT Art and its Widespread Popularity

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In the crypto space, NFTs have been trending for a while now. And more than half of us are still scratching our heads over how and why it has grown so popular.

NFTs have been around since 2017, but they really took off in 2021. Given its enormous popularity, We understand why you’ve come to find out more about NFTs.

Several celebrities have been featured in the news releasing video clips, merchandise, tweets and even drawing of their pet as NFT. You are probably wondering who auctioned the drawing of the pet as NFT - It was Paris Hilton.

So yes, all of the headlines you have been reading for quite some time were absolutely right! And In this article, you’ll read some more…

Back to the topic, there are a plethora of strange yet fascinating things that artists and creators from all over the world are listing for sale on various NFT marketplaces. So, what exactly is the NFT marketplace? we’ll get to that soon. First and foremost, you must understand the basic definition of NFT. So there you have it -

Theoretically, NFT (Non-Fungible asset) is something that is a unique, volatile, and versatile asset whose value is determined by how the audience (NFT collectors) perceive it.

What are fungible and non-fungible assets

When we talk about Fungible assets, they are designed to be exchanged and are unaffected by other external influences such as popularity or public interest. The perfect example of this is Fiat currency. For example, when $1 is exchanged for another, its worth remains the same.

Non-fungible assets, in contrast to fungible assets, are demand-driven. For instance, if the painting or video clip is purchased for $500, we can’t truly predict if it will be sold for the same price when it’s placed up for resale. We never know whether it's worth more than $500 or as little as $5. The reason for this is that its value keeps on fluctuating based on demand and popularity among NFT collectors.

It was first introduced as the medium to showcase the artworks digitally, rather than as an investment tool. Currently, it has been widely used as an investment instrument as well as fine art collectibles, due to its immense appeal.

How do NFTs work?

NFTs are digital in nature, thus they don’t require the cost of shipping artworks. Also, handling the art digitally is convenient as one can buy NFTs from anywhere around the world. However, to create an NFT, there is a ‘gas fee’ that needs to be paid to the marketplace displaying NFTs.

The amount of computing work necessary to mint the NFT on the Blockchain requires a ‘fee’. For these programmes to be executed the fee that's charged is called ‘gas fee’. Different marketplaces charge different ‘gas fees’ which are always changing.

NFTs work on Blockchains such as Ethereum, Solano, Tezos, Tron, and Flow. Ethereum has developed the first NFTs supporting blockchain, hence, prominent and popular among others.These Blockchains serve as a record of ownership for NFT collectors and creators. Unlike other digital items, NFTs can’t be tampered with or duplicated, as each NFT has its unique digital footprint stored on a blockchain.

Despite this, several NFTs have been found floating around in news and stories without being purchased, so why all the fuss about it?

We have the answer. To put it another way, if you purchase a vintage painting at an auction, there are many duplicates that circulate on the market and even art appreciators click pictures to post on social media, but they can’t claim the painting as their own. Similarly, NFTs are reproduced and shared on a variety of platforms, but the ownership remains with the individual who purchased them.

Not only that, The same NFT can have a single or multiple owners.

To begin, you must first understand the difference between an owner and a creator or an artist.

What does it mean to be an artist or a creator?

Artists or creators are those who mint or create the NFTs, they can be from any profession such as writer, director, industrialist, graphic designer, celebrity, or anyone who desires to authenticate their work as an NFT. The purpose of the creators is to commercialize their work or to be acknowledged for their artworks.

Well, that’s one side of the coin, the other is - NFTs are not limited to paintings, animations, or sketches. As discussed earlier, it might be a number of things like videos, images, text, paintings, tweets or you say it - rock, keys, or a random meme? Yes, there is an NFT for these too.

For you to be more familiar with different kinds of NFTs, Here are some renowned personalities who made headlines recently -

Twitter co-founder and CEO, Jack Dorsey sold his first tweet as NFT for around $2.1 mn. Renowned celebrities entered the NFT space such as Snoop Dogg, Ellen Degeneres, Steve Aoki, Shawn Mendes, Eminem, Paris Hilton, and the list goes on.

The craze is not limited to celebrities or famous personalities. From teenagers to all age groups, everyone is neck-deep in the NFT world. The reason is, through NFTs anyone can post their artwork online and market themselves, which in turn opens a new stream of revenue for creators.

Who are NFT Collectors:

NFT collectors can be anyone who enjoys collecting fine arts. Not only that. When an influential personality releases their NFT, their fans and supporters collect those NFTs to get a sense of ownership. NFT buyers also think of it as an opportunity to invest and resale seeking profit.

Owner and creator are two different things. ‘All creators are owners but not all owners are not creators’. The logic is simple - The one who creates art or releases an NFT can decide on whether he/she wants to transfer the art as an NFT while keeping copyrights of the original work with themselves, or to transfer copyrights as well. When an NFT is bought by someone, they get a certificate of ownership in legal terms. If the creator only sells a copy of NFT and not copyrights then every time that NFT is put for resale they get a royalty.

The creator can also release NFT as a single edition or as a collection.

In a single edition, there would be only the owner of the artwork, it is done to maintain the scarcity of the work. When it is released as a collection i.e., having more than one edition, then it has multiple owners of the same NFT.

Do NFTs worth the hype

NFTs are not overhyped, it is getting the attention that it deserves. According to some economists it is a bubble that can anytime burst, while some presume it to stay.

Either way, it’s a trending topic in the media and a source from which one can fetch millions.

NFTs when released are called drops. NFT marketplaces have hundreds and thousands of drops on a daily basis. NFT collectibles can be bought from the primary market or secondary market.

The primary market is where an NFT creator puts art for sale, and in the secondary market, the same NFT can be put for resale. This process of buying and selling keeps the NFT industry running such that more and more people participate in it.

Some of the popular NFT marketplaces are listed below:

• Nifty Gateway
• Opensea
• Rarible
• Superrare
• Foundation
• Makersplace

You can explore trending NFTs just by visiting the websites. If you are planning to sell or collect an NFT then you must have an NFT wallet. There are several NFT wallets for different marketplaces that support different blockchains.

For ethereum blockchain, you need to set up ethereum wallet

Likewise, there are many NFT wallets for their respective marketplaces.

• Solano Blockchain - Zelcove wallet
• Tezos Blockchain - temple wallet
• Tron Blockchain - Trust wallet
• Flow Blockchain - Bloctoflow wallet

Once you are done with setting up your NFT wallet, you have to link it with the marketplace of your choice and you are all set for your NFT journey. The final step is to list your created NFT on one such marketplace for auction or sale.

The Final words on NFTs

The NFT market is now full-fledged and rapidly growing. There are still uncertainties on whether to collect NFTs or not. But one thing is for sure, NFT has given a platform to many artists and creators who otherwise wouldn't have been introduced to such a convenient way to showcase their artworks. Celebrities and renowned personalities came forward to take this to new heights while people are showing great interest in it - which shows a seemingly ever expanding scope for NFTs.