The NFT space still isn’t diverse. Here’s how we can change that.
Authors: Isla Munro-Hochmayr and Samantha Marin for FTW.DAO
Jackson Pollock said, “art is coming face to face with yourself”. We would have used a quote by a woman artist, but the vast majority of quotes on art one finds come from 20th century men. Who do we come face to face with when we look at Twitter right now? 22% of the way through the 21st century, here we are right defining the voices and stories that will be quoted and told of the 21st century. Who will these voices be? Which stories will be told? Which stories do we want to tell? And which voices need to be heard?
“Art is coming face to face with yourself.” ― Jackson Pollock
Diversity makes our world richer in every way. One area this is especially true is NFTs, where artists and musicians from many backgrounds are already making their mark on the creator economy. Theoretically everyone who has an internet connection and the skills can make digital art. But because of a variety of barriers — from education to funding, to technology and to social connections — those barriers aren’t being broken yet.
If as Pollock says, art is coming face to face with yourself, then in the NFT space we are abruptly coming face to face with the very stark reality that society, culture and tech are currently dominated by a very homogenous group of people. That’s nothing particularly new. Traditional art, especially in the U.S. and western countries, has a reputation for being white-washed and male-dominated.
NFTs and the artists behind them have the potential to tell a new and better story, break down existing barriers and create a more diverse art scene.
However, as we all embrace the potential of the future, the potential of decentralised power, and the potential of humanity’s incredible diversity to define a better future, NFTs and the artists behind them have the potential to tell a new and better story, break down existing barriers and create a more diverse art scene. It’s crucial that we are finding, funding and fostering more diverse voices into prominence, so this space grows in a healthy way from the start. The tools of crypto give us the opportunity to bring in more diversity to the space. But if we don’t use them correctly, are we really leveraging the power of Web3 as a whole? From what we know, the NFT space currently lacks the diversity we hoped they would usher in.
Data has shown that women make up just 16% of NFT creators and only 5% of NFT sales. Data on People of Color and LGBTQ representation in NFTs is still emerging (and sometimes difficult to gather in an anon-dominated space) but we do know that many of the same barriers in the traditional art world, such as securing funding, gaining publicity, and having the “in” to a new industry are relevant in NFTs and affect artists of colour and LGBTQ artists.
The traditional art world is full of gender biases and ethnicity imbalances, which along with the homogeneity of the tech world appear to be spilling into the NFT space. According to one study, 87% of artists represented in U.S. museums are male and 85% are white. Around the world, artwork by male artists sells for a higher average price than art by women does. And of the top 100 painting sales by price, only two were by women. The traditional art world wasn’t hospitable to diverse creators, so some of these previous biases could be affecting who makes and purchases NFTs.
And even when projects aren’t catfishing people, the homogenous, ‘good vibes only’ hype-filled space in Web3 can create a dynamic that many diverse artists might not want to be involved in, nor feel welcome in.
On a quick browse of OpenSea, you may notice that some projects include images of women and people of diverse skin tones. But many of the projects that depict women and people of colour are made by white men — similar to the traditional art world. An infamous project that turned heads is the Fame Lady Squad, which was marketed as a women-led NFT project. Unfortunately, it was actually a group of three men designing the art. Examples like Fame Lady Squad may be keeping diverse creators out of the NFT scene — it looks inhospitable, with men taking most of the profits and women and POC/LGBTQ seeing their bodies used as ‘art’ without regard to who the artist is or which story the art is telling. And even when projects aren’t catfishing people, the homogenous, ‘good vibes only’ hype-filled space in Web3 can create a dynamic that many diverse artists might not want to be involved in, nor feel welcome in.
More diversely-created NFT projects are appearing and gaining popularity, such as Crypto Coven and World of Women. These diverse, women-focused projects seem to be a response to the male-focused profile pictures that bring in the big bucks. Massively popular NFT projects such as Crypto Punks and Bored Ape Yacht Club wash Twitter in male-looking profile pictures. Even “animal” profile pictures are often made with a male aesthetic — the apes and penguins throughout twitter are male connotated. Crypto Coven “witches” and World of Women “WoW” are just two profile-picture NFT projects pushing against the heavily male-gendered, white-skinned (or white-connotated) NFTs all over Twitter.
If we don’t find ways to bring more diverse creators into the space, and support their rise to prominence we risk creating a homogenous art market, an aesthetic and community dominated by the few
The trustless, permissionless nature of blockchain technology does not necessarily mean it’s any easier for creators from diverse backgrounds and upbringings to break into the space. If we don’t find ways to bring more diverse creators into the space, and support their rise to prominence we risk creating a homogenous art market, an aesthetic and community dominated by the few, one that uncomfortably resembles the traditional art market today. If we want to achieve true equity in NFTs we must finance artists of varying backgrounds who are just getting started, not only the celebrities and well-networked artists of the past making their way into a shiny new industry.
Once we bring People of Color, Women, LGBTQ individuals, and other identities into NFTs, there’s massive potential for wealth redistribution, the formation of vibrant communities of belonging, and a whole new avenue for artists to make a living. We want to create an environment where you don’t need to have multiple side-hustles to be able to make art. Instead, we want art to be seen as a career path for diverse individuals from a variety of backgrounds.
There’s a way to educate and onboard diverse Web3-newbies by creating NFT projects that represent their visual identity.
NFTs made by and representing diverse backgrounds are also a potential onboarding mechanism. By showing people of diverse backgrounds that they have a place in Web3, we can open a new onboarding funnel. Coindesk writer Amitoj Singh reported on “the concept of education through visual identity” as a key focus for many diverse NFT projects. In other words, there’s a way to educate and onboard diverse Web3-newbies by creating NFT projects that represent their visual identity.
NFTs also have the potential for activism — creators have used them to raise money for important causes and get visibility on ideas, such as the Stay Free NFT supporting the Freedom of the Press Association and the Pussy Riot NFT collection supporting gender equality and recently the Ukrainian war effort. What activism will spur once we welcome more diversity into the space? How many marginalised groups can we lift up through the help of NFT activism?
The most likely source of funding for diverse NFT creators will thus be from diverse founders that find financial success in the Web3 space
How can we ensure that more diverse aesthetics are surfaced and can achieve the level of success that many male NFT artists are experiencing? One way is to drive more women and diversity into web3, and grow the wealth of these groups in the space. Much of the wealth being washed through the NFT system comes from the founders of early crypto and web3 projects who have become ‘whales’ that drive tastes and hype. The most likely source of funding for diverse NFT creators will thus be from diverse founders that find financial success in the Web3 space, and seeing more diversity in the projects funded will almost certainly fuel diversity in the NFT and creator economy.
“We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what their color.”― Maya Angelou
However, diverse-led projects and founding teams also often struggle with funding to start and grow their projects, as they’ve been locked out of traditional Venture Capital funding. Despite diverse teams generating higher returns to investors, less than 8% of venture-backed teams have a single woman on their team, and in the US, less than 1% of VC funding goes to Black founders. The companies we interact with daily, and the art we are able to enjoy should be just as diverse and representative of humanity’s vibrant colour as the world we live in.
FTW (For The Win) DAO sets out to solve this. By directing funds towards diverse founding teams, we aim to create a space where you don’t need to be well-connected, wealthy, established or of a specific race or gender to kickstart and grow an amazing project. We set out to create a world where bold founders can build the 2030 they want to live in, no matter their background or identity.
We want to get rid of ‘winner takes all’ and start building diversity, for the win.
With a community-led model, we will create opportunities for upcoming founders and investors to build their track record in a supportive environment, while at the same time leveraging the incredible knowledge and networks of some of the best serial founders, investors, and operators around the globe. Leveraging the hive mind will allow the DAO to overcome existing biases with unprecedented transparency, flexibility, and autonomy. We want to get rid of ‘winner takes all’ and start building diversity, for the win.
“When everyone is included, everyone wins.” – Jesse Jackson
To learn more about FTW, follow us on Twitter!
Or, join our Discord server to join our FTWinning tribe.
