Hi, this is NIINOMI founder of NEORT.
Some days ago, we announced our first NFT project “NEORT Vessel”.
I want you to know why does NEORT which has been run as Digital Art platform since 2019 starts NFT now.
About NEORT
First of all, let me tell you about NEORT.
NEORT is a Digital Art platform launched in Feburary 2019.
It is a place for artist and Digital Art lover to share their artistic expression without the boundaries of tools like video, image and code.
It was difficult for me who was too artsy to be nerdy, too nerdy to be artsy to find a place to express my creativity with wide range of tools.
Video and image platform like Vimeo and Instagram were not best place for me and also generative art platform based on specific programming language was not appropriate.
So I made NEORT to realize to my ideal place.
It was started from personal motivation.
On the way to run it as company, I knew a lot of issues around Digital Art and difficulties as business.
On the other hand, I knew the big potential.
So I’ve been running the service.
It’s not a big service with approximately 7000 artworks and 3000 users, there are active users use iteveryday and it’s a service that I’m very attached to and still passionate about.
About NEORT Vessel
It’s a first NFT project for NEORT announced some days ago.
I’d like to solve issues around Digital Art and construct the good world for Digital Art with community member in this project.
There are three things that we hope to achieve through this project.
- NFT support on NEORT
- Development of digital frame
- Real / Virtual gallery
The details will be explained later, but it all leads to creating an environment that makes the “experience of the work” better.
Why do we do?
The reason why we start this project is because we believe that Digital Art lacks an “experience of the artwork” and that we need to build that opportunity.
The NFT has increased the awareness of digital art and the number of artists who can make money from their production acitivities.
One of the wonderful things that I have learned through NFT is that I have discovered new ways to enjoy Digital Art that I had never imagined before, such as the community built through works and projects, and the unique ways to show works by devising information stored in the blockchain.
However, I feel that there are still many problems to be solved in terms of how to enjoy the works, which is the most important part of Digital Art.
Through this project, we would like to think about the experience of Digital Art with many people and realize it together.
Our thought about NFT
Basically, I see it as a positive thing and believe that NFT will continue to be a necessary technology for Ditial Art in the future.
The reason is based on following three points.
It has possibilities that are not bound by the conventional values of art
I think the value of artworks in the so-called art world is largely determined by the galleries that handle them and by collectors with financial power.
It is a world where values are determined by a very small number of centralized people, but Digital Art involving NFT seems to be exchanged based on a different standard from such values.
For example, illustrators, video creators, programmers, and even elementary school students, who have been few players in the art world, now have the possibility to reach and work with people all over the world through the internet.
I’ve heard some people say, “That’s not art.” but I think that’s what art really is, and it’s up to the artist to decide if it’s art or not.
Considering the fact that these pros and cons, which became visibly active around the beginning of 2021, are still continuing, I’m reminded of the possibility that the NFT will create new values for art in ther future.
I also really like the openness found in communities such as Twitter and Discord, as wel as in DAO.
At Generativemasks which was launched in August, I’ve observed an interesting story of how the community gradually formed after the project was launched, and how new attempts are still being made through active communication in Discord.
This kind of bottom-up movement is also very nice.
It can create value other than the appearance
I became convinced of the value of NFT was since when I could understand this feelings.
The information that can be accessed via NFT is stored on the blockchain and will remain for as long as the blockchain survives into the future (I like the expression “engrave it into history”).
Depending on the implementation of the smart contract which is the program that issues the NFT, the information engraved on this blockchain can be devised※2 and reflected in the work.
For example, the date and time when the work is in the visuals of the work, or the visuals can be generated according to the wallet address of the owner.
Let me show you an example.
One of my favorite NFT Digital Art pieces is “720 Minutes” by Alexis André.
This is an interactive work with a clock function, and each of the 720 editions is assigned a time of 1 minute / 12 hours, the appearance of the work slightly changes when the time has come (12 hours × 60 minutes = 720 editions).
For example, for the owner of the edition that the time 7:10 has been assigned, that time (7:10 ~ 7:11) will be a little more special, and they may be willing to get up a little earlier in the morning, even if it’s not their favorite time.
If you only look at the appearance of the work, it’s an artwork which visualizes time, but by assigning a specific period of time to each edition, I think it is a wonderful work that gives the owner a “special minute” in their day.
In this way, by giving a meaning to the information engraved on the blockchain and integrating it well into the expression of the artwork, it is possible to give the work a “depth” other than its appearance.
Of course, the expressions mentioned in the previos example are technically feasible without NFT, but I think they are more attractive because NFT can give the meaning of ownership to digital data.
I believe that NFT is a technology that makes it easier to express the story behind a work of art, such as the connection to concepts and art history, which have been considered important in contemporary art.
As Digital Art hash a high degree of freedom of expression, most of the Digital Art available in the world is focused on beauty and coolness, but in the future, there will be many conceptual works.※3
It will be a protocol
Like people can access websites via the http protocol, I think the experience of the artwork will be improved when when the NFT standard is developed and becomes a true protocol.
Once you connect to your wallet, you will be able to view and display your artworks anywhere you own.
Just like in the real world, you will be able to display the artworks you bought in any gallery in your room.
At the moment, metadata standards are still different, and the method of payment for redemption at the time of secondary distribution is not yet standardized, but this area will be improved in the future.
These are my opinions on NFT and the reason why I’m thinking of dealing with NFT in NEORT.
What to do in NEORT Vessel
We’re starting this as an NFT project, so we’ll be selling artworks with NFT.
They are generative artoworks which is generated by seed values, and the price will probably 0.1 ETH per piece.
Initially, sales will start with one or a few artists, and then the number of participating artists will be gradually announced. Eventually, we plan to sell up to 10,000 pieces.
Roadmap
- NFT support on NEORT
In neort.io, artists was able to submit their artwork in the form of video, images, and code, but these aill be available for sale on NFT, and collectors will be able to purchase the artworks with ETH.
In addition, the storage of artworks accessed by NFT buyers will be IPFS so it could be kept outside the control of the platform as much as possible.
Of course, you will still be able to submit artworks without NFT.
The idea of “enjoying Digital Art” is a concept NEORT will continue to focus on.
The development is already underway, and we hope to release it in the near future. - Development of digital frame
It will be a product that solves issues in the Ditial Art viewing experience.
We hope it will become a place where users can not onnly display their own artworks, but also encouter and discover new artworks and artists by recommending them.
Currently, we are envisionning a small device of about 10 inches, but we would like to hear the opinions of the community in this area. - Real / Virtual gallery
We believe that we need a space where we can fully experience the high expressive power of digital art.
At this point, we believe that a completely virtual space is still insufficient, so we are considering a gallery that exhibits and sells artworks in a physical space.
We plan to devise a way to present the artworks so that the viewing experience is optimal for each artist and each exhibition, rather than simply hanging monitors on the wall that show the works.
Specifically, we are thinking of projections on the four walls of the space and ways to present the works using hardware, etc. We hope to discuss these ideas with the artists and the community.
Conclusion
Again, NEORT has started this project because we believe that NFT will remain and evolve as a necessary technology for Digital Art in the future.
We have a lot of work to do so we need your help since our team is still small.
If you sympathize with NEORT’s vision and would like to work with us to create a world where people can enjoy Digital Art more, we would be happy to have you join us in this project.
Discord: https://discord.gg/qBdrqFuDxu
Twitter: https://twitter.com/neort_io
Website: https://vessel.neort.io/
※1 This is an expression quoted in the blog introducing the “demoscene”.
It was an expression that really stuck out to me, as I was aware of my position as somewhere between an artist and an engineer.
https://6octaves.blogspot.com/p/demoscene.html
※2 What is actually stored on the blockchain is a token, which is achieved by changing the way the metadata specifies the URL of the work it refers to, or by embedding the information in the contents of the file.
※3 Of course, I also love straightforwardly beautiful and cool works.
