The terms NFT and crypto art are being thrown around a lot these days. That’s because digital art is going nuts on the blockchain.
Every day, people buy digital artworks in the form of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for millions of dollars. In many cases, the art itself isn’t sold. Rather, those who purchase NFTs are basically buying bragging rights to say that they own “the original” version of a work in its digital format.
The hype around NFTs has been building for months, but it exploded in February 2021 when Beeple sold an NFT for $ 69 million at Christie’s auction house, setting a record for artists at that time. The sale came after Beeple put out his first drop as an artist on Nifty Gateway, an online marketplace for digital collectibles. Before that sale, none of his works had ever sold for more than $ 100,000 on the open market.
There is a seemingly endless supply of digital art that can be bought and sold using blockchain technology. But what if you want to know which ones are worth shelling out big bucks to get? This article discusses some of the most expensive NFTs sold so far.
What are NFTs?
A non-fungible token (NFT) is a type of cryptographic token which represents something unique; non-fungible tokens are thus not mutually interchangeable.
This is in contrast to cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and many networks or utility tokens that are fungible.
Several technical standards exist for issuing and exchanging non-fungible tokens on Ethereum and other blockchains. NFTs can represent digital files such as art, audio, videos, items in video games, and other forms of creative work. They can also be used for physical assets such as real estate, vehicles, or collectibles like trading cards and sports memorabilia.
Why are NFTs so expensive?
There’s no simple answer to this question, but it’s worth breaking down the various factors contributing to the exorbitant prices of NFTs.
First, there are the artists themselves. The most expensive NFTs are being sold by some of the most famous street artists globally, from Banksy to Beeple.
NFTs aren’t a payment for physical work. Instead, they’re a way for fans and investors to own the digital version of a piece of art, manga, or music. You can then display it on your digital wall, sell it to someone else or trade it.
Next, there’s the rarity element. NFTs are limited editions; they have a fixed number of tokens, and once they’re sold, they won’t be minted again. In theory, that means these tokens could increase in value as demand increases over time and more people want them (think of them as an investment).
A big part of NFT prices is also their novelty factor: NFTs are a new way of owning digital items and investing in art, so their appeal and intrigue drive up those prices.
Where can I purchase NFTs?
If you want to buy NFTs, you’ll need to create an account with an NFT marketplace. This involves setting up a wallet and an account with the marketplace of your choice. The most popular platforms for buying art NFTs includes:
- SuperRare
- MakersPlace
- KnownOrigin
- Rarible
- Nifty Gateway
Will NFTs increase in value?
One thing to remember is that NFTs are not physical assets. There is nothing tangible to touch and feel; they are simply digital files containing information about the asset’s ownership. That being said, people have been willing to pay millions of dollars for items associated with famous people like Pablo Picasso, John Lennon, or Marilyn Monroe. So it’s not surprising that some NFTs are being sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
There is no way to know if an NFT will increase in value as we do not know what the value of a specific NFT will be in the future. It all comes down to supply and demand, just like buying any other asset type. As there is no limit on how many NFTs can be created, there is no guarantee that a particular asset will increase in value over time.
We can only say that if you own an NFT today and someone wants it tomorrow, they will have to pay more than what you paid for it now. This means that even if your collection does not appreciate in value, you can always sell it at a higher price than what you paid for it.
What are most Expensive NFTs?
First NFTs: the First 5000 Days” by Mike Winkelmann (Beeple)
Price: $ 69 million
The First 5000 Days is a rare piece of work. Created by American digital artist Mike Winkelmann, aka Beeple, the piece was purchased for $ 69 million at Christie’s New York on 16 March 2021. It was the first purely digital artwork ever sold at auction by a major auction house. The record-breaking sale attracted worldwide attention and triggered interest in the NFT space.
Who is Mike Winkelmann?
Mike Winkelmann, better known as Beeple, is a graphic designer and visual artist who has made a name for himself in digital art. The South Carolina-based artist has been creating an image every day for more than 12 years.
He is the third-most valuable living artist after his work “Everydays – The First 5000 Days” sold for more than $ 69 million at Christie’s auction house.
Second NFTs: Clock
Price – $ 52,700.00
Julian Assange and Pak’s Clock NFT
The next on this list is a collaborative work between Julian Assange and artist Pak called The Clock. The artwork is a clock that runs on blockchain technology to track the time Assange has spent under house arrest since he was released from prison in December 2019.
The art piece was sold as an NFT at the end of April for $ 52,700,000.
Third NFTs: Beeple – Human One
Price – $ 28,985,000
Another expensive NFT in Ethereum is a digital art created by Beeple (the artist behind Everydays: The First 5000 Days). It’s called Human One , and it was sold for 28,985 ETH (about $ 28.9 million at that time) via an auction on Makersplace.com in February 2021.
Fourth NFTs: Hairy
Price – $ 888,888
Hairy is a digital artwork by Mieksneks sold for $ 888,888 on Opensea. The work depicts a pink-colored creature covered in hair, which is why it was named Hairy. It was created by the artist in 2020 and sold in early February 2021. The file size is 8.6MB large and has a resolution of 3,072 x 2,048 pixels.
Fifth NFTs: DΞSTINATION HΞXAGONIA
Price – $ 1.26 million
Another expensive NFT ever sold is the DΞSTINATION HΞXAGONIA , created by artist Pak for $ 1.26 million in December 2020. The work is a 2-minute long video with six different animated scenes and a soundtrack by musician Saint Punk. It was sold as part of a larger collection called “Origin,” which included other items like virtual land to build on (NFTs can represent real estate) and clothing for digital avatars to wear.
Sixth NFTs: The first tweet
Price – $ 2.9,000,000
The first-ever tweet was the most coveted and costly Twitter post.
The first tweet ever was published by Twitter’s co-founder Jack Dorsey in 2006. It read, “just setting up my twttr.” The original post was auctioned off on Valuables by Cent, a marketplace for NFTs.
The tweet sold for $ 2.9 million to Sina Estavi, a self-described blockchain entrepreneur, on March 22, 2021. According to Estavi, he has purchased the post as an investment.
Seventh NFTs: Replicator
Price – $ 4.1,000,000
In April 2020, this piece by artist David Pompa was sold by RTFKT Studios at a Christie’s auction for $ 4.1 million in Ether cryptocurrency. The company has done other auctions, but this was the most expensive one so far. As with many of these sales, it’s impossible to say whether it will retain its value over time.
Ehigth NFTs: Sorare – Cristiano Ronaldo Card
Price – $ 210,000
A non-fungible token (NFT) featuring a digital collectible card depicting soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo was sold at auction for $ 210,000 on April 4. An anonymous buyer made the bid on the Sorare marketplace. It’s not the first time an NFT card featuring Ronaldo has broken records – the same auction house sold another one for $ 130,000 during its March auction.
Ninth NFTs: Decentraland – Genesis City Plot A2
Price- $ 2.3,000,000
In the dawn of Decentraland , Genesis City plots were sold for a fixed price of 30,000 MANA. This was during the first days of development when nobody knew how big the platform would become.
Plots in the main city have become a hot commodity over time, with higher-valued properties traded for over $ 100,000. Recently, a Genesis land plot on Axie Infinity sold for $ 2.3,000,000.
Tenth NFTs: Ocean Front – $ 6 million
Price – $ 6,000,000
This is an NFT art collectible that draws attention to the impact of climate change on our oceans. The piece visualizes the rise in ocean levels due to climate change and its effects on our coastline. The beneficiary was the Open Earth Foundation, a charity organization that aims to increase planetary resilience against the scourge of climate change.
Eleventh NFTs: “The Tree of Knowledge II” by Pak (Pak-Art)
Price: $ 17,000,000
This NFT is a digital artwork created in collaboration with the tech company Bitmark. The artwork is based on “The Tree of Knowledge,” which was created by Pak in 2013. It was purchased by Metakovan, the anonymous co-founder of Metapurse, a crypto art fund. It is the second most expensive piece of NFT sold so far.
Tuelfth NFTs: Under the Sea by Mikikazu Komatu (Mikiya Takimoto)
Price: $ 1,000,000
This beautiful piece of art was purchased by an anonymous buyer on February 25, 2021. It is an animation of a shining city underneath the ocean surface and is set to music composed by Hiroki Isogai. The animation took almost two years to make and was animated frame-by-frame using 3D models.
The piece was created using Unity and Blender software programs, often used for video games and animations. The creator also used a program called “VRoid Studio,” which allows people to create 3D models from photographs. He took photos of himself for over one year as part of this process. The creator had originally intended to sell the piece at the auction but sold it in private to an anonymous buyer for $ 1,000,000.
Conclusion
Look, there’s no shortage of people who think the crypto market is a bubble, and it will never end well for investors and enthusiasts. However, as long as some people think that NFTs are valuable and people want to buy them at a higher price, they’re going to sell them at a higher price. And if you feel like buying an NFT right now, it’s not perhaps a terrible idea to get in right now before it gets even more expensive.