The NFT Revolution Takes Center Stage At Art Basel Miami And Goes 'Where No One Has Gone Before'
MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- Every December during Art Basel, Miami becomes an art gallery of its own, bringing in artists from different corners of the world to celebrate all expressions of art —this year, Crypto and NFT art is on display.
NFT, or "non-fungible token," is a verified unique or limited-edition artwork with blockchain authentication. Like other art forms, NFTs can be unique or minted in limited editions and are offered as animations and static works. The more "limited" the NFT is, the higher the price.
NFTs are already tried and true avenues for innovative artistic expression and Art Basel Miami is packed this year with NFT exhibitions and digital galleries dedicated to the blockchain-enabled tokens.
One of the most highly anticipated NFT's comes from Roddenberry Entertainment, which is set to release the world's first living NFT, coded into the DNA of a living bacterial organism.
This first-of-its-kind NFT will display Gene Roddenberry's authentic signature sourced from his original 1965 Star Trek agreement with Desilu Productions.
"Going where no one has gone before is part of Roddenberry Entertainment's DNA. To be able to do so, in such a unique fashion, while honoring our founding father, and speaking to today's trend of life and technology constantly converging, is beyond exciting," said Trevor Roth, COO of Roddenberry Entertainment.
Still confused? The biotech innovators explain it like this.
Implanted as DNA code into the cell of live bacteria, it replicates and grows with the duplication of the organism's cells. It was not only created and stored on organic material, but the project also promises a net-zero, if not a carbon-negative, environmental categorization. The first Living Eco-NFT be exhibited as an art piece titled "El Primero" during Art Basel 2021.
As long as the bacteria remains living, the cell can double at a rate that will create over a billion copies of the Eco-NFT overnight.
This Star Trek inspired art will be on display starting Tuesday night at Studio Duende located at 676 NW 23rd Street, Miami.
There are many other NFT events taking place during Art Basel.
Wednesday, December 1, Cube Art Fair is offering a physical art viewing experience of NFT-only works. It features NFTs across the streets of Miami on 50 billboards in the Design District, Wynwood and Downtown Miami. The centerpiece of the fair is a mural projection on the 400-foot-tall Intercontinental Hotel downtown. The fair will take over all screens located inside the Miami Opa-Locka Executive Airport.
On Thursday, December 2, NFT platform Voice is hosting an event at the Museum of Graffiti Gallery featuring one-of-a-kind NFT works.
There is also an "interactive" exhibition of NFTs in collaboration with the open source blockchain Tezos. As part of the exhibition, titled Humans + Machines: NFTs and the Ever-Evolving World of Art, visitors can create an AI self-portrait of themselves, then mint it as an NFT—to go.
