Zimpapers Logo

Angela Sibanda, Showbiz Reporter
Like any other new technology that society has learnt to understand with time, the issue of Non Fungible Tokens (NFTs) still needs more awareness campaigns and workshops for artists to appreciate this digital way of doing business.

After a successful conversation on NFTs at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe in Bulawayo on Wednesday, some of the artists who were in attendance said they need more workshops on the topic for them to gain knowledge so as to be able to confidently start selling their craft online.

NFTs are defined as digital assets that represent real-world objects like art, music, in-game items, and videos.

They are bought and sold online, frequently with cryptocurrency and they are generally encoded with the same underlying software as many cryptos.

Although they’ve been around since 2014, NFTs are gaining notoriety now because they are becoming an increasingly popular way to buy and sell digital artwork.

A visual artist Nonhlanhla Mathe, who operates from the gallery, said the workshop was insightful although she felt she still needed more knowledge and practicality for her to fully adopt the idea of selling art online using NFTs.

“We’ve moved to a digital world where one can establish a huge market base using the internet and these technologies are just inevitable.

During this workshop, we learnt a lot about how we can trade our art online using NFTs and still be able to retain the copyright of our art.

“I, however, feel that for me to be in a position where I can take up the idea and implement it, I need more knowledge and maybe something practical because as much as it sounds easy, I need to learn more.

Even the issue of how those tokens will be collected after the art has been sold is still not clear to many of us,” she said.

The workshop facilitator, Saudi Arabia-based economist Godfrey Dube told artists that they can use one of the largest online art markets, Open Sea, for their art and offered to help those interested go through the processes of getting their artwork to be exhibited.

According to him, artists who upload their art on the website will be required to pay an amount of US$25 and will be able to collect their tokens.

“I’m someone who appreciates art.

Even though I can’t draw or paint, I buy and consume art, especially visual art.

This workshop was to give an insight to the artists on how they can expand their market.

“From the outcome, I believe they understood the concepts, but we need to do more.

We’ve already decided that our next bus stop will be a more practical workshop to make sure that people understand this.

If rightfully implemented, this will change our arts industry for the better,” said Dube.

In a world where technology is growing immensely, it is time for local artists to catch up with the rest of the world.

Apart from the practical side of the NFTs, and from the reception of the idea during the workshop, local artists revealed that they are ready to take their art digital as long as they can make a living out of it.