Looking Outwards 11

NFTs Are Shaking Up the Art World—But They Could Change So Much More

https://time.com/5947720/nft-art/ 

This article discusses the ways in which the art world could be altered via the growing popularity of NFTs (non-fungible tokens). It discusses many advantages, specifically positioning the creators of NFTs as down-on-their luck digital artists posed to receive notable benefits. These benefits include an increased ability to profit from one’s art, alongside the means to make one’s digital art pieces more exclusive, and hence, considered more valuable. This, however, completely neglects to mention the ways NFTs are actually used, alongside the culture surrounding them. NFTs are not bought because someone likes the art, or at the very least, that is not the primary reason for buying them. People buy NFTs to grow their own wealth at a gamble, and it’s safe to say that the already wealthy are not those who could lose the most from investing. Those who possess social capital (think CEOs, billionaires, celebrities) are easily able to construct their own NFTs and profit hugely, the reality being that very few digital artists are, in actuality, gaining financial stability from the practice, as the article implies. Like other assets on the blockchain, it would be ridiculous to pretend that NFTs don’t serve as a tool to further enrich the wealthy, usually at the expense of those outside of the 1%. Especially given the state of capitalism in this country, this is, without a doubt, extremely damaging. Though mentioned in the article, it is also worth re-acknowledging the fact that NFTs (and anything else on the blockchain) are bad for the environment, the computer clusters used to farm NFTs often powered by fossil fuels. This article is definitely biased in favor of NFTs, and perhaps unfairly fails to mention the realities of them. That being said, the title is right: NFTs could change so much more than the art world- change it for the worse.