Invictus Capital has unveiled its first NFT (non-fungible token) collection through the Invictus NFT Lab, which strives to combine the best of fine art with blockchain technology, and brings many contemporary digital artists to a global market.
“The global pandemic has been especially challenging for creatives worldwide, with fine artists particularly hard hit by gallery closures, curtailed travel and cancelled exhibitions,” says Brett Bellairs from Gallery 131.
“The Out of Africa Collection is made up of 100 unique NFTs on the Ethereum blockchain, and is the first time many of the artists have worked in the NFT space. This collection is a triumph for these artists and represents some of the finest new, upcoming and established talent,” says Marelize van Zyl, Curator for the Out of Africa NFT collection.
“This inaugural collection is a first of its kind for Southern African artists, and global investors,” says Daniel Schwartzkopff, CEO at Invictus Capital.
The project kicks off in January, with the distribution of the NFT posters to interested parties, and will culminate in an auction in February for NFT representations of the original, physical artworks. These NFTs act like a certificate of ownership, and the holder can opt to have the original artwork delivered.
Adds Blake Anthony of KNEXT Art Gallery: “Digital artists are increasingly embracing the fast growing NFT collector market. The NFT space is disrupting the fine art industry’s business model and our artists are seeing the long term value of their creations.”
For collectors, NFTs make it possible to cut out significant middleman costs that can make investing in art otherwise unpalatable.
“For artists, NFTs give them access to a truly global audience and a royalty-driven revenue model made possible by blockchain,” says Charl Bezuidenhout of Worldart.
“We will continue to find ways to disrupt traditional investment and financial services, and the Invictus NFT Lab is a clear demonstration of this commitment. We believe that an NFT Lab, like this one, will go a long way to bringing NFTs into mainstream investment portfolios, and appeal to traditional art collectors; modern NFT collectors and anyone in between,” says Schwartzkopff.
Musa N Nxumalo, owner of Studio Nxumalo Contemporary, adds: “We are proud and excited to have our artists and their uniquely Southern African voices, perspectives and talent to the Invictus NFT Lab.”
Prospective investors interested in the project can subscribe to the newsletter to get updates on participating artists and artworks, as well as concrete dates for each project phase.
“We are encouraging anyone hungry to learn more about this unique project to check out the technical details in the Litepaper, and track the project’s progress via Twitter,” concludes van Zyl.