FOMA Magzine Issue 4 featured Anndy Lian, an intergovernmental blockchain expert based in Singapore. He shared his views on how the art industry can do better with the usage of blockchain technology.
"It's [Art and Blockchain] a big industry." Anndy Lian,
Art is part of our lives, we see them in all shapes and forms. Technology plays a similar part in our lives too, in every step we make.
I have travelled around the world meeting people and advocating blockchain technology since 2017. During this period, I have managed to convince governments, government-linked companies, schools and also traditional businesses to embark on the technology journey. Many of them are happy with the decision and especially during this COVID period, they have benefited more than before as the world has gone into the digital space and blockchain been the technology that enhances security plays a vital role.
In this article, I would like to share about the art industry and how digitalising their work will bring them more good than staying traditional.
What is art?
To me, art is an expression of human creative skills and imagination. It is typically in a form of painting, sculpture or music, literature or dance. Ultimately, it expresses the artist’s conceptual ideas, technical skills and creatively intended to be appealing to the senses and emotions.
How big is the art industry?
The global art market grew 6% in 2018 to $67.4 billion in sales, according to economist Clare McAndrew's report “The Art Market 2019,” released by Art Basel and UBS on Friday. That total makes 2018 the second-biggest year for the art market in the past decade, trailing only 2014 when sales totaled $68.2 billion according to statistics obtained from Artsy.
Art on the secondary market is often sold at an auction house. The artwork will be made available to the public and anyone can observe the price and buy it. Many times, gallery owners also bid at the auction to control the market price and value. I believe that a combination of art and technology will help to increase transparency in the industry. Blockchain can play a big part in it.
Going virtual
In the current pandemic times, everyone is encouraged not to travel. I do see that art is going digital too. Rembrandt, Miro, Banksy fetch millions at Sotheby's virtual art auction. This is their new live stream auction format featured many pieces of artwork spanning five centuries of art history. This event attracted bidders from all over the world and managed by auction house’s staff from New York, London and Hong Office offices. Technology enables the sale. Good art waits for no man, be it virtual or physical.
What is the future for art?
As we move a step ahead on art and technology. I want to share a few things.
- NFT Collectibles Art
- Blockchain Tracking and Tracing + Authenticity
- Global Marketplace+
“In code, we trust art.
Heading global with blockchain.”
About FOMA Magzine
FOMA (Fear Of Missing Art) is an international mag for immutable culture. We feature artist profiles, discussions & insights into the crypto-art movement.