Over the last two years, demand for and interest in the crypto art industry has grown tremendously.
According to data from financepr.com, the cryptocurrency art industry hit a market cap of $2,350,924,699 as of January 2022. This amount is equivalent to about 708,481.162 ETH.
The data also shows that 2,792,543 artworks were sold on different platforms, including Art Blocks, SuperRare, and Nifty Gateway.
Art Blocks, Nifty Gateway among biggest gainers
The data compiled by Trading Platforms spans four years and comprises select crypto art platforms; SuperRare, Art Blocks, Nifty Gateway, Async Art, KnownOrigin, MakersPlace, Foundation, and hic et Nunc.
2021 was a significant year for many blockchain-related projects, including NFTs and DeFi. The total monthly cryptocurrency art volume on the select platforms grew from $12.548 million on January 1, 2021, to $409.857 million on December 1 of the same year.
Art Blocks showed some of the most significant growth, with the monthly volume sales surging from $679.522k to $244.248 million in the same period. The monthly volume on Nifty Gateway also leaped from $8.72 million in January to $118.306 million in December.
Although there was a general upward trend in monthly volume over the year, July-August was quite significant after a low trade volume in June. The collective sales on the mentioned platforms reached all-time high levels of about $700 million by August 1.
According to Edith Reads from financepr.com, the crypto art industry is taking significant strides and “changing the way we view art. Although it’s still a bit early to tell what direction the industry takes, it’s clear that more people are getting on board by the day. Perhaps crypto-art NFTs together with sustainable DeFi projects will offer the gateway we’ve been waiting for to mainstream crypto mass adoption.”
Crypto art and NFTs transforming the traditional art industry
Digital art forms have, undoubtedly, caused a lot of stir in the crypto community as more enthusiasts get on board with this new form of artwork.
Although many people beyond the crypto community remain skeptical about crypto art, a few pacesetters are more than willing to spend big bucks on digital art.
Crypto artist Beeple sold his collection, Everydays; The First 5000 Days, for $69.3 million, at an auction held by Christie’s on March 11, 2021. A month earlier, Beeple had sold a 10-second NFT video for $6.6 million on Nifty Gateway.
Although digital art has been around for a while, crypto art has only materialized recently. Thanks to NFTs, artists can now verify their artwork, making it difficult for anyone to forge original art pieces.
Non-fungible tokens have also made it easier for art enthusiasts to collect pieces from their favorite artists from the comfort of their homes.
