An Endemic Art Community
Where Real World Artists and NFTs Meet
Why Art Matters
One of the most crucial things that sets humans apart from the rest of the animal kingdom is man’s ability to create and appreciate art. Archeologists have found that even the most prehistoric and ancient of civilizations have some form of visual art incorporated into the culture [1]. And although the importance of art is not as cut and dry as Science and Technology, for example, it is nevertheless just as essential for a community to thrive.
Art gives people a creative means to express themselves. Thus, art is a good reflection of culture and history. It is even used as a tool to further political agenda and propaganda. Yet even though art is a product of an artist’s self-expression, it can be appreciated outside of any context intended by the artist. In this way, art becomes its own language [2]. It conveys a story that is universally felt and understood. This is why art moves people and evokes such powerful emotions.
Art and NFTs
The media through which art is expressed have evolved through millenia. From cave drawings to masterpieces on canvas, art has continued to endure and evolve. However, art has also become a commodity reserved for a privileged few. Art is now “fine art,” that is open only to elitist society [3]. It has become intimidating and financially inaccessible to the average person. In order for an artist to succeed, he or she needs to network with the right people, the right collector and the right gallery owner. Often, it is not enough that an artist’s work is a masterpiece; in order for the work to be given due recognition, the artist is at the mercy of factors beyond the art itself.
Thankfully, technology has advanced to the point where it has become an equalizer of sorts. Starting with social media, the world has become more connected and artists from all over now have access to a global audience. Taking this a step farther is the recent NFT boom. Non-fungible tokens are cryptographic tokens that exist within blockchain technology with unique identification codes and metadata that distinguish them from each other. They are an ideal vehicle to digitally represent physical assets like real estate and artwork because they guarantee ownership rights and they can’t be hacked [4]. On March last year, the world’s first NFT-verified digital artwork to be sold in a major online auction closed for over 69 million USD, making the artist behind the work one of the world’s most expensive living artists today [5]. This showed the world that NFT artworks mean serious business.
Today, NFTs are thriving in the crypto space as more artists and creators are discovering this art medium. Additionally, more people are being introduced to a wide variety of NFT artworks, making art more accessible than ever before.
The Endemic Community
Endemic is an NFT marketplace that serves as a bridge for artists to access the advantages that blockchain technology offers creatives. Through the Endemic platform, artists will have an alternative way to value their art and earn from it, all with the aim of more fairly divided platform revenues. On Endemic, artists are able to bring their work online — building portfolios, selling art as well as interacting with interested supporters. Collectors also have a venue to browse and discover rare and unique world-class art. More buyers have the opportunity to invest in quality art pieces with uncontested ownership rights [6].
But what sets Endemic apart from other marketplaces is the project’s soul. The Edemic team is committed to supporting local artists in every way, from providing additional revenue streams, encouraging networking across different stakeholders, and most importantly, giving artists the opportunity to leave an indelible trace in the art world. Endemic aims to strengthen local art communities in order to create one Endemic global art community.
An Endemic Approach
Social Connections
Endemic follows a contemporary approach to artistic practices with fresh curatorial ideas that are artist-centric. In keeping with the team’s desire to promote social interactions and networking, Endemic offers commission art to customers, allowing for the creation of customized made-to-order artwork where the customer can choose the artist, the theme, motif or technique.
But Endemic once again takes things a step farther and brings the virtual back to the real world through NFT festivals. This is a multi-day festival where people from the art and start-up scene can connect and exchange ideas, share good practices within the industry in order to create synergy.
Social Impact
And while art can be appreciated for its own sake, Endemic believes in using art as a tool to bring awareness to critical issues plaguing the global community. It introduces special series projects to this end, for example, the Lost Animals of the World project which highlights the topic of extinction, conservation and protection of endangered animal species.
Endemic also intends to host virtual thematic exhibitions centered on major global events and happenings in a socially conscious and engaged manner. Exhibits regarding the recently concluded Olympics, the global pandemic, and neglected female artists are just a few of the major themes lined up.
The Endemic Effect
Even though there are already other NFT marketplaces within the crypto space, Endemic’s dedication to curate high quality art that stand for worthwhile causes and promote conversations around these topics are what sets this project apart. With a goal of connecting actors from different spheres of life in order to bring high art closer to a wider audience, Endemic partners up with renowned global-reach organizations like Unesco, WWF, Unicef, etc. in order to spark connections and action beyond the virtual and into the actual world.
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles
[2] https://artincontext.org/why-is-art-important/
[3] https://reporter.rit.edu/leisure/art-world-elitism-contemporary-age
[4] https://www.investopedia.com/non-fungible-tokens-nft-5115211
[5] https://coinmarketcap.com/alexandria/article/how-are-nfts-changing-the-art-industry
[6] https://testnet.endemic.app/news/launching-endemic
