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3 Must-Know Trends in Digital Art & Innovative Ways to Drop Your Artwork

As an artist, continuously pushing the boundaries of creativity and staying ahead of the curve is essential. Artistic innovation is constantly evolving, but even more so in the realm of digital art.

This week, we share 3 of the latest trends that are driving the digital art scene, and share innovative ways for you to drop your latest artwork.

Let’s get started.

#1: Increasing importance of IRL experiences in a digital world

In an increasingly digital world, the importance of real-life (or IRL) experiences cannot be overstated. Even though blockchain technology has opened up new avenues for artistic expression and art collecting, especially in the realm of digital art, there is an irreplaceable magic that comes from immersing oneself in the physical presence of art.

One such way to do so is through live minting. Bright Moments has established itself as a leader in this trend, and has done so through unforgettable events that are centered on the experience of minting generative and AI art. Bright Moments also curates, promotes, and produces physical showcases for the world’s top digital artists.

Another way digital artists continue to explore the importance of real-life experiences is through the intersection of physical and digital artwork. We covered this in-depth in our What is Phygital? article last month.

For example, digital artist Ripcache recently explored the notion of permanence in his latest work “Public // Private” in collaboration with Transient Labs. Each piece consists of a physical screen print and a digital artwork stored on the Ethereum blockchain, where the only way to acquire the digital artwork is to do so through purchasing the physical artwork.

Once the physical artwork is obtained, collectors have to make the pivotal decision of scratching the physical artwork to reveal the concealed private key in order to gain access to the digital artwork. This irreversible action severs the tangible artwork from its digital counterpart, presenting the collector with a singular and unforgettable experience.

#2: Alternative pricing models, such as reverse Dutch auction rebates

Reverse Dutch auction rebates have emerged as the latest trend revolutionizing the way artists are compensated for their work.

As we discussed in our recent article, pricing your artwork is an extremely complex decision. Creators have to simultaneously balance many conflicting variables, such as profit, accessibility, and a desire to sell out their available work.

This innovative approach flips the traditional auction model on its head. Instead of starting with a low reserve price and buyers raising it with each additional bid, a reverse Dutch auction starts with a higher price and progressively decreases until buyers are secured, and the collection sells out.

When rebates are introduced, all buyers that purchased at a higher price prior to the collection selling out are refunded the difference between their purchase price and the final clearance price, ensuring that all collectors end up collecting the artist’s artwork for the same price.

This approach not only ensures fair compensation for the artist, but also (i) creates a sense of urgency and excitement among potential buyers, while (ii) encouraging fair price discovery amongst collectors. This allows artists to better navigate the market without compromising their artistic integrity or undermining their worth.

In the past, Dutch auction rebates have felt complex for both creators and collectors. In response, Foundation has designed an experience and tool for Dutch auction rebates that’s straightforward and user-friendly. Learn how to experiment with your next drop here.

For further inspiration, check out Process Grey’s Dutch Auction for his 1/1 collection - as an incredible example to look at how an artist builds financial value, aligns their moral/ethical values with pricing, and ultimately knocks it out of the park.

#3: A need to diversify one’s audience, and outsmart the algorithm

As social platforms continue to dominate our digital lives, a growing trend among artists is increasing caution towards the algorithms that shape their online presence. Artists, like many other content creators, have witnessed the impact of algorithmic decisions on their visibility, reach, and ultimately, their artistic careers.

While algorithms are designed to optimize user experience and engagement, they often prioritize popular or commercially driven content, leaving niche or unconventional artistic expressions struggling to find an audience.

At HUG, we have been building a growing suite of collector management tools that allow creators to reach their collectors directly. The latest Artist Updates feature emails important updates directly to an artist’s followers, while also making them a part of their Artist Profile. Drops done through Manifold are automatically shared as well.

Want to learn more about this feature? Check out this tweet, and apply for your HUG Artist Profile today.

Recently, HUG Artist Melda leveraged this feature to conduct a surprise 3 hour drop. You can view her update here.

Closing Thoughts

Understanding trends and case studies is a vital component of artistic innovation. These case studies can also inspire you to explore different ways of dropping your latest artwork.

Want to see some of these latest case studies in action? This week, instead of Twitter Spaces, we are going live on video with a HUG Studios Demo Day. Watch creators pitch their ideas live, all while receiving live feedback.

In the News

Industry News

• Generative artist Dmitri Cherniak’s Ringers #879, affectionately known as ‘The Goose,’ sold for $6.2M at a Sotheby’s auction, and makes a statement for the future of digital, in particular generative, art.

• Iconic comedy musical Rocky Horror Show is a launching a NFT collection, which acts as the first step toward a metaverse featuring the characters from the play and film.

• PROOF is opening a 4000-square-foot events space in Downtown Los Angeles to showcase artwork and connect traditional art, Web3, and entertainment in one hub.

• The Recording Academy has come out to stipulate that “only human creators” can win a Grammy, a rule that is aimed at the trend of using AI in music composition.

Tools and Resources

• Tezos marketplace Objkt now allows you to update your profiles directly from their platform. Tezos Profiles will continue to be supported, but in the meantime, you can give your profile a makeover by uploading your picture directly to Objkt (GIFs supported!).

• Bitcoin Ordinals continue to evolve and advance in technological developments. Learn about recursive inscriptions, which now allows for more than 4MB of data to be inscribed on each Ordinal. Need a refresher on what Ordinals are? Check out our past newsletter issue.

• While we are huge proponents of AI art, it can still be useful to identify which works are created by AI. Check out these tips for doing so. If anything, these tips also help AI artists pick out areas for improvement from their own generations.

• Minting platform HeyMint now has an integration with Paper to make it easier to onboard collectors without them needing to create a wallet.

Notable Creators

• Rapper and entertainer Calvin “Snoop Dogg” Broadus Jr. launched Snoop Dogg Passport, an evolving digital collectible, i.e. dynamic NFT, that unlocks access to exclusive content and opportunities tied to his upcoming concert tour.

• Learn more about OONA, the anonymous performance artist who is born from the rich history of feminist video and performance art, and how her work is a commentary on the inequity of the new online art world, while she exists as a female artist under the male gaze.

• Interested in learning more about Wild.xyz, the platform for experiential art? Check out this interview of their founder, Douglass Kobs, here.

Artist Grants and Opportunities

• Get your art showcased in the one of the world’s first NFT bars in the sunny city of San Diego, California. HUG is teaming up with Botanica to curate 7 artworks inspired by the art and creativity of cuisine. Learn more and submit your artwork here.

• Earn a $500 USD grant for your art, while also growing your collector base. Learn more about HUG’s Visionary program, and apply to become a Visionary here.

• Submit your AI artwork or video installations to the Bauhaus Goes AI exhibition around the theme of Genius Loci, and stand to win EUR 5000 per artist. Learn more and apply here by June 30th.

• No-code platform Bueno is offering three artists $1000 each and access to Bueno Tools to kickstart their creative journey. Learn more and apply here by June 30th.

• Want your work transformed into a digital wearable and earn royalties from its sale on Decentraland, DressX, Upland, and more? Participate in Mavion’s community design challenge. Learn more and enter by June 30th.

• Online contemporary art gallery Royal Blue Gallery is hosting an open call for all visual artists to submit their work to their upcoming show, ‘Contrasts’. Chosen artists will have the opportunity to exhibit and sell their work through Royal Blue and participate in exhibit-related promotions. Learn more and apply by June 30th.

• The Adobe Creative Residency program supports creators of visual digital work, offering grants of $500–$5,000 for either a portfolio project or a paid Adobe project commission. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, learn about the program and application process here.

This Week’s Art Drops

• Sahvolia by Aoife O’Dwyer (1/1, Auction): Part of the 'LOVE IS LOUDER' show curated by Odyssey of the Heart which is launching in Milan this week at Ninfa Labs. The title is from the Irish phrase 'sa bhaile' which means 'at home'.

• (re)Genesis by Jimena Buena Vida (Generative art collection, starting from 64 tez): A generative art collection made with p5js of vibrant form & color, embodying unity & renewal, breaking free to co-create a vibrant, inclusive future. 15% of primary sales will support Outright International, an organization bettering LGBTQIA lives.

• INCEPTION // Scene 9 by Tylersjourney (Timed Open Edition, 0.0013 ETH): Part of Tylersjourney’s game where the collectors plays the main character, and gets to burn these scenes for future rarer scenes and other 1/1s.

• I Feel Free by Seungdo Hyun (1/1, 0.27 ETH): A piece that is inspired by one’s individual interpretation of the feeling of freedom.

• Dream illusion by Dragsi (1/1, 10 tez): A piece inspired by the illusion of sleep where things look different within and outside one’s dreams.

• Pinnacle by Brittany Pierre (1/1, 1.11 ETH): A black and white photography from Brittany’s first road trip up the West Coast dipping through Arizona and Utah, where they spent 2 months in a van with a corgi as their co-pilot.

• CHLOÉ by Farrah Carbonnell (Limited Edition, 3/3, 0.08 ETH): A hyperrealistic portrait of a woman seamlessly merges with a surrounding painting. Blurring the lines between reality and imagination, and inviting viewers to experience a spellbinding fusion of photorealism and ethereal enchantment.

• MOONLIT DREAMS Fine Art Print by Camila Nogueira (Fine Art Print, from EUR 40): A signed giclée print of Camila Nogueira’s collab with Nifty Gateway, printed on thick, textured paper (270 gr) with premium quality pigment inks.