Bonhams to Offer NFTs by a Group of Crypto Art Pioneers

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Bonhams has become the latest auction house to jump on the bandwagon of nonfungible tokens (NFTs) by offering a selection of digital artworks curated in collaboration with SuperRare, a leading digital art platform.

The online auction, running from June 21-30, will feature works by a group of pioneers in the crypto art world, including California-based Coldie, one of highest-earning crypto artists to date; London-based XCOPY, who is best known for exploring death, dystopia, and apathy through distorted visual loops; and French-based Alotta Money, known for his visual desecration of old masters and classical artworks.

Other digital artists represented in this sale, titled CryptOGs: The Pioneers of NFT Art, include
Matt Kane,

Osinachi,

Sarah Zucker,

Mattia Cuttini,

Miss Al Simpson,
and Janne Limited.

“These artists have had a lasting impact on the landscape of digital art and will go down in art history as pioneers in the field,” Nima Sagharchi, Bonhams head of digital art, said in a statement. “Bonhams has a tradition of recontextualising under-examined art movements and, as this is the first time NFTs will be presented in a curated format within a historical appraisal of the movement, this is sure to be an exciting and landmark sale.” 

While all the artworks offered for sale have been estimated in dollar amount, Bonhams will also accept payment in Ethereum for this auction. 

Highlighting the sale will be Proof Of Work—Genesis by Coldie, which has a presale estimate of between US$70,000 and US$100,000. The work is a revival of one of the artist’s very first tokens from 2018, the original was “burnt” in 2019 and it was minted again in 2021, according to Bonhams.

The work is inspired by parallels between the 19th-century Gold Rush in California and the current frenzy for crypto mining.  

“This auction of SuperRare OGs is a celebration of the pioneers who helped pave the path for artists who would come after, and for each of us who let our freak flag fly,” Coldie said in a statement through Bonhams.  

The Death of Cash (Sorry Anon) by XCOPY will be offered with an estimate of between US$150,000 and US$200,000, with no reserve. The work is a playful take on the predicted decline of Fiat currency—a government-issued currency that is not backed by a commodity such as gold. 

XCOPY was the second-ever artist to mint on the SuperRare platform, and his work, Death Dip, sold for 1,000 ETH (about US$2.5 million in current dollar value) in March, the highest sale for the platform since its establishment in 2017.

Additionally, Pauline at the Mall by Money will be offered for an estimate of US$40,000 and US$60,000.      

SuperRare is one of the leading curated digital art platforms, following behind Nifty Gateway with a market share of roughly 13.8%, according to data from Cryptoart.io. Major global auction houses, including
Christies,
Sotheby’s, and
Phillips,
have already ventured into the NFT art sales. Christie’s US$69-million sale of Beeple’s Everydays: The First 5000 Days, in March, is widely considered a watershed moment in the crypto art field.