Art Blocks and NFT Gallery Bright Moments Team Up to Bring Generative Art IRL

https://www.coindesk.com/web3/2023/02/16/art-blocks-and-nft-gallery-bright-moments-team-up-to-bring-generative-art-irl/

Generative art non-fungible token (NFT) collective Art Blocks and NFT gallery Bright Moments are creating a unique project that ties NFTs to real-life, in-person experiences for collectors. Every NFT will have a second, physical activation which can only be minted in a specific city tied to that NFT.

The two companies have commissioned artist Michael Kozlowski, commonly known as Mpkoz, to release a collection for this partnership. Titled Metropolis, the body of work features generative art NFTs based on architectural influences from London, Berlin, New York, Mexico City and Los Angeles – five cities where Bright Moments galleries are located.

Kozlowski told CoinDesk that he’s enthusiastic that the collection will help bring generative art, a genre that’s recently been defying the downward trends of NFT markets, in front of the eyes of crypto and non-crypto native collectors.

“The fact that you don't know what you're getting when you're a collector, and you get to see [the mint] happen in front of your eyes while you're standing next to the artists that made it in sort of a unique situation catered to the specific project that you're minting,” said Kozlowski. “It's just very special.”

The 500-unit collection’s minting begins online Feb. 22, but the in-person component will depend on which city each Metropolis NFT corresponds to. At the designated time, holders will be able to mint “a diptych” – a counterpart to the original NFT. The second work of art, which is free, can only be minted in real life.

Art Blocks and Bright Moments laid plans to team up in January to produce “experiential collaborations.” Art Blocks previously partnered with Pace Gallery in June to further its mission to bring generative art to wider audiences.

Kozlowski is the artist behind Chimera, an early NFT collection minted on Art Blocks. According to data from OpenSea, the collection has a 2.16 ETH or about $3700 floor price, and a trading volume of 3,753 ETH, nearly $6.4 million.