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Towards a Decentralized Art Market

  • [아시아뉴스통신] Timothy Montales 기자
  • 송고시간 2018-07-30 17:30
  • 뉴스홈 > 국제
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It is now possible to buy artworks through virtual money.We are not just talking about cashless credit card transactions but Bitcoin itself.

The art world does not operate only for its own sake, which is to say that for it to thrive in a capitalist system, it must adapt within this nexus of connections into a single point: business.Art auctions, patronage, and dealings are part of what constitutes the art market which is an entirely different dimension of the art world.Artists have become dependent on this business that requires third party connections that are quite removed from the world of art themselves.The dealers and collectors function as the regulators of art distribution, hence they play the roles of setting the price of a particular artwork and to an extent, the trend.

Due to the business infiltration within the art world, money becomes a vital factor that contributes to the overall value of the artwork.This is one of the reasons why most art critics are dissenting towards the business side of the arts since it provides a false sense of value that is presented by money.

As our technology exponentially evolves, people can now buy artworks through Bitcoins.Online gallery Cointemporary allows transaction through cryptocurrency exchange that is being handled by Coinbase.This method removes the role of the middlemen, which is in this case, the art dealers.Perhaps this is a move to decentralize the value of the fine arts from the dealers themselves which are now threatened by the cryptocurrency’s blockchain system.


This apparent shift is still in a lopsided situation which might lead to the disruption of the status quo of the art market since artworks can now be bought using virtual money.Mr.Casil, an Argentinian who is now based in Singapore wants art to be accessible to anyone.He says, “The old auction houses like Christie's and Sotheby's have controlled the art market for centuries, so we think the opportunity for disruption is huge.” His background in investment banking may have contributed to his thoughts about this position where art can experience this business breakthrough.