NFTs are shaking up the art market in Africa
“Different shades of water” NFT work by Nigerian Osinachi inspired by “Portrait of an Artist” by David Hockney © José Marinho / RFI
Text by: RFI Follow
3 mins
The US-born crypto-art market is emerging in Africa.
The value of these entirely virtual works is guaranteed by NFTs, digital property certificates based on blockchain technology.
In October 2021, Nigerian Prince Jacon Osinachi is the first African artist to participate in an NFT auction at Christie's auction house in London.
Since then, his digital works have sold for thousands of euros and many artists on the continent have been inspired by them.
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Since being caught up in
the world of NFTs
, 24-year-old South African Rick Lane has navigated between the real and the virtual.
His trademark are his portraits painted in oil on canvas then scanned and retouched in Photoshop.
His biggest sale is $500.
"
It's just the beginning
," says this young talent who hopes to one day make a living from crypto.
“
I am brand new to the market.
But when I sell a piece, it helps my mother,
rejoices the young artist
.
She runs a business and some months it's really difficult.
So I can help her pay for the groceries, the rent, the bills…
”
Process Painting pic.twitter.com/7SUJ5GEccH
— RICK LANE ART 💙 (@RickLaneArt) December 18, 2022
The value of his work, Rick Lane measures it above all on the artistic level.
Its hyper-realistic style tinged with warm colors stands out and appeals to collectors in this virtual world.
"
With NFTs, it's different, it's you who create and people who buy,
" he explains.
You keep your identity, you keep your freedom.
And all copyrights belong to you
.
“The choice of NFT is also, for the young artist, a way of freeing himself from the rules of traditional art: “
It's easy, you just need the internet and your computer to get there.
What really matters is
"What new are you bringing? Are you inspiring?"
".
Local resistance
This market should have twice as many users within a few years in Nigeria and South Africa.
But to find a place on the crypto-art scene, African artists must overcome several obstacles such as the
poor quality of Internet connections
in their countries or the difficult conversion of cryptocurrencies into local currencies.
For example, “
we see that the Nigerian central bank is waging war on crypto-currencies,
illustrates Axel Reynes, NFT specialist.
For example, in Morocco it is difficult to get capital out, cryptocurrencies are not recognized as an alternative at all.
»
However, despite the instability of the market, the constraints of central banks and the
various national legislations
, Alex Reynes observes that we see "
more and more African artists and more and more consumers of African origin
" arriving on the market.
For this specialist, there is indeed a constant growth of NFTs in Africa which “
is not going to stop, of course.
On the contrary, which will progress, strengthen, solidify
”.
A movement that will allow artists emerging on the continent to "
be able to rise on the world stage and make their art known first and foremost
".
► To read also: The art market reaches a world record in 2021, boosted by the contemporary and the NFT
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