This week’s Web3 Wrap features a wide-reaching set of news and announcements, including a hack and sale on Banksy’s official website, the launch of the Quincy Jones-backed OneOf NFT marketplace, the first classical music NFTs, and two comic-based drops that will surely have graphic novel pundits salivating.
Read all about what’s happening in the Web3 universe below.
Fake Banksy Sold Through Artists Own Website
A hacker was able to break into the artist’s website and post an inauthentic Banksy NFT for sale, netting a cool $336,000 in the process. An auction was posted to the now-deleted link banksy.co.uk, leading to a bidding war for an NFT that was in no way associated with the artist. The buyer, choosing to remain anonymous, said he only decided to purchase the NFT because it was linked through the official Banksy website. In a bizarre twist, the hacker decided to return the collector’s stolen funds, although the $5,000 used in Ethereum gas fees remain unaccounted for. The buyer was lucky the hacker had a change of heart, but many other victims aren’t as lucky; the irreversibility of sites like OpenSea means that once a bid is placed and accepted, the transaction can’t be backtracked.
Quincy Jones Founded NFT Platform OneOf Has Officially Launched
Musical entrepreneur Quincy Jones has founded musical NFT platform OneOf, which officially launched this week. Fans of artists like John Legend, Doja Cat, and Quincy himself are able to own collectible items from those and other artists with very little friction. The platform, which was launched on the Tezos blockchain, claims to be
eMusic Live Brings Classical Music to the NFT Realm
Online concert streaming platform eMusic Live has become the first commercial live streaming platform to offer NFTs as a part of the audience experience. Attendees of the latest ticketed concert streams will now be able to purchase additional collectibles. Most recently, viewers of Nico Muhly’s violin concerto “Shrink” were given the opportunity to purchase an enhanced ticket package which included a signed digital version of the album art as well as coupons for other artist merchandise—all for a single additional dollar. The music, performed by the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra, was recorded live in 2019 but was later debuted digitally with the bundled NFT option. eMusic Live chose Polygon (Matic) as its blockchain for distributing the digital goods.
DKNY Announces NFT Logo Auction
Fashion brand DKNY is the latest clothier to enter the blockchain space by creating and selling an AI-generated logo. With the help of AI tech company Obvious, they were able to algorithmically create an animated variation of the brand’s name. The logo is offered as a 1 of 1 and was inspired by the mural overlooking the entrance of New York’s vibrant SoHo neighborhood. DKNY is not planning to make money from the sale of the NFT, however; instead, they plan to donate the money to the American Nurses Foundation. Bidding for the NFT is open now, and is powered by the Rad network.
EDM Artist Dimitri Vegas Launches Dino Themed NFT Comic
EDM artist Dmitri Vegas (one half of the duo Dimitri Vegas and Like Mike) is ready to unleash his dinosaur-themed NFT comic series, Alien Samurai Dino Warriors. The initial collection will be a series of moving 3D statues and a series of comic-themed trading cards. Each collectible will be released with a rarity of four. This is to be followed by a full-blown comic series later in 2022, and Vegas even has aspirations to eventually create a video game and television series out of the IP. The team behind the venture has serious credit to it (father-son duo Michael and David Uslan of the Batman creative universe; Heather Antos, graphic editor and creative mind behind Marvel’s Star Wars series; and Erik Burnham, one of the writers of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Ghostbusters graphic novel series). For more details, head over to the Alien Samurai Dino Warrior Discord.
Crypto.com NFT Partners Up with Iconic Comics Magazine Heavy Metal
Counter-culture magazine Heavy Metal is teaming up with Crypto.com to launch an NFT marketplace and series of collectibles featuring iconic magazine illustrations and pieces from world-renowned artists. The first drop, titled Beyond Kuiper: The Galactic Star Alliance, is based on the best selling Amazon fiction series by space engineer John Connelly; the second drop scheduled will be a comic series called Rise based on George A. Romero’s classic hit Night of the Living Dead; the third upcoming collection will be based off of The Axe, a project by Joe Trohman, guitarist of multi-platinum band Fallout Boy and The Damned Things. The platform is scheduled to officially launch on September 15. Crypto.com is shaping up to be one of the most interacted-with crypto apps, currently serving over 10 million users. What’s more, is the platform has also already hosted collections from a host of well-known artists and institutions such as Snoop Dogg, Beatport, BossLogic, and more.
Binance Auctioning off Van Gogh and Da Vinci Works
Binance has just announced the launch of a premium NFT collection curated by none other than the State Hermitage Museum. The collection will feature artworks from high profile artists such as Leonardo DaVinci, Vincent Van Gogh, Claude Monet, and others. Each one of the NFTs in the collection was recreated from a masterpiece currently in the museum collection, with a total supply of five available. The owner of the NFT will receive an exclusive video from the general director of the museum, Mikhail Piotrovsky, showing how he certifies each artwork. The illustrious series will include digital reproductions of Lilac Bush by Van Gogh, Corner of the Garden at Montgeron by Claude Monet, The Madonna and Child by Da Vinci, Judith by Giorgione, and Composition VI by Wassily Kandinsky.
What to Join and Who to Follow:
@eevnzzy — 3D artist Deeto, available on Foundation and Hic Et Nunc.
@omgidrawedit — OMGiDRAWEDit is an iIllustrator, creator of the sold-out Tezzardz project.
@kanati_kim — Kanati Kim is an 2D illustrator with a collection available on OpenSea.
@Ghxsts — Ghxsts is an emotional NFT collection, available on OpenSea and with a thriving Discord.
XNFT Artist Spotlight: Galaxy Lane
Galaxy Lane has built a solid reputation in the NFT space this year, fusing together warped-out techno and rolling minimal with sleek, transfixing visual art.
You can find his work minted on numerous NFT platforms, including hic et nunc, Zora, Rarible, and, of course, XNFT, which is where his latest piece, “Nudge,” resides. “Nudge” combines hypnotic generative visuals with an analog techno loop, with a preview below and the NFT available here.
