An in-depth journey into the Fidenza collection, unraveling the aesthetics, value, and market perception.
Fidenza is at the forefront of the generative NFT art movement, spearheading a paradigm shift in the contemporary art world. This groundbreaking collection of NFTs has captured the attention of art enthusiasts and investors alike, redefining the traditional dynamics of the art market.
In this report, we will delve into the emergence of generative NFT art, its place in the contemporary art landscape, and how the Fidenza collection exemplifies the democratization of art.
Table of Contents
- Background: the contemporary art landscape needs a change
- The rise of generative art NFTs
- Spotlight on Fidenza
- Understanding the Fidenza trading dynamics
- Fidenza vs. popular artists’ NFT projects
- Fidenza technical overview
- More about Tyler Hobbs
- Conclusion
Key takeaways
- Fidenza’s all-time trading volume as of mid-July 2023 is 62,354 ETH, approximately $120 million.
- Auction houses such as Christie’s and Sotheby’s have been responsible for almost $36 million in Fidenza auctions.
- Fidenza’s floor price in mid-July 2023 stands at 80 ETH, equivalent to $154,084, a remarkable 38421% appreciation from its $400 minting price.
- Currently, 999 Fidenza NFTs are held in 479 unique wallets, resulting in a unique holder ratio of 48%, with notable holders such as Snoop Dogg, Vincent Van Dough, and Punk6529.
- Over the last 30 days, The Currency by Damien Hirst generated a trading volume of $142,260, Fragments by James Jean at $30,330, while Fidenza stands out with an impressive trading volume of $846,745.
Background: the contemporary art landscape needs a change
The contemporary art industry is filled with jaw-dropping auction prices and obscure artworks, but its allure is not always as crystal clear and glorious as it may seem.
In February 2006, On Kawara’s “Nov.8, 1989” from his “Today” series fetched an astounding £310,000 ($405,765) at Christie’s auction house in London. Kawara’s day-paintings, crafted since 1966, adhere to strict rules. To sum up his art concept in the simplest terms: the paintings must be completed within the same day of their inception – quite literally, he calls them “Today.”
The auction house catalog described “Today” as ‘an existential statement, a proof of life’. But without further interpretation, does the artwork truly communicate its profound message to the audience? Or maybe we are all too much of a muggle to understand.
Contemporary art has faced criticism for its exclusivity and heavy branding, distancing the general art-loving audience from the artworks. “Nov.8, 1989” is just one of the hundreds of thousands of examples that make viewers feel this way.
Perhaps, this is because the contemporary art world is dominated by the rich and gatekeepers, such as art dealers, galleries, and museums, and they dictate what is valuable and culturally significant. Maybe the change should come in the shape of making art more accessible.
“Works of art, which represent the highest level of spiritual production, will find favor in the eyes of the bourgeois only if they are presented as being liable to directly generate material wealth.”
– Karl Marx
The rise of generative art NFTs
In the digital age, algorithm art, or generative art, has emerged as a unique art form. It utilizes computer algorithms to create visually striking and intricate patterns.
On top of that, NFTs introduce another layer of dynamics to generative art, setting it apart from traditional art forms in various ways. It fosters community inclusivity, operates on a bottom-up approach, and requires artists to engage directly with their audience.
This democratized environment challenges the old gatekeeper system. Collaboration and interaction are enabled between creators and collectors, facilitated by platforms like Art Blocks, where the Fidenza collections were first minted.
Speaking of generative art, we cannot ignore Art Blocks, which is pivotal in nurturing and propelling this emerging frontier. And its reputation as a synonym for generative art is well-deserved.
As of mid-July 2023, Art Blocks boasts an all-time trading volume of $1.4 billion, with an active community of 57,655 traders contributing to 247,683 sales.
Spotlight on Fidenza
Fidenza is a collection of 999 generative art NFTs created by Tyler Hobbs in 2021. The collection released on Art Blocks in June 2021 and quickly became one of the most popular NFT collections of all time.
The success of Fidenza NFTs in prestigious auction houses like Christie’s and Sotheby’s exemplifies the impact of this emerging art form.
Fidenza auction house records
Click on each Fidenza to see its latest data on DappRadar.
- October 2021, Christie’s – Fidenza #367 / $28.9 million
- January 2022, Sotheby’s – Fidenza #724 / $1.8 million
- March 2022, Sotheby’s – Fidenza #163 / $1.5 million
- May 2023, Sotheby’s (The 3AC collection auction: part I)
- June 2023, Sotheby’s (The 3AC collection auction: part II)
The cumulative auction record for these Fidenza NFTs amounts to a staggering $35.9 million.
Understanding the Fidenza trading dynamics
Inspecting trading metrics is crucial because it provides valuable insights into various aspects of Fidenza. And thanks to NFTs, such analysis becomes accessible to any individual,
Secondary market performance
The Fidenza collection started with a modest mint price of 0.17 ETH, approximately $400 at the time for each of the 999 items. Notably, 10% of the revenue goes to Art Blocks, while the remaining proceeds are collected by the artist.
Fidenza started to gain recognition later in 2021. On 23 August, the collection witnessed a significant surge in trading volume, with 45 Fidenza pieces sold at an average price of 210 ETH ($526,680), accumulating 9,445 ETH ($23.68 million).
A more recent record was set on 5 June 2023, where 3 Fidenza artworks sold at an average price of 255 ETH ($461,550), amounting to a total volume of 765 ETH ($1.38 million).
A significant factor to consider is that a 7.5% royalty goes to the creators, in this specific case to Tyler Hobbs, for secondary market trading. This presents a remarkable opportunity for artists to continuously benefit from the value their creations generate over time, a groundbreaking feature made possible by NFTs.
As of mid-July 2023, the all-time volume traded for Fidenza is 62,354 ETH, roughly equivalent to $120 million. So Fidenza could have generated $9 million in royalties for the artist, although the exact amount may differ. Still, it offers a glimpse into the substantial value created for creators through this groundbreaking technology.
But at the same time, the collector community closely observes this revenue, encouraging artists to invest wisely in self-improvement, career growth, and community expansion.
Floor price
In mid-July 2023, Fidenza’s floor price stood at 80 ETH, or $154,084, a 38,421% appreciation from its minting price ($400). According to OpenSea data, its floor has continued an upward 90-day trajectory.
Fidenza has also been one of the most valuable generative art NFT collections on the Art Blocks platform. DappRadar data reveals, in the last 30 days, five of the platform’s top 10 sales belong to Fidenza.
Unique holders and whale wallets
Currently, 999 Fidenza NFTs are distributed among 479 unique wallets, resulting in a unique holder ratio of 48%. A higher unique holder ratio indicates a lower probability of a small group manipulating or controlling the collection.
Furthermore, Fidenza has garnered attention and love from various crypto influencers and celebrities. The involvement of prominent figures in the crypto space adds to the collection’s appeal and popularity.
Dive into famous Fidenza holders’ portfolios:
Fidenza whale wallets:
The whale ratio for Fidenze is considered to be high, standing at 19.42%. Such a level of whale concentration signals a potential risk of price manipulation by prominent collection holders.
A potential selloff by these whales could trigger a chain reaction, leading to smaller flippers selling as well.
Fidenza vs. popular artists’ NFT projects
An intriguing analysis can be drawn by comparing the market performance of Fidenza, The Currency by Damien Hirst, and Fragments by James Jean. The latter two are leading figures in today’s art world.
Notably, three NFT projects feature quite different artistic approaches. While Fidenza relies on a generative algorithm to produce organic and unpredictable images, The Currency and Fragments are hand-crafted paintings turned into NFTs. But how do they perform in terms of market demand?
Unlike Fidenza, both The Currency and Fragments experienced drastic drops in their floor prices from their original valuations.
This raises the question of whether James Jean’s and Damien Hirst’s collectors place a higher value on the artists’ hand-painted works.
Interestingly, both of them produce digital prints of their original artworks, which command significantly higher prices compared to their NFT collections.
For instance, Damien Hirst’s iconic butterfly artwork, valued at $50,000–$65,000 as a print. But his Currency NFT is currently traded at $4,320. Similarly, a James Jean print can easily fetch $1,000 or more, while the Fragments NFT collection is valued at a comparatively modest $163 as of mid-July.
Trading volumes of the past 30 days further illuminate the distinct preferences of Web3 collectors compared to traditional ones.
The Currency’s trading volume amounts to $140,800, followed by Fragments at $30,500. In sharp contrast, Fidenza stands out with an impressive trading volume of $846,745, reflecting its popularity and demand in the Web3 community.
Web3 collectors demonstrate a distinctive taste and narrative preference. Furthermore, they seek interactions with artists. These, consequently, diverge the NFT art sector from the traditional art market’s dynamics.
Fidenza technical overview
Advanced computers and programming languages have empowered artists to explore their creativity on the digital canvas, enabling extensive experimentation.
The Fidenza collection utilizes the flow field algorithm, which is capable of generating organic and enigmatic curves. This algorithm enables artists to manipulate the flow of particles or shapes by controlling vectors within the grid.
With versatile applications in fields such as computer animation, video game design, fluid dynamics simulations, and more, the flow field algorithm proves to be a potent tool for artistic expression.
In the case of Fidenza, artist Tyler Hobbs and the flow field algorithm engage in a spellbinding collaboration. The resulting curves give birth to a symphony of variations, or in NFT language, “traits”.
A list of Fidenza traits
- Scale
- Color
- Spiral
- Density
- Outlined
- Turbulence
- Have margin
- Soft shapes
- Shape angles
- Super blocks
- Collision check
Most expensive Fidenza NFTs sold and their traits
Click on each Fidenza to see its latest data on DappRadar.
- Fidenza #313
- Price: 1,000 ETH ($1.91M)
- Rare traits: medium density, medium scale, super blocks
- Fidenza #77
- Price: 950 ETH ($1.81M)
- Rare traits: party time color, super blocks, high turbulence
- Fidenza #772
- Price: 777 ETH ($1.48M)
- Rare traits: cool color, spiral, low turbulence
- Fidenza #723
- Price: 650 ETH ($1.24M)
- Rare traits: dark lifestyle color, high turbulence
Who is Tyler Hobbs
Tyler Hobbs is a computer scientist and artist from Austin, Texas, who has carved a distinct artistic path entwined with algorithms, plotters, and paint. His artwork delves into computational aesthetics, exploring how these creations are shaped by the biases of contemporary computer hardware and software.
In 2021, Hobbs unveiled Fidenza, a milestone collection in the evolution of NFT-based generative art. As a prolific artist, Fidenza is just one facet of Hobbs’ artistry. His repertoire includes other thought-provoking generative art projects, such as INCOMPLETE CONTROL, WALL, and QQL.
QQL stands as another pivotal creation by Tyler Hobbs, garnering both attention and admiration. Notably, this art collection earned the privilege of a solo exhibition at the esteemed Pace New York in April 2023.
Hobbs’ artistic creation stretches beyond the digital realm. His hand-painted mural, “Two Lovers, in Structure,” decorates the Toranomon business district of Minato, Tokyo. And its design appears to draw inspiration from his QQL collection.
Conclusion
Despite the challenges posed by the crypto bear market, Fidenza has continuously witnessed price growth over the past 90 days, setting it apart from most other collections. Boasting an impressive 62,354 ETH total volume and an 80 ETH floor price, it exemplifies how resilient generative art NFT can be during a market downturn.
One of the most significant aspects of Fidenza lies in its ability to re-center the narrative within the traditional art world, placing a strong emphasis on artists and their communities.
While generative NFT art may not replace other contemporary art forms, its unique consensus and cultural equity ensure its coexistence as a compelling movement. This is particularly evident with the development of Web3 and its community of users.
Looking ahead, the Fidenza collection stands as an epitome of this transformative journey, offering a tantalizing glimpse into the future of art. As the world of NFTs and generative art continue to evolve, they will undoubtedly leave an indelible mark on the artistic discourse of our time.
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