The newly-minted art world star Beeple is best known for his NFT creations, which have captured the attention of the industry and catapulted the artist to superstardom. However, Beeple’s first hybrid physical sculpture just sold at auction for $28.9 million in a Christie’s auction, proving that the artist has cloud both in crypto and more conventional creative spheres. HUMAN ONE, the hybrid physical artwork that sold, was expected to be purchased for around $15 million. The work consists of four screens displaying a spacesuit-clad hero, who can be seen making his way purposefully through constantly-shifting digital backgrounds. When the sale was announced Beeple (real name Mike Winkelmann) himself said that “this artwork’s unique ability to be updated makes it more akin to an ongoing conversation.”
The auction wherein the Beeple work was sold also marked the first live auction Christie’s has held in its New York salesroom since the pandemic began. According to Christie’s more than 1,600 visitors patronized the pre-auction exhibition, and Beeple himself paid a visit to Christie’s auction house to talk about his work.
“The pressure on artists of all stripes to outdo themselves in the wake of a massive success can be daunting,” Noah Davis, the Head of Digital Art & Online Sales at Christie’s, said in a statement in October. “In Mike’s case, he practically knocked the entire art world off its axis earlier this year, so I can’t imagine what that weight—the weight of the expectations of this enormous, global audience—must feel like. But I do know that with HUMAN ONE, and against the odds, Mike has achieved something historic (again).”
The fluctuating NFT market continues to cast doubt amongst certain industry figures regarding whether the non-fungible tokens really have that much longevity. However, it’s undeniable that the beguiling glitter of the unknown is still adding a lot of value to the new commodities.
