NFTs: How Cryptocurrency and Modern Art Push the Definition of Value

On March 11, 2021, British auction house Christie’s minted the third most expensive living artist in the world, Mike Winkelmann. The 41-year-old South Carolinian, who began creating artwork in 2007 under the alias “Beeple,” created one piece a day and combined works from five thousand days into a single block for the sale. In addition to the sheer number of works sold at once, and an astronomical $69 million price tag, the auction was exceptional for another reason: the works were all digital. To some, selling a JPEG file might seem like the scam of the century. Nothing could seem more valueless than an arrangement of pixels being copied endlessly, millions of times over, until there are more copies than could ever be demanded. But within this particular JPEG hides a unique feature allowing the file to be bought and sold […]