The Emperor’s New Art: Cryptomania, Art & Property

Low, Kelvin F.K.

doi:10.2139/ssrn.3978241

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The Emperor’s New Art: Cryptomania, Art & Property

(2022) 86 Conveyancer and Property Lawyer 378

20 Pages Posted: 1 Feb 2022 Last revised: 11 Nov 2022

See all articles by Kelvin F.K. Low

Kelvin F.K. Low

National University of Singapore (NUS) - Faculty of Law

Date Written: December 6, 2021

Abstract

The latest wave of cryptomania has brought us yet another acronym after ICOs (initial coin offerings) – NFTs (non-fungible tokens). Touted as a means to render readily replicable digital art (and possibly other objects) rare and scarce, NFT-mania reached its apogee with the auction of Beeple’s Everydays: the First 5,000 Days for US$69m. But did the buyer actually acquire, through the NFT, any art? What is art abstracted from the medium upon which it is embedded and dissociated from its copyright?

Keywords: NFTs, cryptoassets, blockchain, copyright, art, digital property

JEL Classification: K

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Low, Kelvin F.K., The Emperor’s New Art: Cryptomania, Art & Property (December 6, 2021). (2022) 86 Conveyancer and Property Lawyer 378, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3978241 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3978241