On-Chain Art Goes IRL: The Largest Collection of NFTs To Enter A US Museum
This week hosted the largest acquisition of blockchain-based art by an American museum. The new additions of nearly two dozen NFT artworks were given to one of Los Angeles’ most recognizable museums from one of the most recognizable names in NFTs.
Let’s take a look at which collections made the list, what you can expect from the acquisition and more.
On-Chain Art Goes IRL: The What & Where
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (commonly known as ‘LACMA’) is one of LA’s most signature museums and the largest museum in the western United States LACMA hosts a rotating offering of historic paintings and pieces. LACMA is also home to permanent exterior public works such as Chris Burden’s “Urban Light” (pictured in the header above), Michael Heizer’s “Levitated Mass” and more. The museum is conveniently located in the heart of Los Angeles, right next to the La Brea Tar Pits – a unique area in LA where natural asphalt has bubbled to the surface for thousands of years.
You may not be able to secure a ticket to the museum as an NFT (at least not yet), but you can certainly see some NFTs on display soon. A new era of history enters the halls of LACMA this week, courtesy of notable NFT collector Cozomo de’ Medici.
Ethereum (ETH) has been the genesis of art on-chain, though many other chains are seeing developments in this vertical - even Bitcoin. | Source: ETH-USD on TradingView.com
A collection is worthwhile
What did the incision do for the Medici’s generous gift to the museum? A LACMA issued a press release together with a corresponding one Twitter thread from Medici details some of what’s to come for the museum’s blockchain-based acquisition. It is a fantastic collection of some of the most recognizable and older collections across the NFT space. Dubbed “The Medici Collection,” the 22 NFTs include iconic “legacy” pieces, generative and AI-produced pieces, photography, code and more. In addition, Medici and the team did an excellent job of bringing in the global element of blockchain-based works, with 13 international artists from around the world.
The additions add significant weight to LACMA’s existing collection of digital pieces, which has been a growing category for the museum as the space has grown. In a statement included in the press release, LACMA Associate Curator of Contemporary Art Dhyandra Lawson stated:
“It is a great honor to have works from the Medici collection find a permanent home at LACMA. With this gift, my goal was to help bridge the gap between the worlds of art on the chain and contemporary art, which until now have existed separately. I am thrilled to have these historically significant works on the chain contextualized alongside many iconic works of art in LACMA’s collection.”
