Category: Opinion

Latest Opinion and Letters to the Editor from the readers of the World Art News

The Problem with NFTs

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Around February of this year, in the midst of the still-pending cryptocurrency boom, a sub-category of digital assets started to really take off. NonFungible.com reported that by the first quarter of 2021, over $2 billion worth of transactions had taken place in the NFT market. Musician Grimes sold almost $6 million worth of digital art via digital asset marketplace Nifty Gateway, who are partnered with Sotheby’s. Twitter founder Jack Dorsey auctioned his first ever tweet as an NFT, the final bid closing at $2.9 million. UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou sold NFTs following his knockout victory over Stipe Miocic. The proceeds of the sale, $580,000, was actually more than his disclosed purse for the fight itself that earned him the belt. Despite the hype, in many regards serving as a speculator’s dream, NFTs come with inherent issues that threaten to hamper widespread and enduring adoption.

The Bones of the Earth

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Stone is demanding in its application to art and architecture, requiring great effort and discipline to procure, move, and fashion. It is a subtractive process, where any mistake can prove fatal to the intended product, requiring meticulous care and attention to detail. The inherent properties of stone are that it is insulative, with generally low heat conductivity, and durable, with high compressive strength. As with all things in life, while it retains varying degrees of vulnerability to weathering and deterioration, stone is generally considered to be one of the most resistant materials in existence. These properties lend themselves to a compelling philosophical argument, that those who wish to live a life or build a world of enduring strength and beauty, should not only employ the use of stone in their craft, but model themselves after it as well.

Exclusive Interview with a Multi-Artist Annamaria Johansson – Part 2

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Annamaria Johansson has always been a painter at heart, with a particular focus on capturing the essence of people and portraits in her artwork. With a loyal client base spanning the globe, she offers unique insights into her artistic journey and the strategies behind her successful art business as a painter. Throughout this two-part series, we delve into her ideas, philosophies, concepts, and approaches that shape her distinctive artistic vision.

Exclusive Interview with a Multi-Artist Annamaria Johansson – Part 1

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Annamaria Johansson has always been a painter at heart, with a particular focus on capturing the essence of people and portraits in her artwork. With a loyal client base spanning the globe, she offers unique insights into her artistic journey and the strategies behind her successful art business as a painter. Throughout this two-part series, we delve into her ideas, philosophies, concepts, and approaches that shape her distinctive artistic vision.

Czeslaw Znamierowski: Multicultural Artist from the Soviet Union

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“For him there were no boundaries between nationalities. He readily made friends with the natives of any country…. He was no stranger to Latvians, Lithuanians, Jews, Tatars, Karaites, Russians. He was ready to help everyone if possible.”

At a time of great division in the Eastern European community a lesson in multiculturalism, unity and brotherhood can be learned from an unusual person, a Soviet Lithuanian artist Czeslaw Znamierowski (23 May 1890 – 9 August 1977). He was born in Imperial Russia on Latvian territory into a Polish family. At the age of 32 he became a citizen of the Soviet Union and soon after moved permanently to Lithuania, where he lived until his last day.

Ilya Glazunov’s Russian Nationalism | Hokkaido University

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Although lately Western scholars have begun to pay attention to various manifestations of the rise of ethnic Russian nationalism as distinct from official “Soviet patriotism” they have virtually ignored the phenomenon of Il’ia Glazunov, a Soviet painter who is also a foremost protagonist of that nationalism. The chief reason for this lack of scholarly interest lies in the fact that not only has Glazunov been a controversial figure but he was also accused of Russian chauvinism, anti-Semitism, and of being a KGB agent.