Arab Artists Push for an Inclusive NFT Art Marketplace
Arab artists are stretching conventions and playing with their recent history through NFTs and are pushing for inclusion in the global art scene at the same time
Ichraq Bouzidi’s non-fungible tokens will not likely make it to Opensea’s explore page. The 32-year-old Moroccon artist does not drop collections of thousands of computer-generated images, nor does she promote income opportunities for buyers on a Discord channel.
“My practice is centered around complex feelings, expressed through a female perspective,” she said.
Bouzidi employs Islamic geometrical motifs, Arabic calligraphy, and iconic and contemporary pop culture references. Her pieces are often symbolic, calling attention to the conflict between adopting modernity and upholding tradition.
“It is my way of reflecting on our identity as Arab women,” she says.
Bouzidi studied and practiced architecture for more than a decade to accommodate her parents’ wishes. “Art was out of the question,” she said, “they would consider a career in art as a failure.”
In 2018, she quit and decided to discover new opportunities. As she lived and worked between Canada and UAE, her illustrations attracted curators' interest in the Dubai Art District.
“It was like a sign for me that it's time to pursue my childhood dream,” she said.
Ichraq Bouzidi. Image courtesy of Tashkeel
Bouzaidi’s adoption of NFT is an example of a wider trend among millennial Arab artists. Last month, Bouzaidi took part in the first New York Arab Festival (NYAF), which highlighted its dependence on the blockchain.
Aiming to claim the national Arab American heritage month, NYAF offered a platform to seasoned and up-and-coming Arab artists. Musicians, fashion designers, authors, painters, visual artists, and choreographers exhibited their work in venues across the city - and provided them for sale as NFTs.
“The blockchain offers new opportunities to people of color and artists not represented in galleries,” says Adham Hafez, an Egyptian curator and a co-founder of NYAF.
Discussions around NFTs are often filled with financial jargon rather than art critique or politics. Floor prices, gas fees, and token utilities are more common topics than diversity, representation, and racial equality. Hafez believes that this doesn't have to be the case.
“I am very critical of those NFT clubs and the exclusivity hype,” he said.
Hafez considers blockchain the tool of choice for a new class of young and conscious collectors from Asia, Africa, and the Global South.
“Yes, Christie’s and Sotheby mainstreamed NFTs to their audience,” he said, “but before that, it was already mainstream among a generation of gamers, who learned about it through Twitch discussions and buying skins for their avatars.”
“Nobody knows what the future looks like, but we’re watching it form in front of our eyes.”
— Adham Hafez
Their choices, Hafez argues, are reshaping the market. In 2020, Hafez founded Wizara, a boutique agency that promotes blockchain technology in the traditional art scene. The agency offers simplified step-by-step guides for art buyers and patrons who want to learn about Ethereum, how to set up a crypto wallet, and other basics needed to set foot into market. On the other side, it works hand-in-hand with artists who want to leap into Web3.
With Wizara’s help, dozens of artists are showcasing their first NFTs on slick bilingual interfaces, reaching directly to their audiences with no intermediary or gatekeeper.
One NFT, Be with the Revolution, by Mohamed Gaber, visualizes his most famous calligraphic slogan. During the Arab Spring protests, it was printed on thousands of shirts and sprayed in graffiti everywhere.
Be with the Revolution by Mohamed Gaber
Another, Crypto Baladi, by Amy Sultan, offers a playful commentary on belly dancing and orientalism.
“NFTs offers an opportunity for artists not represented by galleries,” he said.
Artistic freedom aside, galleries claim anywhere between 50% to 70% of profits from their art sale. Hafez hopes that as more artists take ownership of their art, younger audience will be more inclined to support then, and galleries will have to negotiate fairer terms.
The prospect of better payment and the ability of NFTs to provide royalties on resales is a significant upside that attracts artists to blockchain.
Bouzidi hopes that the new technology will open opportunities for monetizing digital paintings that may not interest traditional curators and galleries.
“The blockchain offers a new perspective to appreciate and value digital work,” Bouzidi said, “it's an open space, accessible to all without boundaries.”
Read more: Music NFTs Become Latest Battleground Between Capitalists and Creators
But not all artists who ventured into the new space are equally excited. Fahd Salim, an Omani artist based in Dubai, says that the demand for NFT art is still limited.
“The art I do for myself is different than what I do for my clients,” Salim said. Salim creates digital art, prints, and paintings which are dark and surreal, sometimes inspired by his lucid dreams.
“Clients usually like things that are colorful and happier,” he said. For his commercial work, Salim visits his client homes and villas, studying the space, color and style of their furniture, and then offering them options for geometrical art that complement their walls.
With the help of Wizara, he offered some of his gloomy work as NFTs on Open Sea, but no buyers so far.
“Most curators and clients tell me they are more interested in hand paintings than digital art,” he said.
Salim said there is increasing chatter around NFTs, and he hears more people around him discuss it. This has not materialized into sales. However, the appetite for NFTs in the city is on the rise. A recent survey found that UAE’s NFT ownership is double the global average.
For Hafez, the new technology has a promising future, and we are living in its early days. The scene is constantly expanding and attracting newcomers, and there are talks and networking between interested artists in Lebanon, the U.S. and everywhere in between.
“There are currency discussions on co-ownership models, in which NFTs can help split revenue among collaborating artists,” he said. “Nobody knows what the future looks like, but we’re watching it form in front of our eyes.”