I'm looking at a particularly compelling piece right now, actually. The tab is open in front of me; I stare at the complex, abstract mess of colors and geometry...
And it is beautiful.
Some NFT Art Is the Real Deal.
The really real deal, you know? The genuine article.
There isn't much difference in the physical world with analog art, so to speak... some's great, some's not so great (and it's all subjective). That's life: infinite tryouts, few winners.
But physical #art doesn't usually require a written title or elaborate description... art speaks for itself, and no language skills are required at all. But NFT art-- or any digital representation of art-- benefits from a certain level of storytelling, a narrative.
And even if the right kind of mess meets my eye in the art itself, an equally WRONG kind of mess often meets my intellect in the description below it, like this one...
These days are precious although there are millions of moment of time come to our lives when we feel totally lost, ditached and mental deep apathy piled up...
The title of this work-- the one pictured above-- is "Lost Soul under Darkness" by @theia7, and I really do like it! It has an emotive energy, a certain gravity, to it that holds my attention. But she is clearly not a native English speaker, and she struggles to express the poetry inside her that wants to be fleshed out and lit up.
That's where I think I can help.
I want to make myself available to #NFT artists as a ghost writer and editor. I will either polish the title and description provided, or I can offer my own interpretation of an artwork and give it a title and a brief description. I know some artists wouldn't give up their creative control, and others won't care and just want to make art.
Some artists don't really do descriptions. They might note the size of the image, or a date or maybe the circumstances that led to creating the artwork. Or nothing at all... that works too. But for those of you who would like to make more of an effort but feel uncomfortable, I would love to help you bring your work to the next level!
In Theia's case, I could have simply cleaned up her own words before she minted the NFT and it would maintain her personal character. The title, for instance, would only have one change...
Lost Soul
underUnder Darkness
And the selection I shared from her narrative could look more like this:
These days are precious... although there are millions of moments in time, in a life-- mostly lost, detached. And deep: the swell of mental apathy all piled up and pushed inward.
Compare it to the original above if you want to spot the differences. In a split second, it ended up more different than I expected. As a wordsmith and poet, I will sometimes make creative choices that feel right to me, but that can be dialed back (or forward) anytime. The artists can always request a change.
Boom: NFT Art Elevated.
But how will it work? What would something like that cost?
Great questions! I'm literally coming up with this as I write it, so nothing is set in stone yet... but I even had a specific name pop in my head that should make things more clear (and is catchy enough, I think, to stick):
Introducing: #5HIVE
Simple... lightning in a very small jar. You get an experienced editor and poet for ONE digital artwork, and it will cost you only 5 HIVE.
The process is just as simple. Shoot an email to 5hive-art@protonmail.com including: the artwork itself, your title and description or just a title, any ideas you have, how you were feeling when you created the art... or any combination of these things. And briefly tell me what you're looking for.
And again... this is an anonymous service, and I won't ever reveal which artists I provide it to. If you're happy and choose to tell others, you won't hear any arguments from me. I'm just looking to improve the NFT art world and make the lives of artists easier.
And I am certainly not trying to offend @theia7 or any other artists out there... quite the opposite. I only use her as an example because she is talented.
Because I really do love art... and as much as I also love literature and language, I don't really give a shit if visual artists are competent writers. I don't expect it... our eyes speak volumes more, and the best #artists open them.
So if even a small part of their success depends upon their ability to write skillfully, to express a feeling or an idea effectively, then I think they deserve a helping hand. If a great writer wants illustrations in her/his book, they would call an artist... right?
So if you're an NFT artist, call me. Email me anytime at 5hive-art@protonmail.com and we'll get the ball rolling. If you're an art lover like me, you definitely want to bookmark the NFT Showroom and make it a regular stop. There are some amazing artists out there, and I have a feeling this market is just getting warmed up.