Blockchain: The Impact on Artists and Art Marketplaces

their creative work. This panel, organized in partnership with NYU SPS Center for Applied Liberal Arts during NYC Blockchain week, will focus on the following questions:

How can traditional & digital artists benefit from the blockchain technology?

What are the new art marketplaces changing how we buy and sell art?

Will people buy art online with cryptocurrencies?

Is there an overlap with the traditional art market?

What is crypto art? Let's talk about digital artworks and crypto collectibles (crypto kitties, crypto punks, memes)

PANELISTS:

Kevin Abosch, Artist, Latest Project: I am a coin

Amy Whitaker, Assistant professor at NYU Steinhardt, and author of the book Art Thinking. https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-new-models-artists-benefit-holding-equity-work 

Ram Nadella, Director of Technology, Paddle8

Jonathan Perkins, co-founder of Pixura and Super Rare Art Marketplace 

Andrey Alekhin, co-founder and CEO of Snark, Digital and Crypto Art Marketplace

MODERATED BY:

Fanny Lakoubay, Art and Technology Specialist, Consultant (formerly Artnet and Collectrium)

AGENDA:

6:30-7:00 pm:  Check-in & Introductions
7:00-8:00 pm:  Panel Discussion & Q&A
8:00-8: 30 pm:  Networking

PROFILES:
Kevin Abosch  
The work of artist Kevin Abosch is driven by his interest in the nature of identity, value, and human currency.  Abosch considers art as a means to address ontological questions and respond to sociologic dilemmas.  Abosch’s works in photography, sculpture, installation and film have been exhibited throughout the world, in museums and civic spaces including The National Gallery of Ireland, The Irish Museum of Modern Art, The Museum of Modern Art Novi Sad, The Museum of Modern Art Bogota, The Museum of Modern Art Reykjavik and Times Square, New York.

Amy Whitaker 
Amy Whitaker is an assistant professor at NYU Steinhardt, and author of the book Art Thinking (Harper Business, 2016). Her current research focuses on what would happen if artists retained equity in artworks in the primary market and the ways in which blockchain technology could support new systems for art investment and for pay for creative labor outside the arts. Since 2015, Amy has advised the company Bitmark, a blockchain-based registry of authenticity. Amy has spoken widely, including at the Aspen Ideas Festival, Google, and the Fast Company Innovation Summit. She holds an MBA from Yale and an MFA in painting from the Slade, as well as an undergraduate degree from Williams College in political science. She has worked previously at D.E. Shaw & Co., L.P. and Locus Analytics, and as an Olin Fellow in Economics at Yale and a researcher for Jonathan Zittrain in internet law at Harvard. She began her career in art museums including the Guggenheim, MoMA, and Tate.

Jonathan Perkins
With the help of his music collection on tapes, CDs, vinyl, and Napster, Jonathan was fascinated to realize as a kid that our experience of art is framed by technology. With a background in digital media and software development, Jonathan's career has revolved around this intersection of technology and the arts as a developer, entrepreneur and musician. In 2018, he co-founded SuperRare, a platform that gives creators and artists the tools to issue limited-edition digital art on the Ethereum blockchain.

Andrey Alekhin
Andrey has been a successful entrepreneur for 20+ years. He was the founder of MIGZ - International Festival of Contemporary Music and Media Arts which became iconic and must-visit summer event for Russian millennials. He was the founder and CEO of Apogey Metal a metals company that reached $100M in annual revenue before acquisition by Africa Israel Investment (AFIL:Tel Aviv). He has an MBA from Booth, University of Chicago

Fanny Lakoubay
Fanny is a New-York based art and technology specialist with over 10 years of experience in the art market, working with renowned organizations like Artnet, NYU, Collectrium and Christie's. She has developed expertise in SaaS business models with successful exit strategies, cloud-based systems, databases, content & website management and more recently blockchain and crypto assets. She works with New Art Academy as a business consultant and advises blockchain startups in digital art and machine learning. Last but not least she is the proud owner of a crypto punk and a crypto kitty who collects a digital painting by a Chilean artist.