The historic three-day sale of works by renowned digital artist Pak marks a milestone in Sotheby’s relationship with NFTs.
Between 12 and 14 April, Sotheby’s – in collaboration with digital creator Pak – launched a three day sale and auction of Pak’s NFTs (non-fungible tokens). The collection, known as ‘The Fungible’, was sold exclusively through Nifty Gateway, the leading marketplace for NFTs.
Generally, the sale was divided into three categories: open editions, auctions, and reserved pieces. In total, the sale generated $16.8 million in three days across the open editions and the two auction pieces.
The Sotheby’s x Pak ‘The Fungible’ sale achieved at least two records: the most number of Open Editions and the most number of bids for an auction item on Nifty Gateway.
Open Editions
Open Editions was one of the more innovative elements of ‘The Fungible.’ Fungible Open Editions allowed collectors to purchase as many fungible cubes as they wanted during the sale period. These fungible cubes were purchased individually, and delivered to their collector a different set of NFTs based on the total number of cubes owned.
To explain further: If an individual purchased one cube from Pak’s Open Editions, they would receive one NFT with the image of a single cube. If the collector purchased two cubes, they would receive two NFTs, each with the image of a single cube. If five cubes were purchased, they would receive one NFT with the image of five cubes. However, if they purchased six cubes, they would receive one NFT with the image of five cubes and one NFT with the image of a single cube. The NFTs distributed were: A Cube (1), Five Cubes (5), Ten Cubes (10), Twenty Cubes (20), Fifty Cubes (50), Hundred Cubes (100), Five Hundred Cubes (500), Thousand Cubes (1,000).
Open Editions lasted for 15 minutes each day, from 1:00–1:15pm ET. On day one, 19,737 cubes were sold for a total of $9.8 million (at $500 per cube). On day two, 3,268 cubes were sold for a total of $3.2 million (at $1,000 per cube). On day three, 593 cubes were sold for ~$900,000 (at $1,500 per cube).
Auction
Two pieces went for auction on Nifty Gateway from 12 to 14 April 12 to April 14: ‘The Switch’ and ‘The Pixel.’ The Switch is a unique, “one of one” NFT that demonstrates the evolution of artwork in the digital realm. The Switch is developed to be used with a public call by its owner, meaning its owner can decide to initiate an action that will change something about the artwork. It can be used once and its effect is immutable. The Pixel is a digitally native artwork visually represented by a single pixel (1x1). It is a token that signs the most basic unit of a digital image in a traditional global auction house. It is a tiny mark to carry digitally native art to a potential future history.
‘The Switch’ sold at auction for $1,444,444. ‘The Pixel’ sold at auction for $1,355,555.
Reserved
Throughout ‘The Fungible’ sale, some NFTs were reserved for individuals who met certain criteria about their engagement with the collection or with the NFT ecosystem at large.
The Cube is a unique, “one of one” NFT that was given to the individual who purchased the most Open Edition cubes during the sale.
Complexity is a collection of 100 NFTs that were given to the following 100 individuals who purchased the most Open Edition cubes during the sale.
Equilibrium is a "four of four” where each edition will be sent to the winner of specific criteria:
The Cryptographer (#1 of 4): The person who solves Pak’s puzzle.
The Hunter (#2 of 4): The collector who acquires any piece of art by Pak from its initial marketplace for the highest amount on the secondary market.
The Influencer (#3 of 4): The individual that posts #PakWasHere to the biggest social media audience.
The Oracle (#4 of 4): The person who most closely estimates the total sale of the entire collection prior to the auction beginning on 12 April.
The Builder is a set of 30 NFTs that was given to artists, builders, and creators who have paved the way for Pak and other NFT artists. The recipients, determined by Pak, are those without whom extraordinary leaps in the evolution of media and art would not have happened.
Altogether, ‘The Fungible’ sale was a testament to the creative prowess of Pak and has cemented their legacy in the constantly-evolving world of digital art. Explore ‘The Fungible’ collection in more detail here.
