SEATTLE — A city filled with artists and technologists seems like the perfect spot for what might be the world's first NFT museum.
Seattle entrepreneurs Jennifer Wong and Peter Hamilton say they were inspired to create a community space and educational hub for the growing digital community.
The Seattle NFT Museum opened on 1st Avenue this January. The first-of-its-kind gallery looks like it's from the future.
The Belltown showroom is a place to educate and connect the budding NFT community in the Pacific Northwest while introducing digital artwork from local and international artists.
NFT stands for “Non-Fungible Token," which is basically a digital certificate of ownership, according to co-gallery owner Peter Hamilton.
"That certificate is stored on the blockchain," Hamilton said. Blockchain is the same digital technology used to buy and sell cryptocurrency.
"It's decentralized so everyone has access to it," Hamilton said.
For many artists, that gives them the ability to sell their art online of the first time. In the first half of 2021, NFTs accounted for $2.5 billion dollars in sales.
The Seattle NFT Museum displays art and also offers educational information about blockchain, cryptocurrency and many other new terms that surround the new digital landscape.
The museum opened with an exhibition from Blake Kathryn from Los Angeles. Kathryn is a wildly popular NFT artist who creates vivid 3D renderings. A trio of Seattle-based artists are also on display.
Charles Peterson is a celebrated photographer who’s known for capturing the rise of the grunge scene in Seattle. Never before seen photos of the likes of Kurt Cobain and Chris Cornell are on display that people can buy and trade.
Neon Saltwater is a digital creator who says she was excited to jump into NFTs because she creates her art on screen and that’s how her work was intended to be experienced.
Robbie Trevino is a Seattle-based illustrator who just so happens to be the senior concept designer for Lucas Films.
The Seattle NFT Museum is open Thursday through Sunday and is located at 2125 1st AVE in Seattle, WA - just 2 blocks north of Pike Place Market.