Singapore, July 1 2022:  Digital marketplace, RtistiQ , has extended its collaboration with gallery g and the  Raja Ravi Varma Heritage Foundation (RRVHF) to bring a  second edition of the great painter Raja Ravi Varma's works, this time in the form of Phygital non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
Phygital NFTs are a rare combination of digital and traditional realms offering the best of both worlds to the Rare Art collectors. The super rare digital editions have been exclusively minted after lithographic prints of the master painter, who is considered the father of Indian Modern Art.
The release is set to attract both the collectors of traditional Art as well NFT enthusiasts. It will allow winning bidders to own both - the physical and digital versions of the lithographic reprints Tokenised as NFTs. The auction will be held from July 28-31 exclusively on the RtistiQ website.
Says Jothi Menon, CEO & Founder of RtistiQ: “The future of Phygital art NFTs is unfolding in front of us. We've seen some of the world's largest names venture here in the past few months. With this collaborative NFT drop, we are not only taking India’s history and art into new realms within the Metaverse but also augmenting our real-world experiences in parallel. Our ambition is to enhance the Art experience with technology. The Raja Ravi Varma NFT drop aims to bring together the traditional and new communities of art and culture enthusiasts.”, said
Adds Gitanjali Maini, Founder of gallery g and Managing Trustee & CEO of Raja Ravi Varma Heritage Foundation said: “Ravi Varma’s art has always had a huge fan base and generated a lot of curiosity and interest within the art circles. We regularly see his work appearing in real-world auctions and fetching huge sums. Considering that his original oil paintings are a National Treasure and hence non-exportable, the Metaverse becomes the perfect space for us to reach out to a new audience. We were delighted by the response we received in our first collaborative NFT with RtistIQ and are hopeful that this upcoming Phygital NFT will be no different.”
In February this year, RtistiQ along with gallery g brought the first-ever NFT drop of the iconic works of Raja Ravi Varma. The exclusive NFT drop included digital twins of two rare Paintings and five lithographic prints from the gods and goddesses series, widely acknowledged and covered by Indian and International Media. The digital NFTs based on Lithographic prints went for almost double the Reserve Price set for the auction.
Collectors will be able to acquire the Super-Rare NFTs using credit cards or cryptocurrency and can register for the auction using their email, social or MetaMask wallet.The chosen works for the drop will be announced in the coming days. More details on the auction here
Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906) was a pioneer in the world of modern Indian art.
Raja Ravi Varma Heritage Foundation is a not-for-profit institution that works to preserve and promote the artistic legacy of one of India's greatest artists. Started by his great-great-granddaughter Bharani Thirunal Rukmini Bayi Tampuran in 2015, the Foundation's activities are guided and managed by CEO and Managing Trustee Gitanjali Maini. Jaygopal Varma, an artist and direct descendant of Ravi Varma, is a Founder Trustee.The Foundation is the only institution in the world that works in the space of research, documentation, authentication, and education with regard to Ravi Varma and his artworks.
With an extensive collection of diverse artworks from Modern and Contemporary Indian artists, from up-and-coming creators to pioneers like Raja Ravi Varma, MF Hussain, SH Raza, FN Souza and many others, gallery g is committed to making high-quality Art an accessible and affordable lifestyle choice for everyone.|
RtistiQ is a distinct physical and digital art marketplace that brings together artists and collectors from 40+ countries. It leverages innovative technologies such as Blockchain, non-fungible tokens (NFT), near field communication (NFC) and Augmented Reality to build trust, transparency & honesty within the art industry.