Greek Artist Sends Pro-Freedom Message with Assange NFT Drop
02 Julio 2022 - 02:12AM
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Esteemed artist Miltos Manetas will tokenise 50% of his Julian
Assange portraits, with the goal of raising awareness for the
imprisoned activist. To further cement the blockchain connection,
proceeds of the NFT drop will enter a DAO that forms part of the
Venice Biennale Festival’s Internet Pavilion, a tech tent founded
by Manetas in 2009. Named This Cannot Be Erased, the special
collection of 111 NFTs will grant buyers access to one-of-one
digital versions of hand-painted portraits created by Manetas over
the last two years. The collection will be divided into three
phases during which 37 tokens are to be minted on the Materia
blockchain, starting June 23. This year’s Venice Biennale, now in
its 59th year, runs from April 23 to November 27. While the
majority of tents at the festival are reserved for countries, the
Internet Pavilion is dedicated to Assange under the theme “AIIA –
Assange is Internet Internet is Assange.” Manetas Aims to Leverage
#AssangePower This Cannot Be Erased was produced by Manetas with
support from long-time collaborator Howie B, a British composer who
scored the original Internet Pavilion event thirteen years ago.
Back then, Manetas and curator Jan Aman stirred controversy by
inviting a number of people involved with activist website The
Pirate Bay to Venice to inaugurate the Embassy of Piracy. The
latest collection develops Manetas’ interest in freedom in the
internet age, with the artist having continually voiced his support
for a man he regards as a close friend. The painter, whose digital
works have previously appeared on VR platform Second Life, likens
the silencing of the WikiLeaks founder to governments attempts to
crush dissent on the World Wide Web, leading to the aforementioned
theme for this year’s Internet Pavilion: Assange is Internet
Internet is Assange. The 111 NFTs in the collection are curated
digital versions of the Assange portraits the artist created as
part of the #AssangePower social media campaign. That blitz led
Manetas to showcase his creations at Rome’s Palazzo delle
Esposizioni and later Belgium’s IKOB Museum with an exhibition
entitled Assange Situation – Emergency. This year, the location of
the Internet Pavilion is the vast, prison-like domain of The
Gervasuti Foundation, which Manetas considers an appropriate
setting given Assange’s ongoing incarceration. The Foundation is
located at the north end of Via Garibaldi, on the site of the
Gervasuti family artisan wood workshop. Holders of This Cannot Be
Erased will not only own a piece of art history; they’ll also
become Trustees of AIIA, with the NFT designated a “currency” of a
new internet “country” unbound by borders or barriers. As
mentioned, money raised from the sale will go into the Internet
Pavilion DAO, meaning art collectors can help decide which art
projects the Pavilion funds in the future. Assange in Limbo Miltos
Manetas has said that his goal is to raise awareness of Assange’s
treatment, believing that he has been unjustly demonised for his
whistleblowing activities. This view is echoed by human rights
organisation Amnesty International, which calls the UK’s decision
to extradite Assange to the US a “travesty of justice.” NFT that
make up the new collection last for a minute, during which time the
holder sees the face of Assange, fracturing before rapidly coming
back together, never to erase. Each artwork is accompanied by a
musical theme composed by Howie B. Assange is currently appealing
the UK government’s extradition ruling. If the appeal fails, the
activist could face a 175-year prison sentence if convicted in a US
court.
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