Lending and Borrowing Digital Art?

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Hi friends,

I woke up today with an interesting thought about the future of digital art commerce.

I feel that lending and borrowing NFTs will soon change how we commercialize digital art. NFT art events are about to get more exciting (not only for artists and visitors but also for collectors).

Let me elaborate...

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NFTs provide untapped potential that just a few are taking advantage of. Think about simplifying logistics, insurance costs, space needs, and artwork inventory, among others. Exhibitions and events like Bright Moments and Vertical Crypto have been visionaries, capitalizing on these features to go around the world (London, Mexico City, Miami, Tokyo, New York, and the list goes on…) while focusing on event experience and top-class art/artists.

Until now, most exhibitions have predominantly focused on showcasing brand-new artwork. However, as time goes on, an increasing number of art enthusiasts will divert their attention toward historical creations, thus shifting the spotlight to these pieces instead of the latest releases — this is already happening.

This phenomenon mirrors what transpires in the traditional art world, where institutions, museums, and galleries frequently "rent" art for specific exhibitions. My aunt, for example, has a popular piece displayed in her living room, and she occasionally receives requests for it to be exhibited. Sometimes she receives compensation, but her primary interest lies in people having the opportunity to view her painting.

That's why lending and borrowing protocols can prove immensely advantageous.

Here are a few metrics on how such a protocol could work. Take this with a grain of salt, as technicalities might be hard to accomplish.

Collectors (must own iconic pieces) could be rewarded by these metrics:

Views or screen time.
A portion of the sale (if the art sold in the event).
Standard fee per day exhibited.

There are protocols already going in that direction, like NFTfi ($400M in cumulative loans and over 40k loans – in less than 2 years). Those protocols aren’t focussing on physical scenarios just yet. But I am sure this use case isn’t far away from being a reality.

I would love to hear your thoughts, as always ✌️