imnotArt: Vision
To understand where we’re going you need to know how we got here.
When we set off on this journey in February 2021, opening a physical NFT gallery was never part of the plan.
Our original idea was to build an online platform where artists could showcase their work and tell their stories.
What’s happened since then is a testament to the power of community.
A Journey into the Metaverse
By late February we noticed something special was happening in the metaverse, specifically Cryptovoxels.
We were blown away by not only the virtual galleries and exhibitions that were being created, but the real community that was forming.
It immediately became clear that if imnotArt wanted to create a platform to empower artists, imnotArt needed to have land in the metaverse.
From there, the imnotArt Community Gallery was born.
For 12 straight weeks the imnotArt team hosted an event every Thursday night, featuring 300+ artists from 50+ different countries. We expanded our land and bought our ‘Featured Gallery’ where we can showcase the Featured artist of the week as part of our events.
Our virtual galleries became a home for both prominent and lesser-known NFT creators; our Discord filled up with people on every stage of their crypto journeys. We have skillsets of every kind between our group of artists, programmers, collectors, and enthusiasts.
In less than three months we had become a top 10 most visited parcel in Cryptovoxels’ history.
The response from the community was just overwhelming.
From the Metaverse to Chicago
As we started to grow we noticed that a large percentage of our early community was from the Chicago-area. It almost seemed bizarre. As the weeks went by, even more people from Chicago showed up. It was clear that something special was happening here in our hometown.
What if we built a space to harness it?
In the definition of full YOLO, we saw a opportunity to build something the world had never seen before — a hybrid physical/digital NFT gallery — an extension of our popular virtual galleries and online community — and start it right here in Chicago.
From there we found 1010 N. Ashland — a traditional gallery space in Wicker Park that was looking for a new tenant. The stars aligned, and imnotArt Chicago was born.
We became obsessed with the potential of what we could build here. For years we’ve been reading about combining the physical and the digital —now we had a chance to make that concept a reality.
We wanted to create an immersive, educational space; a home for both crypto-natives and those who don’t yet understand what an NFT is. A space that could bridge the gap between the traditional art world and NFTs.
We wanted a create a space and aesthetic worthy of hosting of fine art exhibitions — a place that could showcases NFTs the way they deserve. So we tore up all the walls, re-did all the electric to hide the outlets and wiring, and splurged on some massive displays.
Would this be successful? We weren’t sure. But what we did know was that nobody had done this yet, and there was a chance to build the NFT gallery of our dreams.
A physical/digital space where the Chicago community — and international NFT community — could congregate and exchange ideas. A social center that could go down in the history of NFTs, Ethereum, and the art world.
Defining our Goals
As we look towards the future it’s important to define what we’re about.
- Curate Seminal Exhibitions — We want to curate physical/digital NFT exhibitions that showcase the medium in a way we haven’t seen done anywhere in the world. We want these exhibitions to go down in art history as being socially significant. When we look back at this movement, we want “The New Digital: Born in Chicago” and imnotArt to be where it all started.
- Create Hubs for Artistic Expression — Something special is happening at imnotArt Chicago. Our gallery has become a meeting space for artists, collectors, and enthusiasts to congregate, make connections, and share ideas. This is just the beginning.
- Create New Physical/Digital Experiences — We want to create first-in-kind experiences both in Chicago and in the metaverse. We think this is the very beginning of exploring what’s possible. We want to do our part to push things forward and create new experiences. An art exhibition, a music festival, or any event — taking place both physically and virtually but all connected at the same time.
- Onboard Traditional Art Collectors — We want to onboard traditional collectors into the space. So far so good, we’re hosting an event for Sotheby’s collectors on September 9th. We want to see the collector market expand outside of the crypto-natives. We will help this process.
- Be Educators in the Space — We think there is so much bullshit out there. The primary objective of many projects is to separate people from their ETH. This is not imnotArt. We want to educate people on the value of ETH and why it’s a good idea to be stacking it. We want to be ambassadors for NFTs & Ethereum. We want our community to succeed, not be exploited. This may seem counterintuitive as a gallery selling NFTs, but it’s what we believe.
- Be Unequivocally on the Side of Artists — We think this is a paradigm shift in the way artists can monetize off their work. imnotArt stands on the side of artists as we develop a gallery model that is a win-win for both artist and gallery.
- Drive Value as a Gallery — For our first exhibition we are taking 32.5% of the sale (after OpenSea’s fee). As a gallery, we need to justify that percentage. We want to develop imnotArt into an institution where buying a piece from our exhibitions becomes socially significant. We promise to promote our artists in every way possible to maximize their exposure.
- Give Opportunities to the Underrepresented — We’ve done this incredibly well in the metaverse and will continue to do this in the real world. We want to use our platform to showcase creators who are too often overlooked. Stay tuned for some exciting announcements about this.
- Onboard People into the Metaverse — We want to bring people into the metaverse, whether that’s individuals or brands. The more activity and community that grows in the metaverse the better for the entire space.
- Promote 1-of-1 Art — The space is dominated right now by avatar projects, many of which will end poorly. We believe that money should trickle down into 1 of 1 art.
- Throw Amazing Events & Parties — We want to throw the biggest events and parties that the NFT community / metaverse have ever seen. Since we launched in June we’ve hosted the local Chicago Ethereum Meetup, held watch parties for Crypto Art Week Asia, and participated in the first ULTRAGMEGAVERSE event. We see a future where there are massive events (art, music fashion) in the metaverse. We want to be at the forefront of this movement.
- Onboard Traditional Artists into the Space — One of our very first goals was to bring traditional fine artists into the NFT space; we have some very exciting news to announce in the next few weeks. We think our platform and exhibition potential is a great way to bring in traditional artists who are looking for innovate ways to start in this medium.
- Expand This Movement Across the World — What we’re doing here in Chicago is building out a model that can expand to the rest of the world. We want to create these cultural hubs. Why can’t we have parties/events across the world in different locations + metaverses 24/7?
What You’re Bidding On
As the auctions for ‘The New Digital: Born in Chicago” end this afternoon, it’s important to explain what you’re really bidding on.
- You’re supporting individual artists by purchasing a 1-of-1 work.
- You’re supporting the imnotArt team to continue building in this direction.
Since we started in February many people have asked us what our “angle” is — why (and how) are we hosting all of these events and virtual galleries every week without any financial stake.
We intentionally did not want to rush anything; we wanted to prove that as curators we could bring value to our artists; that the gallery model can be applied to NFTs in a value-additive way.
This is the first time the imnotArt team will see any revenue. We’re confident we’ve found a model that supports artists and grows the ecosystem.
By bidding on our pieces you are also helping us build this future.
As we venture off on this journey together, the winners of these 11 auctions from our first exhibition will always have a special place at imnotArt. (hint hint, wink wink)
We’d rather surprise and delight rather than overpromise and underdeliver.
The movement is just getting started.
Join us on Discord — https://discord.com/invite/jGNr7Mj8xB
Visit our Website — https://imnotart.com
Follow us on Twitter — https://twitter.com/im_not_art
