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How did you learn about elementum and why were you interested in being on the platform?
My gallery owner told me about elementum. I read everything I found online about this platform and became very curious. When I submitted my portfolio, I was accepted - which made me very happy. I find it exciting to be part of this digital development. In my artistic environment, no one is dealing with the issue of non-fungible tokens. I also find the elementum artists' chat group enriching. We exchange ideas there and so I learn a lot. The NFT world is global and like-minded people find each other faster. I'm curious to see what the future will bring.
What do you think of the NFT Hype as an artist? In your opinion, what is the most interesting potential development of this technology and what are the momentary problems or pitfalls?
For some it is the revolution of the digital art market, for others it is an absurd waste of energy. I see benefits above all. First, appreciation for digital forms of art or play, and by extension, community.
Second. For Generation Y and Z, who also find the creation of Instagram or TikTok memorable, NFTs make sense.
Third, the sometimes high prices reflect a fascination with technology and fun with trying it out. If you're born a "digital native," you take it for granted.
You can also see it as an investment in your digital education. NFTs offer me, as an artist, an innovative way to sell my work. Especially in these pandemic times, it's very appealing. It allows you to bypass intermediaries like galleries, some of which charge a high markup. In addition, NFTS can also be programmed so that we artists earn something every time we resell.
An NFT also offers more protection for the rights to the artwork. I see problems primarily in energy consumption. However, I think that this will certainly be optimized. We are at the beginning of a new development. It still needs some time.
Can you tell us about your works on elementum, for example how was venom multicolored created?
I always work on several works in parallel. Drawing, photography and painting are always at the beginning of a whole visual research. A picture of a drawing, a painting or a portrait is digitally examined, dissected, modified and allow completely new image qualities. Especially the birth of my second child- 2015 made it difficult for me to act artistically in the studio. I was never alone anymore and often outside. From an emergency situation a new way of working arose: Digital post-processing with the iPhone. So I am flexible when and where I work. The Painting venom artworks are digital transformations of pictures done by me. The photos of different paintings become my color palette. Venom is the name of the filter. With every touch from my fingers the picture changes. Suddenly something new and more complex than the original photo emerges.
What is the technology behind your works? Can you elaborate what kind of software you use to create your work?
There are now many image editing apps that work like interactive art. For more than 6 years, I've been using Glitché- an app that many singers, such as Gorillaz, also use for their music videos. I have had a soft spot for image glitches for many years. From 2006- 2008 I did a long photo series on picture glitches with TV sets. Depending on the TV set, the type of glitch changes (pointillistic pixel type, negative images or image fragments of additive color mixing). With Glitché I can now manipulate the images myself. This program always allows me to create new digital image qualities and I never get tired of trying new things.
For the auction at the swisscom x-days elementum commissioned you to do a new work. Dreaming of the Beach is your first animated work, is that correct? What was the experience of having your work auctioned?
Yes, selling this animated work at a real physical auction was an unforgettable experience. I still have little experience with animated digital art. It's a huge, new field of research in which I still have a lot to learn, because there's a lot that can be expressed artistically when the bidding plane is not static. I was very excited at the event. In marketing NFTs, all the processes are abstract- you look into the computer/ iPhone and have no physical contact with the other person. By selling or liking on social media, we test the impact of the work. But at the auction, the artwork is visible on the screens and I see the viewers and hear their feedbacks. I had great respect for this situation and was also a bit insecure because the work was brand new. I couldn't test the effect of the artwork enough. But it went well and it was also sold.
Find out more about Gigga Hug and start exploring her art on her elementum profile page.