We labelled it a unique concept the first we came across it and today, news has dropped confirming that Africarare has sold out and fetched a whopping US$ 53 000 / R 765 400 in digital currency. The first South African VR metaverse, housing digital land with roots in the African continent, the art collection has officially launched and has subsequently sold out its debut art collection.
The debut NFT (non-fungible token) collection of 52 digital pieces from world renowned local artist Norman Catherine officially launched at the recent SingularityU South Africa Summit 2021, that took place online from 12 – 15 October 2021, attracting over 3 000 delegates.
For those of you that missed our earlier post on this, Africarare is a 3D virtual reality immersive experience that brings an entire new Metaverse marketplace showcasing the best of African creativity and provides a new platform for African artists. This premium collection of artworks were released in two separate NFT drops over the course of two weeks. Catherine’s body of work spans painting, sculpture, printmaking and mixed media.
Given the success of the debut collection, Catherine is hard at work creating a collection of styled avatars, based on the archetypes embodied in his signature lexicon. These digital icons may be used by users when they enter Africarare and have utility as an investment, as a collection or to be traded on various marketplaces.
“NFTs have opened up a whole new medium for artists to explore. I am thrilled my debut collection could be showcased in a metaverse owned and led by Africans,” said Catherine. “I hope that other South African artists embrace this new digital era of art, which creates a new dimension for exploration” he added.
“We are thrilled to be working with Africa’s greatest talent and showcase it to the world in our virtual reality metaverse allowing Africa to take part in this global phenomenon” – said Zhulik Co-founder Africarare.
Placed in a fitting nature and place, the Africarare immersive experience resides on Ubuntuland in virtual Africa. The concept around it is set in the future, (from 2022), using the $UBU Coin, where land can be bought, traded, kept or used for various experiences such as art exhibitions, games or social experiences. Once land is purchased, one can create their own application on top of it. Additionally, users can purchase their own unique avatars that can be traded along with unique skins such as hats, jackets and even shoes. Additionally, various Africarare NFT collections will be released.
