Every day, the world continues to become more equipped for the digital revolution. With this shift, Black folks, especially artists and creators, need the necessary tools to thrive.
Established in 2009, by Jepchumba, the African Digital Art Network (ADA) is an international award-winning digital platform and archive that hosts the largest digital collection of African Art globally, with featured international projects and artists. With its focus on providing Black creators with sustainable resources to ensure their longevity, ADA is interested in taking an African diasporic approach to the quest.
The African Digital Art Network recently announced that it will be bringing Black art into the "metaverse" with the introduction of the Nandi NFT Marketplace. Recently launched during the AfricaNXT conference in Lagos, Nigeria, the Nandi NFT Marketplace presents an opportunity for those involved with ADA and in the Black artistic community to get involved with the integration of Web 3.0. The Web 3.0 phase is based in a blockchain ecosystem and is believed to be the future of the internet.
The dynamic team of thought leaders, investors and executives, behind the Nandi NFT Marketplace hail from regions such as Haiti, Nigeria and the United States and are at the intersection of art and technology. The platform provides Black creators and artists an opportunity to thrive in the budding yet ever-changing digital landscape. It provides them an outlet to build substantial pockets of generational wealth.
“The African community has a deep legacy of innovation and technology. The advent of NFTs, the metaverse, and web3 have presented a phenomenal opportunity to create wealth through art democratically. It is our goal and intention at ADA to ensure that the Black community is presented with an opportunity to be included in this moment in time.” said Nandi's CEO Jepchumba.
The creation of this platform challenges the concept of ownership not just for artists but specifically for pan Africans who occupy this space. In addition to the creation of the marketplace, the Nandi platform will introduce the Nandi Cowry Community. With this element, a form of currency called Nandi Cowry will be manifested through 10,000 NFTs. These NFTs will represent a unique, respective digital collectible which will live on the platform's blockchain.
