'Rock Star' Artist and Crypto-renegade
W1 Curates has joined forces with renowned art collector Cozomo de’ Medici to give digital art fans and NFT loyalists a unique opportunity to attend an exhibition of never before seen works by Michael Joseph Winkelmann on Saturday April 8th.
Better known as Beeple, Winkelmann rose to worldwide acclaim during the NFT boom in 2021, culminating in the record-breaking $69 million sale of his digital collage, ‘Everydays: The First 5000 Days’ at Christie’s.
The single lot auction rocketed NFTs to worldwide mainstream consciousness and attracted a new generation of collectors.
Hosted at W1 Curates on 161-167 Oxford Street, this will be Beeple’s second solo exhibition: his first gallery show in Tribeca, Manhattan caused chaos on the streets when the artist received a “rock-star welcome” with celebrities like Jimmy Fallon turning up amidst a “cavalry of crypto enthusiasts”.
Diamonds Everywhere
Homage
Organisers expect similar scenes in the heart of London due to Winkelmann’s international celebrity and cult status among blockchain’s most fervent supporters. With a millions-strong social media following, Beeple is considered the world’s most famous digital artist, and among the top three most valuable living artists.
This highly anticipated presentation of digital works in collaboration with Swiss luxury watchmakers Richard Mille offers a unique opportunity for digital art enthusiasts to experience Beeple in a rare encounter outside of his native USA and will include a book signing at the gallery between 1-2pm followed by a VIP opening from 8pm to midnight with tickets available on the website https://www.w1curates.com/) .
The renegade artist has spent two decades perfecting obscure and satirical visions of the ambiguity of the human future, which proved a massive hit with a crypto community where ideas of corporate-led dystopias and technological accelerationism resonate strongly. Now Beeple is looking to transfer the concept to physical spaces for the enjoyment of the wider art world, as evidenced by exhibitions in New York and now London.
A further exhibition showcasing the full range of the artist's physical work, opens to the public on 11th April at W1 Curates 6-9 Timber St, London EC1Y 0TQ for the remainder of April and will include his unseen works on canvas.
Never Forget
Moonage Daydream
Mark Dale, Founder & CEO of W1 Curates said: "W1 Curates is focused on bridging the gap between traditional and digital art and to that end has opened up an immersive space to best represent the ever increasing number of talented digital artists.
"We've collaborated with some of the foremost traditional artists in the world including Nick Knight, David LaChapelle, David Bailey, Michael Craig Martin and featured key artists like Tracey Emin, Kaws and Jeff Koons. We are now delighted to host this exhibition of the works of Beeple, who is the biggest and the best in digital art.”
Following the successful New York show, Winkelmann said: “I’m an outsider in the traditional art world. I didn’t really feel like that until recently because I have been making this work in the digital art community for a very long time.
“I do view this as the next chapter of art history."
The exhibition on Saturday 8th April is free and open to the public. Tickets to the book signing and launch are available from W1 Curates.
