On view through March 29 at Christie’s in Dubai is the NFT-centered exhibition “Block Party: Encountering NFTs in the Middle East.” Curated by the independent curator and art advisor, Daria Borisova, the presentation brings together 10 works from nine international artists who gained early acclaim for their digital works, including Justin Aversano, José Delbo, Trevor Jones, Osinachi, Rewind Collective, Nicole Ruggiero, and Sarah Zucker.
“Block Party,” courtesy of Daria Borisova and Christie’s Dubai.
“Block Party” aims to reconstruct the idea of digital art and the artists who make it, shining a specific light on more traditional artists who have joined in on the mainstream adoption of NFTs in the past two years. José Delbo, for instance, first got involved in the digital art world at 86 years old. After a successful career as a comic book illustrator—creating for titles like Wonder Woman, Buck Rogers, and The Mod Squad—he released his first NFT comic on the blockchain in 2020, since becoming known as Joséhas.
“Block Party,” courtesy of Daria Borisova and Christie’s Dubai.
“Daria Borisova has assembled many of the strongest leading voices in the NFT and CryptoArt space as part of her stellar exhibition, ‘Block Party.’ I could not be more honored to host part of this thoughtful, beautiful show at Christie’s galleries in Dubai,” said Noah Davis, Christie’s Specialist and Head of Digital Art. “My hope is that ‘Block Party’ will introduce many in the region to this new and exciting movement in contemporary art.”
“Block Party,” courtesy of Daria Borisova and Christie’s Dubai.
The collaborative show stemmed from a presentation Borisova curated last year for the 1-54 art fair in London, in collaboration with Christie’s. There, the curator included the first NFT into the 2021 edition—a piece from the African artist Osinachi’s series “Different Shades of Water.” For this presentation, the curator returned with two new works from the artist that reflected on solitude and empowerment, as well as works by others who touched upon themes of culture, humor, and traditional art seen through a digital lens.
