“I Love The Art, Not The Money”

• Former US President Donald Trump expresses delight over his newly released NFTs and says the art is “sort of cute.” 
• The NFTs, which sold out in 12 hours, have raked in over $1 million though Trump claims he does not see it as an investment.
• NFT lovers praise Trump, and they want more political actors to mint art in the coming months.

People in several works of life have released non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for many reasons ranging from investments, value, artistic expression, etc.

Former United States Commander-in-Chief says his newly released NFTs were motivated by his love for the art as the images of him were “sort of cute.” In an interview with One America News, he said the release was not a form of investment but rather an artistic endeavour. 

“I didn’t view it as an investment. I viewed it as – I thought they were cute. For $99, you’re getting these visions that are very beautiful and interesting, I think, and I viewed it that way much more so than as an NFT,” said Trump.

Trump went further, revealing that he had no prior knowledge about how digital art works before releasing the NFTs, which depicted him as a hero.

“Well, I knew nothing about them, and then a group came and I loved the art. They showed me the art. You know, it’s sort of comic book art when you think of it, but they showed me the art and I said, gee, I always wanted to have a 30-inch waist.” 

Trump released his NFTs, which depicted him as a superhero, astronaut, and cowboy, in December amid several criticisms. Despite the talks, the card was sold out in an incredible 12 hours for about $99 in the initial release, and it is reported to have raked in over $1 million to the creators.

Bad year for NFTs

Like the wider digital asset market, 2022 was terrible for digital art compared to landmarks attained in 2021. From poor volumes to a general waning interest by collectors, NFTs fell short in all metrics this year. NFT marketplace giant OpenSea recorded a sharp decline this year as trading volume dropped from $3 billion in September 2021 to $350 million in September 2022.

The fall of NFTs worsened as metaverse platforms recorded fewer daily users and creeping NFT purchases compared to the previous year. Despite the fall, celebrities and other media personalities have continued to drop more projects, with more users hoping for a pickup in 2023.