Christie’s And Kresus to Launch Blockchain Certificates

British auction house Christie’s has partnered with the crypto wallet provider Kresus to launch blockchain certificates of ownership for a photography collection auction. Scheduled for October 2 at the Rockefeller Center in New York, the auction will bring these ownership certificates into the Ethereum layer-2 network Base.

Dubbed “An Eye Towards the Real: Photographs from the Collection of Ambassador Trevor Traina,” the photography collection comprises over 130 lots by artists like Diane Arbus, Robert Frank, William Eggleston, and Cindy Sherman. Some of these works will feature contemporary pieces and photographs created after World War II.

Christie’s photography auction buyers (collectors) will receive 1-of-1 digital certificates for each of the 130 lots through the Kresus Wallet. While simplifying the authentication of these photographs, the procedure helps onboard users to the growing blockchain ecosystem.

Highlighting how blockchain revolutionizes how art collectors interact with their favorite collections, Kresus founder Trevor Traina said:

“Blockchain enables many things. As an art collector, I am well aware of the burden of managing and maintaining provenance and proper documentation—often in paper form and in file cabinets. This partnership with Christie’s exemplifies how technology can enhance the experience for collectors, providing a secure, digital way to manage physical assets.”

Interestingly, Christie’s has a history of bringing NFT collections to its community. One of its earliest forays into the blockchain space was the debut of Beeple’s “Everydays – The First 5000 Days” on the auction platform. Featuring a collage of photographs compiled within 13 years, the artwork was sold for $69.3 million at Christie’s in 2021.

A year later, the British firm rolled out its NFT marketplace to bring collectors closer to blockchain technology. This initiative trailed a similar step by Christie’s rival, Sotheby’s.

Kresus’ latest merger with Christie’s shows the auction house’s commitment to bridging the modern art world with blockchain technology. This bold step could motivate more artists to transcend the traditional art realm to the NFT world.