NFT ENERGY
Saeko Ehara (Japan)
2023.6.12
1. Tell me about something you liked as a child.
I was into drawing, collecting Kirakira (sparkling) cards of my favorite Anime, stickers, toys, acrylic jewels, small glassworks and reading illustrated books of flowers. I was so enthusiastic that I always forgot the time passed when I did my favorite things.
2. Who is your favorite writer? (Art, books, games, etc.)
I have so many favorite artists! My start was oil painting so I respect art masters such as Leonardo da Vinci, Johannes Vermeer and Gustav Klimt. I also love the style of Alfons Mucha so much.
Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mona_Lisa
Girl with a Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girl_with_a_Pearl_Earring
Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I by Gustav Klimt
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portrait_of_Adele_Bloch-Bauer_I
3. What was your personal motivation to work on art?
I finished my study at Royal Academy of Art, The Hague (NL) in 2010. Since my graduation, I started working, focusing on building up career and skills as a VJ in Japan. In 2020, I went to Digital Hollywood, Tokyo to learn creative coding then I slowly started creating my artworks again and remember how joyful it is. During pandemic, all the projects for concerts were canceled so I spent all my time for creating art.
3-1. How did you enjoy art before going to art college?
I was enjoying to make drawings and oil painting. I went to the painting class near my place then I learned the basic skills.
4. What is the important part you would like to talk about through art work?
Through my works, I would love to make the world full of Kirakira (sparkling).
4-1. It's very interesting to show the art of the past again with your aesthetic sense. Please tell me about the process of the work.
Images are generated by Midjourney (AI) then animated with TouchDesigner (node base software for visual coding). In the end, these are finalized with Adobe (effects and editing).
Crossover, Jan 17, 2023
5. Why did you start NFT ART?
I found NFT through Instagram in the beginning of 2021. Some artists started tagging NFT. Also, I always admired posts by SuperRare. It looked exciting and fun but I did not know how to participate. In June 2021, I received an invitation to Foundation from a Japanese artist, Kaoru Tanaka then I started minting my works.
6. What about the NFT ART you've experienced in practice? Tell us about the good and the bad
Meeting many amazing new people is the best experience for me. Good and bad are always together. All experiences are my treasure
7. What is the most memorable moment while doing NFT ART?
The first selling is the most memorable moment for me. Until that time, I had no idea how to sell and make money with my art. NFT broke my assumption. My genesis is 'Crystal Flowers' owned by Russell on Foundation. It took almost 2 months to make the fist sale. I still remember I felt so much happiness and excitement when I received a notification of an auction.
8. What is the perception of NFT ART in Japan?
I think there are many different communities in Japan. I started meeting more people these days so I do not have a good answer for this question. It would be amazing to take time to know about the local community.
9. What do you think is the role of an artist today?
This is a very good question. The answer to this question will probably change in the future. I would like to write the current answer related with NFT. During the pandemic, I lost all my jobs of concerts. This period has been a very good opportunity to introspect my life. I started minting NFTs during the pandemic. Everything of NFT is transparent, so we tend to focus on sales, but I feel that through creating artworks, I am being questioned how I should be as a person. I think that the role of an artist is to capture and express the present, which is changing rapidly due to pandemic and technological development. Through NFTs, we are recording the present on the blockchain.