Hope, hustle, and hype: The rise and fall of Art Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)
This article examines the technological emergence trajectory of Art Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), exploring their initial promise and then failure as transformative commodities disrupting art economies. Operating within an analytical framework of hope, hustle and hype, death and taxes, we investigat...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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DIGSUM
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Journal of Digital Social Research |
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| Online Access: | https://publicera.kb.se/jdsr/article/view/54881 |
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| author | Alexia Maddox Naomi Smith |
| author_facet | Alexia Maddox Naomi Smith |
| author_sort | Alexia Maddox |
| collection | DOAJ |
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This article examines the technological emergence trajectory of Art Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), exploring their initial promise and then failure as transformative commodities disrupting art economies. Operating within an analytical framework of hope, hustle and hype, death and taxes, we investigate the interplay of technological, cultural, and economic trends shaping this trajectory towards failure. We identify the sociotechnical imaginaries clothing art NFTs and consider their relationship to both the acceptance and rejection of this technology. Our analysis contends that the desire to escape economic exclusion created a collective hope through which social adoption occurred. However, delving into the digital graveyards of Art NFTs, we identify external forces such as cultural shifts, social backlash, and regulatory interventions extinguishing the public’s ‘cruel optimism’, leading to the revocation of the social licence to operate for this emerging technology.
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9ec6e4a1100b471f9cd13bb3d489e10d |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2003-1998 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | DIGSUM |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Digital Social Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-9ec6e4a1100b471f9cd13bb3d489e10d2025-08-20T01:59:10ZengDIGSUMJournal of Digital Social Research2003-19982025-05-017110.33621/jdsr.v7i154881Hope, hustle, and hype: The rise and fall of Art Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)Alexia Maddox0Naomi Smith1La Trobe UniversityUniversity of Sunshine Coast This article examines the technological emergence trajectory of Art Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), exploring their initial promise and then failure as transformative commodities disrupting art economies. Operating within an analytical framework of hope, hustle and hype, death and taxes, we investigate the interplay of technological, cultural, and economic trends shaping this trajectory towards failure. We identify the sociotechnical imaginaries clothing art NFTs and consider their relationship to both the acceptance and rejection of this technology. Our analysis contends that the desire to escape economic exclusion created a collective hope through which social adoption occurred. However, delving into the digital graveyards of Art NFTs, we identify external forces such as cultural shifts, social backlash, and regulatory interventions extinguishing the public’s ‘cruel optimism’, leading to the revocation of the social licence to operate for this emerging technology. https://publicera.kb.se/jdsr/article/view/54881Art NFTWeb3technological diffusionsociotechnical imaginariesfailurecelebrities |
| spellingShingle | Alexia Maddox Naomi Smith Hope, hustle, and hype: The rise and fall of Art Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) Journal of Digital Social Research Art NFT Web3 technological diffusion sociotechnical imaginaries failure celebrities |
| title | Hope, hustle, and hype: The rise and fall of Art Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) |
| title_full | Hope, hustle, and hype: The rise and fall of Art Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) |
| title_fullStr | Hope, hustle, and hype: The rise and fall of Art Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Hope, hustle, and hype: The rise and fall of Art Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) |
| title_short | Hope, hustle, and hype: The rise and fall of Art Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) |
| title_sort | hope hustle and hype the rise and fall of art non fungible tokens nfts |
| topic | Art NFT Web3 technological diffusion sociotechnical imaginaries failure celebrities |
| url | https://publicera.kb.se/jdsr/article/view/54881 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT alexiamaddox hopehustleandhypetheriseandfallofartnonfungibletokensnfts AT naomismith hopehustleandhypetheriseandfallofartnonfungibletokensnfts |