Mural Artist Featured in Beginner’s NFT Session
NFTs, or non-fungible tokens (NFT), have a mixed reputation, but the have been embraced by many in the arts as a meaningful way to embrace digital sales and online exhibition. On August 16, a local mural artist will be featured in an in-person learning session about NFTs titled, “What the Heck Are NFTs?“
The NFT market was valued at USD20.44 billion last year, and despite the current dip in the market, is expected to continue to grow over the next several years. The learning session, continuing the “NFT for Good” event series launched in 2021, is geared towards anyone who is new to and curious about NFTs. Attendees will learn about what NFTs are, how they are used today and the potential the technology presents for creators and businesses.
The session will be led by Ellen Ng, who previously led many of the Hawaii state government’s digital asset initiatives. Today she is the founder of Inoa, a consulting firm dedicated to helping creators, businesses, nonprofits and civic organizations learn about and leverage the power of non-fungible tokens and e-commerce.
Prior to managing the state Digital Currency Innovation Lab, Ng’s global corporate experience in technology include stints with LG Electronics and Samsung. Ellen was selected by Pacific Business News as a 40 Under 40 Honoree in 2021.
The event will also feature Honolulu-born artist Jana Ireijo. She is the founder of “Mural Ethos: Vanishing Murals,” for which she uses non permanent mediums such as charcoal from wildfires and earth pigments to create “vanishing” murals that illustrate the effects of the environment due to climate change, as well as the corresponding issue of environmental justice. The murals are temporary and return to earth with the elements.
Ireijo is of Chinese, Okinawan, and Polynesian descent and graduated with a BFA in Graphic Design from the University of Hawaii at Manoa and an MFA in Painting from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. Recent works include a Vanishing Coral Reef mural for The Nature Conservancy in Maui, which has also been curated by Judy Chicago into the Turner Carroll Gallery’s “Solstice: Create Art for Earth” exhibition in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
The event is co-sponsored by the Oak+Pine Community and Gather Co-Working, and furthers the collective mission to onboard more women into technology, Web3 and the world of NFTs.
Ticket sales end on Aug. 14. Register via Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/what-the-heck-are-nfts-tickets-685352647217
