Van Gogh, Da Vinci and Monet Paintings to be Tokenised for Auction

Binance’s NFT marketplace is collaborating with the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to create tokenised collectibles based on the works of renowned artists including Leonardo da Vinci, Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh.

Binance announced on July 27 that it will make and distribute non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in concert with the museum by the end of August. The auction will be accessible to all Binance users.

Among the iconic works in the NFT collection are da Vinci’s Madonna Litta, fellow Italian artist Giorgione’s Judith, Dutch master van Gogh’s Lilac Bush, Composition VI by Russian painter Wassily Kandinsky and French impressionist Monet’s A Corner of the Garden at Montgeron.

Two NFT Copies for Each Artwork

The Hermitage announced that each artwork will have two NFT copies. The first will be retained by the museum, while the second will be auctioned off. All proceeds from auction sales will be transferred to the State Hermitage Museum.

According to Mikhail Piotrovsky, general director of the Hermitage, tokenising these masterpieces will “revolutionise” access to the museum’s collections.

New technologies, in particular blockchain, have opened a new chapter in the development of the art market, led by the ownership and the guarantee of this ownership.

Mikhail Piotrovsky, general director, State Hermitage Museum

Another Step Towards Digitalisation

Helen Hai, head of Binance NFT, says the project highlights the value of blockchain technology and NFTs as the world moves toward digitalisation.

Recognition of blockchain technology and NFTs by one of the largest museums in the world is another step towards global digitalisation … Together, we are making history.

Helen Hai, head, Binance NFT

Last month, Hobart’s Museum of Art & Philosophy launched Australia’s first NFT gallery in the Tasmanian capital. Just weeks later, multimedia artist Dave Court became the first in his field to stage a physical NFT exhibition in his home state of South Australia, and one of the first in the southern hemisphere.