Cuban Artists Build Crypto Industry Through CryptoCuban Social Club

Cuban artists start a crypto business. (photo: doc. unsplash)

JAKARTA - Artists in Cuba have announced a new investment in the fast-growing world of crypto art for online collectors, with plans to sell 1.492 digital portraits of Cuba through non-worth tokens (NFT) to start the "CryptoCuban Social Club."

NFT is a type of digital asset that uses blockchain to record the ownership of items such as images, videos, and other collectibles. Their booming popularity has confused many but the explosive growth shows no signs of abating.

Artists in September began photographing Cubans in creative poses and outfits, targeting 1.492 unique portraits in all, referring to the year - 1492 - when Christopher Columbus first arrived on the island.

Digital portrait buyers can interact with “CryptoCubans” after its launch in December, via online platforms and finally, live concerts and parties in Cuba. It will create "a unique community that will connect our music and culture with the rest of the world," the artists say.

Portraits and people combine the warmth of Cuban society with a digital world that project founder Gabriel Guerra says can be considered cold and distant.

"The stories people tell us literally cover Cuban society, our daily lives, our pain, our dreams," Guerra said in an interview.

Cuba, a Communist-run country known for its ancient cities and cars and poor internet service, has become a thriving hotspot for the art of crypto.

Photographers and artists like Guerra are using digital crypto platforms to access markets and audiences that previously required artists to leave the country, or buyers to fly to the island.

"It can bring Cuban artists not only the freedom to be creative, but also the freedom to connect with collectors around the world," Guerra said.

Following the project's official launch in December, 20% of the proceeds, in cryptocurrency ether, will go to portrait subjects, allowing 1.492 Cubans to access the "cryptoworld," according to the project's website.

CryptoCuban Social Club promises that its NFT buyers will own more than just .jpg files, or digital images, instead of getting access to communities and "live change projects."

Cuba said in August that their government would allow the use of cryptocurrencies. This makes them one of the few Latin American countries that have recently shown interest in officially regulating digital currencies.