On March 3, Beeple debuted his first art world gallery show Uncertain Future. He became the third-most expensive living artist after his NFT Everydays: The First 5,000 Days sold for $69.3 million at a Christie’s auction in early 2021.
Last month, Jimmy Fallon spoke at length about NFTs on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and even showed off his Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT, so it’s no surprise that when Beeple debuted his first art world gallery show last night, the iconic host showed up in support. But perhaps more interesting than Fallon’s presence was that of other art world elite who seemed—until now—to have little to do with Beeple.
The show opens almost exactly a year after Beeple’s NFT, Everydays: The First 5,000 Days, fetched $69.3 million at Christie’s, catapulting the artist to overnight stardom and unleashing the NFT tsunami. During this year, Winkelmann has become, put plainly, rich and famous.
Winkelmann’s exhibition, which opens today, is a hotly anticipated if somewhat polarizing event. More than 1,100 people RSVP’d for the opening reception in just 24 hours—leading the normally low-key gallery to hire security guards and stanchion posts.