Fine Art Collectible Token (FACT) Framework
Fine Art Collectible Token (FACT) Framework
Going beyond the art. Bringing experience, provenance and production to the next level.
Today NFTs are in a primitive state, technically and conceptually. We have on-chain contracts, metadata and content on distributed networks as table stakes when deploying a project. The Fine Art Collectible Token(FACT) aims to reimagine what is possible, bringing superior production, experience, provenance and authenticity auditing to the domain of collectibles. The FACT framework raises the bar for art, offering a path that will deliver a robust experience in art appreciation, rigid provenance and optionality for collectors when it comes to the medium of production and ownership.
The FACT concept is at this stage conceptual only but will be taken forward via a technical implementation in the near future. Adoption of the FACT concept by artists, project, and collectors and the broader industry will drastically improve the quality of NFTs across the board with a multitude of benefits.
The four pillars of a FACT intend to bring the NFT space forward and utilize existing technology to improve every aspect of the art work in an innovative way. As the technology evolves so will the concept of FACT.
Production
One of the biggest discussions in the NFT space has been centered around the medium of existence. Does it exist physically or digitally? As technology has grown in the mixed media arts sector we've seen a rapid growth of art that is digitally native. This digitally first art deserves to exist in the physical world if the artist can provide the necessary production information along with the option to collectors and creators to manifest a physical version. Paintings that are produced physically first should have the ability to exist in a digital medium when working with the right vendor if the artist wishes. The FACT standard framework defines an implementation of an NFT that supports both digital and physical existence. A physical production NFT will be bound to the physical production of the work and be mintable, tradable and trackable. The artist is not required to enable physical production but if they wish to do so, the concept enables it to be done properly. The FACT framework calls for specific functions and metadata retention to support the existence and production of both digitally and physically bound NFTs. As with everything in the physical world, the framework and mechanisms are in place but human decisions and interactions must align for proper utilization of the standard.
Another key aspect of the FACT framework is for the artistic content and metadata to exist in a distributed manner. Technologies such as on-chain storage, IPFS, Arweave, Filecoin and other distributed content systems are a key requirement for adhering to the standard. As improved distributed content technologies develop integrations and turnkey solutions they can replace today’s existing options. All FACTs should provide necessary metadata via smart contract token functions(e.g. tokenURI) that anyone can call to obtain the existence identifiers of a token.
Experience
NFTs today deliver a very limited experience to collectors, investors and creators. Today our main options are to go to OpenSea or Rarible and observe a work in the same squarish box that everyone gets. If it is a piece from XCOPY, Mad Dog Jones, Lethabo Huma or a Bored Ape you get the same box almost as if the piece you’re looking at is immaterial. The experience you get on “curated” sites such as SuperRare and MakersPlace is essentially the same with a different common box. We’ve seen utilization of platforms like OnCyber which enable you to use a standard virtual room or buy one a 3D artist made for general purpose. To deliver a fine art experience we must go further. We must think of the setting and ambiance in which the art is observed to be a part of the art. The same way a frame of a painting, the placement and light in a museum affect your appreciation of art in the physical world. An NFT adhering to the FACT framework will deliver an environment tailored for the piece of art with the lowest barrier of entry(e.g. a direct URL link) necessary to experience the art. The experience should be recoverable via the token metadata as a contained experience(e.g. GLB file). The goal is to set the context, stage, feeling and story of the art while you observe it. Everything of a finer quality derives part of its value in its setting and presentation. Undoubtedly we will continue to witness an improvement in the technologies which support richer experiences for experiencing digital art.
Provenance
The origins and creation of an NFT seem fairly simple but quite lacking in providing the needed continuity for artists and collectors to have necessary assurances for who created a piece of work and any tracking of its journey as a digital or physical NFT. The blockchain does provide extremely reliable tracking for all identifiers(e.g. contract address, token ID, IPFS CID etc.) once it is minted but the moments leading up to the mint also need some amount of verification and validation from the artist themselves. How do we know they claim it? What can we store with the art to dramatically improve its provenance? An attestation record utilizing existing Web 2.0 technologies and media can certainly accomplish this. The FACT standard calls for the artist to create a visual image or video attesting to the work, perhaps even its intent and uploading it as part of the metadata for a piece of art. This metadata lives with the NFT and can always be retrieved in the future. They should include themselves physically in the proof media, include something with a verifiable date and also utilize social media accounts to provided enhanced proof.
Artist Attestation
Below you can find a step by step example process for an artist to perform an on-chain attestation via media and Web 2.0 platforms. There is no prescribed method as the attestation should be done to the extent that the artist feels is necessary.
Let’s analyze each step.
Step 1
The artist will utilize either a new address or an existing address which has been formally attested in the past. An artist may want to create a new address per collection or art work. The number of addresses is less important that finishing the above process.
Step 2
The artist will utilize their social media account(e.g. Twitter, Instagram, etc.) to generate a post/tweet and include their account information from Step 1, the name of the collection(and any pertinent details) and media(e.g. photo, video) where they state the same information. Let’s list those out in detail:
Network address(e.g. 0xAB32…87FC) from Step 1
Collection/art work name and description
Screen grab of social media post
Media of the artist which contains name of the artist, address from Step 1, collection/art work name and description
Steps 3-5
All the items from Step 2 need to be uploaded after signing into the Artist Attestation with the artist’s attestation(from Step 1) address. Once the upload is completed it is stored on a distributed content network(e.g. IPFS, Arweave) along with metadata and stored on the smart contract for the NFT collection contract the artist is going to use to mint.
Step 6
The final step is for the artist to upload specifications required to physically produce the painting that will be bound to the NFT token for the physical artwork. This is a critical part of the provenance because it enables validation of the artists intent and direction when physical producing an artwork in the physical world. The FACT concept promotes a scenario where the digital content and physical content can both co-exist separately and stored their own transaction histories.
Once you complete all 6 steps you now have an NFT contract which has on-chain attestation metadata and content proving the artist’s specifics, requirements and intent. You have distributed content which anyone can use to maintain the vigorous provenance required for the FACT concept.
Owner Attestation
The owner attestation flow is subjective as it provides the framework and mechanisms but not the exact actions to meet the FACT standard. Once completing the suggested flow the owner of the physical NFT will be able to generate a unique on-chain certificate representing the production. This on-chain certificate can have a visual aesthetic to it related to the work and will always be retrievable for verification. The reason is that we believe there will likely be 3rd-party services which will handle the entire process for collectors. These agencies will create best practices based on the artistic content and other economic factors. In the meantime part of the physical production process with a vendor is also how the physical piece is documented by the current owner. This subjectivity is not problematic since physical production is always subjective due to the multitude of variables that exist outside of NFTs.
The FACT framework however provides the required core functions that an NFT smart contract must implement to support a flow of minting the physical production NFT token, retrieving production specifications, adding attestation metadata/media, resale support, confirming physical production and vendor confirmations. Ideally a project will also provide the UX/UI mechanisms to ease an owner through the owner attestation process.
Audit
Developers and creators of an NFT project must submit their technical implementation to reputable smart contract audit agencies to verify proper implementation of not only the FACT concept via core functions and conditions but general security of the smart contract for purposes of preserving provenance, existence and experience. As more projects implement the FACT standard more and more patterns of technical implementation will be available for reuse. This will help auditors focus on more edge cases details in the long term. The audit report must be part of the metadata for the entire collection. This will enable future collectors to verify what level of due diligence was performed by the project and audit teams.
Summary and Criteria
Focusing on the four pillars of the FACT concept: existence, experience, provenance and audited as a creator/project enables delivery of an NFT to the market which provides necessary assurances to collectors and the creators themselves in the longevity of the work and thus its long term value. To meet the criteria for a Fine Art Collectible Token a collection should adhere to the following criteria:
Seamless, robust and low effort experience delivered to observers via either a customized virtual or physical space focused on setting the proper ambience, context and feel to appreciate the art work. Access to the entire experience must be contained within the NFT smart contract and be self-contained.
Implementation of two NFT token contracts with shared metadata, one to support the digital version and another to support the physical production version assuming the artist approves it.
Artist/Creator full attestation must be submitted prior to minting of any NFTs. Artist attestation includes media, signed transaction, physical production specifications all uploaded to a distributed content network and tied to collection smart contract.
On-chain certificate generation for the physical NFT token to be used to prove the physical production and owner confirmation of the art work.
Full contract audit documentation stored as metadata with the NFT collection contract
Note: This is a living document and will be updated and versioned as projects adopt and iterate on the Fine Art Collectible Token framework.