The first one-of-a-kind art collection created in Excel and available to buy as a NFT has gone on sale.
Datarails, commissioned artist Saif Ali to create 5 pieces of art using Excel.
The XLS files were uploaded to OpenSea-the largest web3 marketplace for NFTs (non-fungible tokens).
This marks the first time XLS files, the default format used for spreadsheets in Excel, have been made available in an NFT collection.
Each of the 5 Excel Collection NFTs will be sold for 1 ETH (Ethereum price) equivalent to around $2000 each.
Why is this a landmark?
The Datarails collection marks the first time actual XLS files, the default format used for spreadsheets in Excel, have been directly used and made available for purchase for those seeking a slice of history.
While this is uniquely Excel, like all other NFTs, it nevertheless represents a set of one-of-a-kind cryptographic assets existing on blockchain technology.
Tell me more about the Artwork?
Saif Ali, a renowned animation artist, whose clients have included PwC and Porsche created 5 animations reflecting images from the ongoing crisis in Ukraine and President Volodymyr Zelensky himself – with all proceeds of sales of the NFT effort going to help victims of the Ukraine war. Afterwards, we converted the images to pixel art in Excel through coding.
Yair Viner, a Frontend-Developer at Datarails, was recruited to set up the project, with a landing page connecting our art and buyers to OpenSea where potential Excel art lovers could purchase the Excel NFT “Collection.
Viner’s love for coding, animation and design all came together in 2018 where he was acquainted first hand with the blockchain technology. He became obsessed with collecting crypto currencies and NFTs, “When NFTs were brought into our lives, and combined art with crypto currency, right away I knew I found a new extracurricular activity”.
Yair’s love for NFTs drove him to become an expert in the field, whether by taking international college courses, to creating and designing for large companies their own NFT blockchain. “The tough part isn’t only in the design of an NFT collection for a company, but creating the ‘smart contracts’ that are specific for each project.”
Where does the money go?
Proceeds will go to victims of the Ukraine war, through non-profit Heart to Heart International. Heart to Heart International is a fantastic charity whose mission we believe in. They improve healthcare access around the world by ensuring quality care is provided equitably in medically under-resourced communities and in disaster areas including the situation in Ukraine. Their volunteers go as far as riding bicycles to deliver necessary medical attention and supplies to injured civilians in remote regions of Ukraine.”
View and buy the Excel NFT Art Collection here
The concept behind the sale
Datarails is a financial planning and analysis platform for Excel users. As a company we are passionate about Excel, and have a great deal of interest in NFT as a market. The art is the first to merge the burgeoning NFT art market with Excel, which is used by more than 70% of finance teams around the world. Like art, Excel also invokes strong feelings of passion among those mastering spreadsheets for tasks such as budgeting, financial modeling and forecasting. This project is the first attempt to mesh the art of Excel with the booming CryptoArt market.
Didi Gurfinkel, Co-Founder and CEO of DataRails says: “Excel is the canvas used by anyone in finance to create ideas, innovation and financial models. In this experiment we took this concept a step further. Excel has literally been used as a palette to produce a one-of-a-kind experience for CryptoArt and spreadsheet enthusiasts to own. We hope this project will help show the broad canvas of Excel while raising funds for the plight of those in Ukraine.”
A full explanation of the Art of Excel and the CryptoArt market coming up!
The Background of Excel as Art
The first thing that comes to mind when hearing “Excel” of course is calculations, formulas, functions and models.
But Excel is far more than spreadsheets and dashboards, it can be an awesome canvas for art.
Take for example Tatsuo Horiuchi from Japan. The 80-year-old artist known for incredible masterpieces created in Microsoft Excel. Using simple vector drawing tools developed primarily for graphs and simple shapes, Horiuchi instead draws panoramic scenes of life in rural Japan. He has been described as “The Michaelangelo of Excel” and his works sell for around $600.
Another incredible Excel artist is Emma Stevens, who originally is a landscape architect. With only using words in different fonts and cell rows the Australian artist creates beautiful city skylines. From a distance, the image looks like a city skyline, but up close it becomes clear that the name of the city makes up the structure of the entire image. Her Excel art costs around $200 per piece.
The history of CryptoArt
Meanwhile, CryptoArt has its own fascinating history starting with early pioneers (well 2017) of CryptoPunk (inspired by 70s British punk), reflecting the rebellious, anti-establishment nature of the rise of blockchains. CryptoPunks is a non-fungible token collection on the Ethereum blockchain by the Larva Labs studio. These avatars were so successful with a mainstream audience that CryptoPunk #5822 is the most expensive CryptoPunk to have ever sold, racking up an astronomic $23m price tag.
Other epensive NFT Artworks range from Beeple’s Ocean Front NFT sold for $6 million in March 2021 to Chinese cryptocurrency entrepreneur and founder of the TRON blockchain’ to XCOPY’s $3.8 Million Portrait of ‘Some Asshole’
Own a piece of History as Excel Art and NFTs meet for the first time
However the Datarails Excel collection is the first time that the world of Excel Art and NFT arts meet – admittedly this is quite a niche we have found.
The NFT at 1ETH is also a steal compared to some of the other pieces of NFT Art. It remains a unique opportunity to own a slice of Excel NFT history.
Make yourself part of history now -You can purchase here but you must connect your wallet like with all NFTs. Good luck!