This concept revolves around the idea of verification . . . NFTs are essentially verification. They verify one .jpg has value as opposed to identical copies. They verify ownership of a digital asset despite geography, time or geopolitical upheaval. In fact, the main offering of NFTs could be seen to be accurate and decentralised verification on various blockchains.

Yet NFTs are relatively nascent verifying force when compared to another more established online phenomenon, social media. I’d argue that we are increasingly outsourcing our individual judgment to the endlessly accumulating analytics of social media. The wide array of digital measures applied to online interactions, content and individuals are ensuring that one does not just simply evaluate something on its merits. We must also confirm whether it has been verified by social media’s numerics.

The ultimate embodiment of this being, the verification badge. Although social media’s blue ticks of approval might seem innocuous, when this process of verification is applied in real life, one can see how strange it truly is . . . Imagine a few private companies deciding for the globe who or what in our physical reality deserves the perceived quality and authenticity of verification.

By placing these NFT enabled “NOTNOT VERIFIED” badges on various Sydney Landmarks, both mundane and well known, this series will hopefully encourage individuals to exercise they’re own judgment as to what deserves verification. The associated NFTs will validate this decision making process as each plaque offers these tokens as immutable confirmation of their own agency.

LOCATION -33.889982336785245, 151.28281937725995

[Created with the M H Carnegie Fine Art Fellowship Award]