What is the purpose of open edition NFTs?

Open edition NFT sales allow creators to make their work as accessible as possible to new and wider audiences. Generally, collections that use the open edition method are set at a lower price point, allowing collectors and fans to buy into communities they may not have been able to previously be a part of.

What are the types of open edition sales?

Within the genre, there are multiple ways creators can customize and utilize the open edition style.

Timed open edition sales

Some open edition sales have time limits assigned to them. This means that users can mint an unlimited amount of NFTs from the collection until the time window ends. Once the window is over, there are a finite number of NFTs from the mint in existence and no new NFTs can be minted. 

Generative open edition NFT collections

Some collections that utilize the open edition method also have a generative art element. Generative art refers to art that is created using algorithms or other computer-based processes that modify an existing item. When a collector mints an item from a generative art collection, each minting will result in an item that appears unique from the others in the collection. An example of this is Creature World’s collection, Crowd.

Open edition NFTs vs limited edition NFTs

Open edition and limited edition sales describe a distribution strategy for selling NFTs. The open edition method has recently grown in popularity, and differs from the more commonly used limited edition method in a few key ways. Limited edition NFT collections contain a predetermined and static amount of digital items. In the case of an open edition, there is an unlimited amount of digital items within a collection. Each NFT minted remains a unique digital item, even if it visually appears the same, because it is minted onto a blockchain, creating a record of the metadata.

The differences between a limited and open edition NFTs are related to quantity and accessibility.

Quantity

Open edition NFTs exist in an unlimited quantity (unless a time limit is set, forcing a cut off time for minting). A digital item created as an open edition will have no cap on how many NFTs can be minted from it. A limited edition NFT has a specific set quantity, determined by the creator when they create the collection. 

Accessibility

Open edition NFTs can be more accessible for collectors because they often have a lower price point. This can be a way for creators to reach a wider audience and allow collectors to buy something from a creator they love at a more accessible price. For a creator, open editions expand accessibility to their work and give more people the chance to own their digital items. 

Artists and creators believe that open editions can prevent gatekeeping in the web3 world. Some detractors of the method have noted that a creator’s work could become less desirable to a collector if they make an open edition, but thus far that outcome hasn’t been seen. Prints of the “Mona Lisa” are widely accessible, for instance, but the original “Mona Lisa” in the Louvre has not become less desirable to visit. If anything, since the image is so widely accessible, it actually incentivizes people to visit because they’ve become a fan of the artwork through a different medium. 

Notable open edition collections

Creature World, Crowd

“Crowd” is an infinite-supply generative art collection by Creature World. The drop was the first generative open edition collection to launch on OpenSea.The collection allowed users to mint an unlimited amount of NFTs from the collection over the course of 24 hours. Each collector who minted one received a composition made with unique color combination Creatures. 

The Creature World team created the collection by developing a unique algorithm that combined their recognizable art style with specific color palettes and other variations. The one-of-a-kind generative script was tailored to ensure that the art was not only visually striking but also cohesive in its color vocabulary. 

VV Checks

During a 24-hour period, the VV Checks collection allowed minting of an infinite number of NFTs, featuring 80 black and white checkmarks. Artist Jack Butcher was inspired to create the collection during the conversations surrounding changes to Twitter’s verification process. The price of the checks at the time of the drop was the same price Twitter set for the cost of verification on the platform.

16,031 checks were minted during the drop. Due to its success, Butcher pushed the project into new territory with a second phase that included a burn dynamic. Once the NFT is burned, the holder receives an on-chain piece of artwork. The project is meant to make users ask themselves questions about the purpose of NFTs and give them an increasing number of options to create new artwork throughout the process.

MAX PAIN AND FRENS BY XCOPY

Anonymous creator, XCopy, dropped a collection with a 10-minute sale window during which collectors could mint an infinite amount of NFTs from the collection. At the end of the 10-minute window, the opportunity to mint ended and the collection was capped at 7,469 items. 

XCopy is famous for his glitch art, and the fact that his work is not generative — each piece is created individually. As a well-known creator whose works sell for high prices, XCopy’s work is challenging to buy for many. His open edition collection allowed fans to become collectors of his work at a more accessible price point.

FRENS by GABE WEIS

Gabe Weis is a mixed media and NFT artist living in California’s Bay Area. In a style similar to Creature World’s Crowd, his collection, FRENS by Gabe Weis, is generative art composed of abstract faces offered in infinite colorways. 

The open edition sale lasted 48-hours and each NFT minted during the sale emerged in a unique color combination based on the algorithm created for the collection.

First Day Out by DrifterShoots

DrifterShoots, whose real name is Isaac Wright, began exploring photography as a way to manage his challenges with mental illness. Over the last few years, his work has gained popularity and become a staple of the NFT photography genre. First Day Out is a photography NFT collection that uses the open edition sale method. The sale lasted 24 hours and dropped on the one-year anniversary of the creator’s first day out of jail. 

The NFT allows collectors to toggle between a self-portrait of the creator in New York City and a moving image of the day of his release.