Artists who look at the future and new possibilities to be better promoters of themselves...

The London painter Lincoln Townley says he sold 19 of his works to a Singapore investor for 490 bitcoins - worth £4 million at today’s rate. This was reported by the English magazine, revealing negotiations for the "Greed Collection" series, sold by an agent in Switzerland. Townley is considered among the first artists to accept cryptocurrency payments.

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It is not the first time for Townley! Indeed, the artist has already sold works for bitcoins. The previous date back 2017 when he sold his great oil on canvas called "Homage to Francis Bacon", to a European art collector for 40 bitcoin which corresponded at the time to over 500 thousand pounds. As Townley said in a previous interview: 

I always look for alternative ways to make my way into the market, I have many collectors who pay me in a number of different cryptocurrencies and yes Bitcoin is the most trusted by us. It's important to look at other ways to get collectors of my works and by embracing crypto, this has opened up a new market of sophisticated investors. I'm very much interested in people who push boundaries and step into the unknown with gusto.

In 2018 Townley also created a whole collection inspired by cryptocurrencies and people investing in this world. Instead of exhibiting the works in the gallery, Townley preferred a post on social media. How Artists Are Using Instagram To Be Successful In doing so, he sold the entire series instantly. A success that demonstrates the unstoppable evolution of the art world, capable of exploiting technology and social networks to its own benefit. Lincoln Townley (b.1972) is one of the world’s leading contemporary figurative artists. His works in seven years have seen a staggering price increase. Famous for breaks all the rules, Townley is best known for his portraits of celebrities such as Cate Blanchett or David Bowie... During this 58th Venice Biennale, he showed 30 paintings as part of his "Behind The Mask" series. 

Cover image: Big spender: Energy of London is one of the paintings included in the purchase (Lincoln Townley).

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