NFTs still represented a strange new world to many cartoonists last year when Jason Chatfield decided to convene an online forum to address the question: With crypto art selling for millions, did the blockchain hold any promise for comics creators?
NFTs — non-fungible tokens that are unique digital assets — have sparked controversy over the carbon emissions generated by cryptocurrencies, critics say, that increase the greenhouse effect.
Trudeau’s curiosity, though, did not diminish. He stayed plugged in as blockchain technology evolved, until he was recently introduced to an NFT company, Polygon, that announced last month it had reached eco-friendly “carbon neutrality.”
Doonesbury © Garry B. Trudeau
Now Trudeau will offer his first NFT comic strips and character art for sale through the Heritage Auctions house, with all proceeds going to charity. Live bidding will begin Thursday.
He still had a small collection of files on his computer desktop, from when The Washington Post asked him in 2020 to pick his top 10 “defining” strips — to mark the 50th anniversary of his Pulitzer Prize-winning comic.
Each NFT will come with a signed and numbered physical print — “so even if you forget you even own a digital token,” the cartoonist says, “you can have evidence of that ownership hanging on your wall.”
Michael Cavna, for The Washington Post, looks at the new NFTs, Garry Trudeau’s charity dive into the “eco-friendly” NFTs, Heritage Auctions first NFT comic art auction, and the possibilities of creator royalties with secondary sales.
The auction goes live today (July 14) at 6:50pm East Coast/3:50pm West Coast
Update – Selected Results
