Sotheby’s generative art auction nabs $1.2 million, selling out in less than an hour

Storied auction house Sotheby’s sold 500 pieces of generative art in less than an hour for $1.2 million.

Created by the artist Vera Molnár and christened Themes and Variations, each piece of digital art was “minted immediately upon purchase,” Sotheby’s said in a statement, adding that trading volume on the secondary market had totaled 400 ether (about $754,000) in the hours following the auction.

Sotheby’s announced the launch of its generative art program last month. Despite a downturn in NFT sales, the auction house has recently been reasonably successful when auctioning off digital works, including a collection that once belonged to the failed hedge fund Three Arrows Capital.

The auction house said that the sale of Themes and Variations “opened with a ceiling price of 20 ether” ($37,600).

Digital work by artist Vera Molnár sold in auction. Source: Sotheby’s