How to Make and Sell Your Own NFT Art for Fun and Profit

Samson · May 2022

The ease and simplicity of sharing and selling your art to the world through NFT technology have become a miracle for artists

Three days after works by van Gogh, Picasso, and Gauguin were stolen from an art gallery, police recovered them from an unlikely place. The paintings, worth £4 million, were located in a run-down public restroom a short walk from the gallery. The art thieves left an odd note attached to the missing paintings: “The intention was not to steal. Only to highlight the woeful security.”

The internet has become a breeding ground for “woeful security.” As crises tend to fuel innovation, a remedy was born and has skyrocketed in popularity over the last few years.

Not long ago, nearly 30,000 collectors pooled $91.8 million together to purchase Merge, the current most expensive NFT ever sold. Luckily, this incredible purchase won’t be stolen and left in a toilet stall anytime soon. NFT technology has become the perfect antidote for many of the problems the art and collectibles world faced in the past.

Like so many things in our quickly evolving tech world, “NFT” is a term we hear, use, and may want to get involved with before we even know what an NFT is.

NFTs are polarizing. Some believe they are the future while others declare they are nothing more than a fad.

The digital content creation boom is in full swing. NFT art has become a new way for all kinds of creators to make art, sell it, and offer a fun, unique opportunity for their fans to invest in their potential future popularity.

So, what exactly is an NFT?

“NFT” stands for non-fungible token. NFTs can refer to any digital asset that has a value placed on it: digital art, GIFs, a tweet, a piece of music, videos, domains, and much more. What makes NFTs so special is their unique exclusivity. They are one-of-a-kind digital goods with a revolutionary way of proving authentic ownership. This authentic ownership cannot be duplicated.

While NFT art can be purchased using cryptocurrency, they are not a form of cryptocurrency. Why? Cryptocurrency (Bitcoin, for example) is considered fungible. Fungible means one Bitcoin can be traded for any other Bitcoin. By being non-fungible, NFTs cannot be swapped for anything because they are encoded on the blockchain. It’s similar to a “fungible” Toyota Corolla you can purchase at any dealership versus a “non-fungible” Aston Martin DB5, driven by Sean Connery in a James Bond film and sold at an auction years later. Because they cannot be destroyed or replicated, NFT art has gained popularity as a radical valuable to invest in.

2021 was the year for NFTs. Unless you were a true early adopter, you probably hadn’t heard of NFTs until last year. In 2012, the internet witnessed the very first evolution of an NFT with the release of Colored Coins. These “NFTs” were not exactly what we see today, and many don’t consider them to be true NFTs. They were a start, though. In 2014, Kevin McCoy minted what many consider the original NFT called “Quantum.”

Over the last ten years, these assets have slowly gained popularity but remained largely on the cultural fringes. 2021 morphed NFTs from fringe status into a viral sensation where everyone was raving about them.

Why are artists turning to NFT art?

When you buy NFT art, you’re buying the exclusive and authentic ownership of a piece of work. Although they’re revolutionizing the digital art world today, it’s not because they’ve created a new medium of art. They’ve only changed how we own and sell digital art. This element of scarcity and individuality are tapping into the inherent attractiveness of art itself.

NFTs answer many challenging questions artists face:

How can I generate money as an artist?

There are two ways in which an artist can generate income from their NFT art: the initial sale and the recurring royalties down the line. First, an artist can sell their NFT art, and they can do so quickly, without the traditional hassles of selling your work to a client or buyer. There are no edits, revisions, or waiting for feedback or approval with an NFT. Later on (and with a little luck), the artist can receive royalties whenever their original NFT art is resold. The royalties can be up to 10% any time it’s sold.

How can I reach the widest audience with my art?

The traditional art route involves showing your work at a gallery and relies on physical locations and networks. NFTs offer anyone with the most basic tech the ability to get involved and show their art to a wide audience around the world. For most digital artists, NFT art offers a much easier way to sell what they’ve already created.

How do I secure ownership of my art?

To truly own something in the digital world is a challenge. With the ability to copy or save an image or file found on the internet, it’s almost impossible to ensure your work isn’t spread around the internet without your permission. NFT art introduced the concept of true ownership authorization. Yes, someone can still copy and share your work. With the proof of legal ownership that an NFT provides, however, true ownership is finally provable in the digital world.

How do you create your own NFT art?

Although NFTs can seem intimidating, the process of creating one is the easy part for any artist. The first step in launching your first NFT is the creative process.

All you need, quite simply, is an original work, whether that’s something you’ve already created or something you endeavor to create. This is usually the simplest part for any artist who loves doing what they do.

A GIF, a small graphic design, illustration, a tweet, 3D model, avatar, a piece of writing, a video, a song, the process is the same: create! Do what you do best and create an NFT out of it. Alternatively, dig up an old creation you’ve already completed and choose that as your first NFT to mint. For an inspiring look into what others are launching into the NFT universe, you can check out the popular marketplaces below.

Once your work is ready, it’s time to choose a platform on which you’ll display the art. The number of NFT marketplaces is growing rapidly and there are differences between each one in styles and fees. Do your research to decide which one is best for your style and medium.

Here’s a list of the most popular marketplaces where you can buy and sell NFTs:

If you’re feeling stuck in the creative design process, Acer offers several solutions to help. These design tools were specifically designed with artists in mind.

ConceptD 500 Desktop: The attractive and stylish ConceptD 500 desktop computer delivers reliable computing performance for all your complex creative projects so you can build amazing art (NFTs!) in real-time.

ConceptD 7 Ezel & ConceptD 7 Ezel Pro Laptops: The ConceptD 7 Ezel & ConceptD 7 Ezel Pro laptops are one-stop high-performance laptops for all your creative needs. Equipped with the patented Ezel™ Hinge, Intel processor, NVIDIA® graphics, and PANTONE® Validated 4K UHD display, these laptops were made for artists who need the speed and responsiveness of a desktop in a highly portable format to edit or show off their creations.

ConceptD CP7 Monitor: The ConceptD CP7 series monitor is the go-to creative workspace solution for vivid, true-to-life color accuracy, unbelievable 4K clarity, finely detailed design concepts and videos, hyper-smooth 2D and 3D motion scenes, and more.

Windows Mixed Reality Headset: If you find yourself creating NFT art for the virtual reality world, Acer’s Windows Mixed Reality Headset is a great addition to your toolbox. It’s comfortable, easy to adjust, and its HoloReact Media Player provides the best 360° video/image experience for an Acer Mixed Reality Headset.

How can you sell your NFT art once you’ve finished designing?

Create a digital wallet

Crypto wallets refer to software or hardware where you store your cryptocurrency. After you’ve created your digital asset and chosen the marketplace, the next step is to create a digital wallet. You’ll use this wallet to mint, buy, and sell NFTs. Most NFT platforms require Ethereum to pay for various fees related to the launch of your NFT art.

While hardware wallets give you the best protection and security, the following software wallets are popular choices among those looking to quickly launch their first NFT without much hassle:

Metamask: a popular wallet available as a convenient browser extension
CoinBase wallet: an easy-to-use option for beginners connected to one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges
Rainbow: a new wallet created specifically for Ethereum and the NFT marketplace
AlphaWallet: a simple, user-friendly wallet with great features for an NFT creator or trader
Coinomi: a security-first wallet with no fees

Add your artwork to a platform

Now, it’s time to upload your creation. Go to the platform of your choosing and create an account. Connect the crypto wallet (with sufficient funds). Depending on what you’ve created for your first NFT, platforms will accept many different types of files. Upload the file and add a title and description to capture what your creation is all about so potential buyers will be more interested in buying.

During this process, you’ll also decide how many copies of your creation you’d like to offer to the public as well as the royalty percentage you’d like to collect if the NFT art is resold. This unique feature of NFTs is made possible because of blockchain technology. During this step, you’re creating the certificate of authentic ownership.

Mint the artwork to sell your NFT

Finally, we reach the final stage in the ultimate dream of selling your NFT: minting. The process of “minting” refers to hosting it on the blockchain. Here’s where you’ll use your wallet’s funds to pay listing and minting fees, which often fluctuate. You’ll also need to pay additional fees to cover commissions and transactions once you sell your NFT art. Minting creates the NFT attached to your digital asset. This certificate of authentic ownership is the end goal for the entire NFT creation process. Once you set the price, you’re on your way to selling your first NFT!

Your skill, talent, reputation, and determination will decide how profitable NFTs will be for you in the future. The ease and simplicity of sharing and selling your art to the world through this new technology have become a miracle for many. The future of NFTs is uncertain but seems incredibly promising. Like so many innovative technologies that came before, fortune favors those who venture into unknown spaces and make something beautiful. The only question is, what will you create?

*The opinions reflected in this article are the sole opinions of the author and do not reflect any official positions or claims by Acer Inc.

About Alex Clark: Alex is a contributing writer for Acer. Alex is a Texas-based writer and B2B email marketing strategist specializing in helping technology brands connect to their customers. He has lived all over Asia and has consulted with business clients in numerous industries to grow their brands.