That record-breaking bid supercharged a speculative frenzy in NFTs. The Indian-born investor later boasted in a TV interview that he was prepared to pay even more, so convinced was he that NFTs were marking a pivotal moment in art history.
More than four years later, much has changed.
The NFT market has experienced a massive correction since mid-2022, with trading volume dropping by 90 per cent by most estimates, even as the value of major cryptocurrencies recovered from dips in the 2020s. Once in-demand “profile picture” NFTs, such as those in the “Bored Ape Yacht Club” series, now have price tags of less than US$20,000, despite some previously fetching millions.
Sundaresan also seems transformed. At the launch of his new experimental art and technology space, Padimai Art & Tech Studio, he is softly spoken and reserved, explaining that the “artistic laboratory” in Singapore’s Tanjong Pagar Distripark, also home to the Singapore Art Museum, seeks to highlight the need for more decentralisation of the internet rather than the flaunting of accumulated digital assets.
He envisions Padimai – which means “image”, “form” or “metaphor” in Tamil – as a site for experimentation, residencies, commissions and exhibitions that explore the intersections of art, technology and social practices.
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