Meet the French collective that boost art through AI

With collaborations with brands such as Nike and Alpine for design, and artworks being sold with major auction houses, OBVIOUS is an art collective that enhances creativity through tech. Their goal is to contribute to the democratisation of the web3. Expect the unexpected.

We connected with Pierre Fautrel from the OBVIOUS team, a few weeks after they unveiled their latest collaboration with Alpine, Renault’s group luxury branch, at Galeries Lafayette Homme.

Their proposal? An artwork that places technological and scientific innovation at the heart of artistic creation. OBVIOUS took the effects of air friction, mapped the data and transformed it into a covering for the Alpine 110 Sastruga, which is showcased until 30th August in the first floor of the Parisian department store.

“We want to use AI as a tool, and for people to understand the potential of technology and how it works”.

Obvious has showcased their vision with in a broad range: from footwear giant Nike to renowned art galleries. When asked if this would not be detrimental to their positioning facing future collaborations, they state clearly that their goal is to tap into pop culture, to be in front of people.

As luxury brands are more than enthusiastic with Metaverse, AI and the endless possibilities of the web3, the democratic approach of OBVIOUS finds little resistance in this ground. Though luxury brands are known to be exclusive and extremely selective with their partnerships, the web3 platforms and AI projects are something that most fashion players are jumping into with little to no hesitation. But trust come first.

“We have passed on a lot of brand collaborations because they didn’t want to open on information with. We need openness to boost the creative potential of any collaboration”.

But what makes digital artwork relevant today? According to Pierre, the same reasons that make any type of art relevant. The one that connects people, tackles social topics and sparkles debate.

Although the art world has been traditionally known as being exclusive and elitist, Pierre feels differently. He states that as a collective, OBVIOUS has matched with the right people in the industry. They appeal to a good part of the art world, that embraces AI as a way of enhancing and boosting creativity. As a result, they feel their work is embraced by the right people in the industry.

“NFTs are the Far West. It’s not a great idea to go in without any knowledge. But it is exactly this freedom that allows new forms of art to be displayed, sold and enjoyed in a broader way. “

NFTs art is a category by itself.

Digital art has been created since the late 70s, alongside with computers massification. But they were never recognised by the art market due to the lack of validation that could proof the authenticity of the artwork. No legitimacy nor security was guaranteed.

Today, thanks to the blockchain, the digital art market has exploded in a global way. However, thousands of enthusiasts flock into the NFTs artwork arena without understanding the basics. For instance, there are two types of NFT artwork: collectibles and one-of-a-kind originals. First ones work based on community mechanics, such as fan clubs or private clubs, being the Bored Ape the most popular lately, with 10k collectible tokens. OBVIOUS prefers to work with the second category, the NFTs Originals.

Click here to discover their latest work.

So, what’s next for OBVIOUS?

The art collective is launching “Nous Sommes Marianne”, an AI project that looks to combine the facial features of all the French women that upload their portrait into the their system. From any background, ethnicity and diversity.

The goal is to recreate an AI portrait that fuses all their features and to give a representative face to the Marianne, the symbol of France, first represented by painter Eugene Delacroix. Furthermore, this portrait would be proposed to the French state to be in the stamps utilised throughout France.

Not only for brands, but for the people. AI technology promises to shake and shape the world as we know it today.