While the cat’s away… (Eddie was off in the land of the brave leaving Alex and Clive without adult supervision)
Phillips recently held an auction of “designer” furniture and lighting. The printed item in the video above of three stools, taken from their webpage, had a price guide of $9,000 to $12,000. The sale price realised was £22,680. Double your money on steroids… ($1 = £0.79)
The exchange value of such items prompted the thought, “would the current collectors continue to collect furniture if there was no exchange value?”.
The majority of buyers will likely never install their acquisitions in their home(s) but store them in the expectation of financial gain. Given the costs and hassle of organising transport, insurance and storage, why would they bother otherwise?
The Value in design is the sharing of ideas.
There is the potential to create non-fungible tokens (NFTs) of unique designs not for exchange but as a count of the value comprising the capacity of the human who designed the item. Those who “link” to use the design may satisfy their own capacity to create. Others may desire the pleasure of aesthetic enjoyment and sharing of the design can satisfy many more people’s need of the physical object. What gets produced is that which is needed or desired for its own sake rather than for its exchange value.
