The NFT community has been divided for months over the usefulness of the art. But when a truly quality and community focused project comes along, why force the issue? That’s exactly what the Invisible Friends NFT project is: an art collection that could stand on its own merits. But what is it exactly?
As the name suggests, Invisible Friends is an animated PFP collection of invisible people. So does that mean the collection is a timid way to package a fund collection as a PFP NFT project? Or a nightmare fuel attempt to realistically render a transparent character model of a human being? far from there
The invisible characters in this collection don’t wear fancy skintight outfits that turn invisible when they do. They wear… clothes. Normal clothes. Stylish, even. To that end, Invisible Friends NFT is collaborating with clothing brand Kith. And that’s what sets each NFT in the collection apart: each trait corresponds to a piece of clothing.
Man, that sounds great. So how do I buy an Invisible Friends NFT?
If you are completely new to NFTs, the first thing you will need to do to buy an Invisible Friends NFT is to set up a crypto wallet. This is where you will end up storing your NFT digitally. Fortunately, they are quite convenient to use and often come with their own browser extensions. Next, you’ll need to top it up with some Ethereum – this is the blockchain that currently hosts these NFTs, so you’ll need to use your cryptocurrency to make your purchase. Once you’ve got all that set up, you can choose one of your own Invisible Friends NFTs with a couple of clicks.
How much do Invisible Friends NFTs cost?
If you want to know how to coin Invisible Friends NFTs, we have bad news: it’s too late. The initial mint sold out a long time ago. However, even if all of the Imaginary Friends February 2022 Mint pieces are completely sold out, you can still get your hands on one of these unique NFTs. They are also on secondary markets like OpenSea, but sadly they are not cheap. At the time of writing, the minimum prices sit at almost 2.5 ETH, that’s over $4,000. So if you’re looking to become the rightful owner of what could essentially be just an Invisible Friends Discord PFP or Twitter avatar, you may need to save up for a while.
A brief history of the invisible friends
So who is behind Invisible Friends? This 5,000-piece collection is the work of digital artist and animator Markus Magnusson. For fans of animation, you may know him best from his motionmarkus Instagram account. His sleek and clean animation style has won hundreds of thousands of fans on the social image-sharing platform. With Invisible Friends, the Swedish animator hoped to ply his trade with a thoughtful and well-executed NFT project that demonstrates his distinctive style.
“Invisible Friends has and always will be about the digital collectability of high-quality digital animated art,” Invisible Friends’ head of things coinbilly said in an interview with nft now. Magnusson fans also have another compelling reason to support the project. “Markus has been creating all his life and this collection is the culmination of his skills and experience. It also acts as a ticket to all your future work,” coinbilly said.
However, Magnussen’s journey into the NFT landscape did not happen overnight. As such, the true genesis of the Invisible Friends NFT project dates back to when James Curran founded the Random Character Collective (RCC) in November 2021. To fuel the launch of this new animator-led collective, Curran tapped into his network to find like-minded artists. interested in “creating generative collections with the help of the team he built,” coinbilly said. Among the first members of the new collective was Magnussen, with work underway for the artist to start his then-undeveloped NFT collection.
A month after the first teaser for Invisible Friends was released, coinbilly said that it “immediately went viral within the NFT community, gaining over 500k followers in just a few months.” Mixed in among Invisible Friends’ rapidly growing audience were even “celebrities and people who had never heard of NFTs before.” So what’s in the works for a project with so much attention waiting for its next move?
What’s next for Invisible Friends?
Not content to rest on their laurels, Magnussen and the rest of the Invisible Friends team have remained committed to the project long after its initial minting. This is evidenced by the project roadmap, spearheaded by the aforementioned collaboration with clothing brand Kith, as well as 3D animator Nguyen Nhut. So what makes these collaborations so remarkable?
For example, the upcoming collaboration with Kith will do more than just offer holders new NFTs. Winning bids for this upcoming set of individual NFTs will also receive physical versions of the clothing worn by their newly acquired Secret Santa, which will be completely exclusive to NFT owners. This is just one part of Invisible Friends’ overall strategy to “[explore] the link between physical and digital collectability,” coinbilly added.
Up next is a series of Invisible Friends toys based on Nhut’s upcoming collaboration with RCC OG. The upcoming NFTs are 3D interpretations of the original run, so it makes sense that they’d be paired with physical “3D” Invisible Friends toys. A winning strategy, as evidenced by other projects in the NFT space, such as Pudgy Penguins.
Forward positive values in space
By design, Invisible Friends NFTs don’t just look cool. They are also incredibly inclusive, even serving as a beacon of diversity in the space. But how is that, when each Invisible Friends NFT doesn’t give a visual indication of each invisible character’s race, gender, and general appearance?
It turns out that the exclusion of information is a great way to encourage inclusion. Without this information on every invisible friend, anyone, regardless of background, should be able to project themselves into their NFTs. And this was done on purpose.
“[We are] a brand that welcomes everyone from all backgrounds. We’ve all known what it’s like to feel invisible at one point or another, and we feel that our art, which is top priority for us, connects with holders in many different ways,” said coinbilly. “[Moving forward,] Invisible Friends is and will continue to create a brand that spreads inclusivity, empathy and creativity.”
