Sotheby’s has called off its “Natively Digital: Glitch-ism” auction after an artist withdrew his work. Patrick Amadon, a glitch art enthusiast, pulled out his piece due to the lack of female-identifying artists in the collection, emphasizing the importance of representation in the art industry.
I am pulling my work from the Sothebys sale. While I believe it was a genuine oversight and the team means well, the lack of representation is a serious issue and we need to address this in our space. Female-identifying artists have played a major role in the glitch movement. ✊
— Patrick Amadon (@patrickamadon) March 25, 2023
The auction featured 21 artists’ online auction of glitch art NFTs, such as JPEGs, MP4s, and GIFs with computer glitches as the artworks. According to Sotheby’s, glitch art genre is rooted in digital art before the existence of digital assets. Amadon’s decision aimed to influence how artists would be exhibited in the future, extending beyond Sotheby’s “Glitch-ism” auction.
𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘎𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩 2013 pic.twitter.com/uDmQaHPJzS
— Patrick Amadon (@patrickamadon) March 24, 2023
The cancellation of the auction highlights the significance of inclusivity and representation in the art world, as Amadon stated that the lack of representation is a significant issue and must be addressed.
