Artists and Tech: Exploring the World of NFTs and Augmented Reality

Karakana Initiative yesterday hosted the first interactive forum, The Karakana Dialogues, focusing on NFTs for visual artists as well as using new technologies like Augmented Reality to enhance their creative work. We have had numerous forums before in 2018 and 2019, looking at such topics as TV and Film, product design, Illustrations and cartoons, creative writing among many others. The event, organised in partnership with the Kenya NFT Club, happened at the Kenya Cultural Centre in Nairobi.

This edition of Karakana Dialogues was organized in partnership with Kenya NFT Club. The club was represented by Ngina Ndeto, a creative director, experimental digital creator and artist.

The Kenyan NFT Club, founded on June 2nd 2021, is a collective of Kenyan innovators who

have united to facilitate growth, education and empowerment among Kenyan and East African

crypto and NFT enthusiasts. The club has gained a strong audience across the Kenyan and East African NFT space with a strong following on social media and an active discord community.

The forum has happened on the sidelines of the on-going Nairobi47 Photo Exhibition at the Kenya National Theatre. The two-week showcase closes on Sunday 22nd January. The Exhibition is organized in partnership with PhotoKenya and the Photographers Association of Kenya.

On the panel for the first session (NFTs for Artists) was Chris Njoka, a visual artists, graphic designer and 2D animator, Edmond Nonay, and audial-visual artist, Rey Matata, and art director and photographer.

Moderating the NFT panel was George Adulu 'The Brand Elder'. George is a former senior banker turned brand development, communication and content strategist. (https://kela.co.ke/)

This NFT and Tech event also had a juicy Augmented Reality session, conducted by one of the exhibiting photographers at the Nairobi47 exhibition, Ronny Onkeo. It was indeed eye-opening to sit through the endless possibilities that await visual artists in terms of exploiting immersive experiences using augmented reality and virtual reality in their art. Attendees were able to practically experience AR through one of the popular apps called Artiviv on Ronny Onkeo's photos.

One of the photos, a family portrait picture played a behind-the-scenes video when viewed through the AR app on a mobile phone.

Karakana Dialogues presents great opportunities for artists and creatives to learn form knowledgeable and experienced professionals to grow their craft. It is a great networking and social space for both established and up-coming artists.

Karakana Dialogues is a great networking and social space for both established and up-coming artists.

Question, answer and comments sessions are also important, offering interactivity to the event.

Ronny Onkeo going through his Augmented Reality presentation.

You can watch the whole session on our YouTube channel, Karakana Online TV.