Designers have created a number of virtual buildings for metaverse community The Row, including a giant statue turned into a house designed by Daniel Arsham and a home that changes colour during the day.
Members-only metaverse community The Row has launched with 30 virtual properties created by artists including Arsham, Misha Kahn, Andrés Reisinger, Alexis Christodolou, design studio Six N Five and Hard Architects.
Each has designed a "3D architectural landmark" that will be sold as an NFT, a non-fungible token.
The virtual buildings can then be deployed on 26 different metaverse platforms on which metaverse real estate development firm Everyrealm, one of the developers of The Row, owns land.
"In the metaverse, one does not need to adhere to the many constraints that exist when creating spaces, exhibitions, and art works in the physical world," said Arsham.
"When designing for The Row, I considered how my sculptures would appear from inside this unique piece of architecture. I’m excited and eager to see how people might engage with these pieces of architecture once they're deployed in the metaverse."
The Row was developed by residential real estate brokerage team The Alexander Team and Everyrealm, where Arsham also serves as creative ambassador.
Its first builds will be hosted on metaverse world-building platform Mona, while the selection of other metaverses has not yet been announced.
"The metaverse has no physics, no weather, and no limitations other than human ingenuity," said Janine Yorio, CEO of Everyrealm.
"The Row brings together visionary artists best known for their architectural landscapes and collectors seeking a unique, limited edition residence that they can deploy across many different metaverses over time."
For his The Row design, Arsham created Ares House – a home inside a sculpture of Ares, the Greek god of war. The artist made five different versions of the design based on the changing colours of the exterior under different seasons.
"I explored the possibility of seasonality; how I might be able to alter the seasons, and how the design could remain in existence in both a daytime or a nighttime environment forever," said Arsham.
"I’ve created very accurate visualizations of how this work might exist, how you might move through it, how light passes through it, and what it might feel like at different times of day," he added.
"It’s really a magical way to create architecture in the metaverse."
Christodolou's house, a cantilevered building with decorative, floating globes, was created to be the metaverse's first levitation centre and aims to create "a spiritual transition into a digital existence."
The house will be designed in colours that mimic the sun during different times of the day.
Kahn drew on his Quagmire series of ceramic objects when creating his The Row property, called Quagmire's Karst, while Reisinger has created a realistic-looking virtual building that features glass walls and a concrete structure.
Other designs are more sculptural and showcase the possibilities of 3D digital design, including Six N Five's building, which was designed to mimic cellular organism.
Hard Architects abstract design, called The Pearl, was created as an architectural concept that would reinterpret the digital landscape.
In order to join The Row once it has completed development later this year, users will need to be invited.
"The goal is to build a community of buyers who appreciate the talent the artists put forth, as community members have a significant role in this unique cultural moment, and preserving the artistic intent and integrity of the project is paramount to the success of The Row," Julia Schwartz, chief strategy officer at Everyrealm, told Dezeen.
After the first collection designed by artists is revealed, Everyrealm plan to expand partnerships to other creative communities.
"Any creator can express themselves in new ways through the metaverse, and The Row brings their creations to life," said Schwartz.
Other recent metaverse projects include 5,000 NFTs that UK studio PLP Architecture created based on the concept for a virtual skyscraper and a metaverse hotel by CitizenM.
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