Nick Knight on his NFTs of Jazzelle Zanaughtti and the metaverse

The legendary image-maker discusses ikon-1, his first NFT project, and why he thinks fashion's future is digital.
Uh-oh! In true (late) late capitalist fashion, yet another three-letter acronym enters our lexicon before we have even fathomed its basic meaning, let alone its ramifications. But luddites, we are not. Touted by venture capitalists and art historians alike as an emancipatory godsend that would decentralise the commodity market, the NFT has also fallen a little short. Glitchy graphics, tacky art and, above all, a slightly tired conversation about what the fuck it actually is remain perennial topics across media outlets and dinner tables the world over. Don’t close your Ethereum account, though. Sending tech-bro jargon packing, the man that brought you live fashion broadcasting and augmented fashion realities is here to rescue the medium.

​All too aware of the threats it faces, legendary image-maker Nick Knight has invested the past three years into designing over 8,000 soon-to-be-minted NFTs in the image of Chicago-born model and creative wunderkind Jazzelle Zanaughtti. Replete with more than 200 individual traits, each artwork is an avatar of Jazzelle clad in ethereal digital fashion designs from 30 different creatives, plus bespoke hairstyles and nail designs.

Hot on the heels of Gaga’s Chromatica ball and a commission for Björk’s latest music video, Nick delivers his ‘ikon-1’ project to the blockchain, continuing a legacy of pioneering visual culture that dates back to his earliest covers for i-D. To see in this new milestone, we caught up with the legendary photographer himself.

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