Charmin Launches Toilet Paper-Inspired NFT Art Auction

Now, here is something that you don’t see every day: a non-fungible token auction involving original digital art inspired by a popular brand of toilet paper.

What Happened: Procter & Gamble’s PG Charmin brand is now auctioning "NFT(P) by Charmin," a collection that the company cheekily says was created to celebrate its “mission to help everyone Enjoy the Go both in real life and virtually.”

Artists Donna Adi, Shanee Benjamin and Made by Radio designed the works, which are being auctioned on the Rarible website. Proceeds from the auction will be donated to the nonprofit Direct Relief, which provides providing lifesaving medical resources to communities in need of assistance.

“We're always looking to provide the best TP, but a better bathroom experience can expand well beyond the seat,” said Charmin Vice President Rob Reinerman. “NFT(P) is a fun and playful way to give the biggest Charmin fans a one-of-a-kind virtual version of their favorite roll.”

A Contrary View: NFT art auctions have become an expensive craze, and even the iconic auction house Sotheby’s has gotten in on the act in a collaboration with leading digital artist Pak.

And while many people are taking this trend seriously — shares of Takung Arts Co. Ltd. TKAT soared by 277% in Wednesday's session, based primarily on its NFT auctions — at least one prominent observer of the space is not impressed.

In a Financial Times opinion column titled “NFTs are the latest get-rich-quick scheme for the ‘cryptosphere,’” technology columnist Jemima Kelly tartly observed, “After the record-breaking auction of the digital sketches by the artist Beeple, it emerged that the pseudonymous buyer, MetaKovan, owns the world’s biggest NFT fund and was already the biggest owner of Beeple’s work. So the sale should not be thought of as representing the true market value of NFTs, but as PR expenditure.”

While acknowledging that “value is in the eye of the beholder” and the NFT craze is showing no signs of abating, Kelly wondered if this new union of blockchain technology and creative design represents the future of art.

“We value original pieces not just because of the bragging rights they bring but because of their history, their aura, their smell, the way they feel,” she wrote. “The emotional and visceral connection we have with the physical world cannot be replicated by digital strings of ones and zeroes.”

Image courtesy of Charmin.