Lamborghini is one of the wildest automakers out there. And they love treading new roads, which is why they have forayed into the ambitious world of NFTs with the cool new "exploding Aventador Ultimae". Created under the leadership of famed Swiss artist Fabian Oefner, Lambo's Space Time Memory NFT collection is more than just digital artwork.
While this is Lamborghini's first time going the NFT route, it is not the first time for an automaker. That tag would go to Rolls-Royce for their Black Badge NFT that came out about four months ago. There are other prominent NFT makes in the automobile sector, like Alpine, which has created the world's first NFT digital concept car. But Lamborghini's NFT is an amalgamation of sheer drama with the blast-off appeal and exploding car parts.
The Space Time Memory collection is an ode to the Apollo 11 mission and even comes with a physical key that is made from chunks of carbon fiber that was sent by the Italian automaker for a research program into space. There are five specimens of these exploding Lambo NFTs, and the bidding was closed on February 4, CET for some interesting figures.
An Aventador Ultimae blasting off into the stars is a cool way by Lamborghini to start its NFT journey.
Lamborghini's First NFT Is More Than Just Digital Artwork
Lamborghini has taken things a notch above with their very first NFT. The attention to detail is mind-boggling. Talking of the image, it's of a Lamborghini Aventador Ultimae that is blasting into outer space. And yes, the tiny part of the earth that you see in the background was a camera shot taken off a weather balloon that was sent to the edge of the stratosphere. Now for the exploding Aventador Ultimae. All the messy car components that you see in the image are not just randomly placed elements.
Everything from the firing order markings on the Ultimae's V12 engine, to the milling patterns on the transmission cogwheels, was meticulously photographed using the original deal at Lamborghini's factory in Sant'Agata Bolognese. Each of the individual images of the 1,500 mechanical components was stitched together digitally to form a composite image.
The magician and his team took over two months along to stitch the various images together. Everything came together to create five of these uber-cool artworks, each boasting of more than 600 million pixels, weaved together using blockchain. There are a total of five of these exploding Lambo NFTs, each ever-so-slightly different to be unique.
The Swiss Artist Behind Lambo's "Blast-Off" NFT
Fabian Oefner is the Swiss artist behind Lamborghini's first NFT. He is known for his explosive fusion of art and science, which is visible from what he has created for Lamborghini. Also, this is not the first time that he has created exploding car arts, as he has been exploding iconic cars since 2016, including the likes of Bugatti 57SC, Ford GT40, the raspy-sounding V16 Auto Union Type C, Maserati 250F, and the legendary Porsche 956. Interestingly, this is his first time working with an automaker.
Oefner and his team worked intensively in a warehouse beside Lamborghini's factory to create this masterpiece, and all the components you see in the image are photographs of the original deal. Apart from being cool, Oefner's creation also remembers and celebrates the Apollo moon missions, and the physical contents of this NFT collection uphold that well.
A 'Lamborghini Space Key' Is Needed To Access The NFT
NFT sure has the exclusivity advantage in the digital world. But we need more than just a digital copy to feel special. And that's why Lamborghini has equally amplified its coolness with an exclusive physical key that comes in a serious-looking briefcase. The unique exploding Lambo artwork can only be accessed via these "keys".
The digital and physical combo is called "Space Time Memory". The physical keys are made of carbon fiber that Lamborghini has sent to the International Space Station for a research program two years ago, thus the name "Space Keys". These chunks of carbon fiber (five in total) contain the QR code for each of the actual NFT artwork and come in a cool aluminum briefcase.
Bidding For Lamborghini's Space Time Memory NFT Closed At $203,636
The auction for the first of Lamborghini's Space Keys began on the first day of the lunar new year - February 1, 2022, at 4 pm CET. And each of the successive four keys would start the auction run with a run gap of 15 minutes. Each NFT auction lasted for 75 hours and 50 minutes, which is the exact time frame it took the Apollo 11 spacecraft to leave Earth and enter the moon's orbit. The auction ended with the highest bid of $203,636 for the Space Time Memory - T+0075S and the lowest bid of $70,000 for the Space Time Memory - T+0072S.
Sources: Lamborghini.com, Nft.lamborghini.com, Media.lamborghini.com, Robbreport.com, Motortrend.com, Autoevolutio.com