BY KAREN BOSSICK

Yanna Lantz dons a virtual reality headset and presses a button on the remote control in her hand, allowing it to teleport her where she wants to go.

It takes her on a whirlwind trip around her Friesen + Lantz Gallery, several digital art pieces assuming a dynamic quality as she scans them.

This, said Lantz is the first digital art exhibition in Idaho.

“I believe his is the future of art,” said Lantz as she reviewed the digital art pulsating from screens as big as 55 inches. “Physical art will never go away—it’s tactile and beautiful. But this is also beautiful. This is art but it’s made in an entirely new medium.”

Lantz is presenting the first Digital Art Exhibition: NFT SV x Sonic Summit in Idaho today through Monday, Sept. 5. And she is building an exhibition in virtual reality so that those who can’t visit the gallery in person can see the exhibition from a VR headset or their computer.

The exhibition will be coupled with two panel discussions focusing on “What is an NFT?” and “Sonic Summit Music NFTs.” There also will be two afterparty concerts beginning at 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday at Whiskey’s Rooftop Lounge.

And Lantz is throwing in complimentary tequila tastings and wine provided by Nosotros and Stanton Barrett, along with a live performance by DJ Funkhauzen, during the Gallery Walk, which takes place from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 2.

Half of Friesen + Lantz is devoted to digital art, while the other half sports the traditional acrylic painting on canvas. The exhibition features new digital artwork from three artists:

• Renowned waterscape photographer Barbara Vaughn has shown her photographic water reflections at the gallery for years. But this time around she is showing digital works of water, with a boat moving through waves in one work and reflections pulsating in another.

  Either would make perfect meditative art pieces for a doctor’s office.

  Yanna Lantz takes a quick trip around her gallery using a virtual reality headset.

  “Barbara Vaughn is using video tools to create a beautiful 30-second clip,” said Lantz. “It’s not as easy as you might think—the sun has to be in the right place, there can’t be people swimming in the area…”

  This is Vaughn’s first venture into digital.

  Avatars show off the digital art at Friesen + Lantz.

  “Drawn by the magnetism of water and the mystery of abstraction, I’ve endeavored to marry the two by capturing reflections of ordinary scenes in moving water,” she said.

• Artist WhiskeyBlack has created “Dosage 1,” a digital series reflecting on the American consumer’s collective urge to fix complex problems with instantaneous actions, such as taking a Tylenol for a headache or getting a serotonin boost from an Instagram like.

  “The artist asks: If we had the opportunity to take a pill for everything, a pill to make us omniscient….?” Yantz said. “I love that commentary.”

• German-based artist Marterium, aka Markus Kanzler, will be featuring three new works using form and color to try to capture abstract ideas and turn them into captivating compositions.

“He’s a big deal,” said Lantz.

Digital art started taking off during COVID, and Christies sold a $69 million NFT in 2021.

One of the advantages of digital art is that you can show a collection of 20 works on one screen, with them rotating as you wish.

“For some collectors like myself, who live in a small house with no wall space, this gives a chance to show off a collection of works,” said Lantz. “For gallery owners, there’s no shipping involved. We don’t have to worry if the art is going to arrive unscathed.”

Rob Glass said he and his collaborators are excited about bringing world renowned artists, musicians and other creatives to the Wood River Valley to share their talents and forge relationships focused around web3, which is a new iteration of the World Wide Web built on blockchain tech.

“This unlocks a whole new kind of experience an opportunity for both artist and fan,” said Dot Kkate Ellwanger, who is known or her unique take on indie electronic and sixties-inspired dream beats.

This weekend will also be an opportunity to learn about things like NFT or non-fungible tokens.

“A dollar bill is fungible—it has the same value as any other dollar bill,” said Lantz. “Something that’s non-fungible is a unique digital asset that links ownership to unique items, such as works of art. Every time an artist sells a piece of art, it’s tracked online so you don’t have to worry about keeping a paper certificate of authenticity in a safe. You don’t have to worry about fake Picassos and Monets. Plus, with NFTs, every time a piece of art is resold, the artist gets a cut.”

“NFTs represent a new opportunity for creators to earn and collectors to own in a digital world,” said Lucas Campbell, a blockchain entrepreneur and founder of ExoWorlds metaverse platform. “We want to educate the Wood River Valley community on this emerging opportunity by bringing the first NFT art and music festival to the area. Given Sun Valley is a prestigious town with a bustling community of collectors, artists, musicians, and more, NFT SV is our first event to help showcase these individuals and educate the community.”

IF YOU GO…

The Digital Art Exhibition: NFT SV x Sonic Summit runs today through Monday, Sept. 5, at Friesen + Lantz Gallery, Sun Valley Road and First Avenue in Ketchum.

Friday, 5-7 p.m. Gallery Walk will feature complimentary tequila tastings and wine provided by Nosotros and Stanton Barrett, along with a live performance by DJ Funkhauzen.

Friday, 9 p.m. Live music featuring DOT, PAT LOK and CLOUDEST SPEAKER at after party concert at Whiskey’s Rooftop Lounge. $15 presale/$20 at the door.

Saturday, 5 p.m. Panel discussion on “What is an NFT?” at Friesen + Lantz

Saturday, 6 p.m. Panel discussion on Sonic Summit Music NFTs at Friesen + Lantz

Saturday, 9 p.m. Live music featuring Mija, Street Fever and Mike Penthouse at Whiskey’s Rooftop Lounge. $15 presale/$20 at the door.