Vatican’s Art, Content to be Housed in VR and NFT Gallery

Metaverse developer Sensorium has partnered with the Humanity 2.0 Foundation to develop a virtual reality (VR) and nonfungible token (NFT) gallery hosting the Vatican’s art, content and academic goals, a Sensorium press release said Monday (May 2).

Humanity 2.0 is a nonprofit organization confronting the obstacles to the world’s cultural and socioeconomic development.

The project is helmed by Father Philip Larrey, the dean of philosophy at the Pope’s University (Pontifical Lateran University) in Vatican City, the release said.

Sensorium is a global tech company working on the metaverse, focusing on immersive experiences like virtual shows from musical artists, games and events such as meditation practices.

The release says the goal is NFT gallery accessible in VR and desktop, featuring classic pieces of art from the Vatican’s collection. Its collection includes works by Michelangelo, van Gogh, Gauguin, Picasso and Raphael, nearly 800 artworks in all.

“We look forward to working with Sensorium to explore ways to democratize art, making it more widely available to people around the world regardless of their socioeconomic and geographical limitations,” Larrey said, according to the release.

See also: Shopify Will Let Merchants Sell NFTs

As the uses of NFTs has grown, PYMNTS wrote that Shopify will allow merchants to sell NFTs.

Company President Harley Finkelstein said that this would make it easier for merchants to sell NFTs directly through their stores.

Among the first sales was the “ChicagoBullsNFT” store, with the team selling NFTs to celebrate its world championship rings.

“Before Shopify offered this capability, merchants would have to sell through a third-party marketplace, aka less control of the sale and customer relationship,” Finkelstein tweeted. “Once again, we are putting the power back into the hands of merchants and meeting customers how and where they want to buy.”