“Transcending established boundaries to create a new artistic ecosystem.”
RFC Art Collection is an interdisciplinary art collection curated by visionary patrons Pablo Rodríguez-Fraile and Desiree Casoni that champions contemporary digital mediums. In 2011, Rodríguez-Fraile, a mathematician and investor, alongside Casoni, an architect and designer, began their artistic voyage with an initial focus on collecting analog pieces. Their shared enthusiasm for technology-based creation steered the collection towards digital art, positioning them as early adopters of tokenized digital expression, curating pioneering works from digital artists like Refik Anadol, Beeple, Andrés Reisinger, Quayola, and others.
Today, the RFC Art Collection comprises over 2,000 artworks, with a focus on sophisticated, tokenized digital art. The ethos of RFC Art Collection is to foster artistic innovation by nurturing collaborations between artists, institutions and industry leaders, to facilitate the exploration of novel artistic methodologies. Crafting strategic approaches for every project, RFC Art Collection leads valuable partnerships with the aim of supporting the artists’ visions and their careers while redefining the boundaries of the digital art ecosystem.
The diverse artistic mediums represented within the collection include AI, 3D, generative, programmable, audiovisual compositions, sculpture, and sound art, with the collectors’ residence serving as the primary exhibition space. The collection’s outreach extends internationally, partnering with renowned cultural and academic entities to lend artworks and organize exhibitions, philanthropic endeavors, discussions, and other events, making the collection accessible to a broad audience.
A notable milestone for the RFC Art Collection was the co-donation of Unsupervised – Machine Hallucinations - MoMA by Refik Anadol to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), the first tokenized digital artwork to enter this esteemed permanent collection. This donation catalyzed an extraordinarily successful exhibition surrounding Anadol’s groundbreaking work that transcended conventional museum demographics and attracted a diverse array of audiences.
The RFC Art Collection places emphasis on artworks dealing with themes of social reflection and cultural expression, as well as artistic mastery of form and medium. The stylistic essence of the collection challenges established artistic boundaries, aspiring to stimulate a novel artistic ecosystem for future generations to interact and engage with art of the 21st century. Through the RFC Art Collection, Rodríguez-Fraile and Casoni honor the rich tapestry of contemporary artistic exploration while propelling artists and audiences alike into a new era of digital expression and appreciation.
Pablo Rodríguez-Fraile
Pablo Rodríguez-Fraile, a leading patron of the arts, mathematician, economist, and investor, is celebrated for his transformative contributions to the digital art landscape. The core of his artistic endeavors is the RFC Art Collection, recognized globally as a premier collection of tokenized digital art. The collection encompasses iconic pieces by digitally native artists such as Refik Anadol, Andrés Reisinger, Pak, Quayola, Beeple, Sofia Crespo, and many others; with Rodríguez-Fraile being Beeple's inaugural collector.
Before becoming a leader in the blockchain and tokenized digital art space, Rodríguez-Fraile earned a degree in mathematics and economics from Columbia University, where he later returned to earn his MBA after working in various roles in finance, including private banking, hedge funds and private equity. Over the past decade, Pablo Rodríguez-Fraile has emerged as a seminal figure in the confluence of art and technology, precursor of a new era in the digital art narrative.
Rodríguez-Fraile’s unconventional patronage activities include the commissioning of Refik Anadol's large-scale digital work Machine Hallucinations: Coral during Miami Art Week in 2021. This immersive and site-specific installation marked a paradigm shift in the history of digital art, by being the first major public digital art installation ever presented to a global audience. This initiative expanded the art world’s perception and experience of digital art, setting a new standard in the field and marking a definitive moment in Refik’s illustrious career.
In 2021, Rodríguez-Fraile founded Aorist, a next-generation cultural institution dedicated to elevating digitally native artists. This venture marked a significant milestone in his art patronage journey, leading to commissioned works with a roster of highly acclaimed artists including Drift, Random International, Nancy Baker Cahill, Rafaël Rozendaal, Jonas Lund, Auriea Harvey, among others. These activities have left an indelible impact on the digital art discourse, reinforcing the blend of digital and physical realms in contemporary artistry.
Through his personal collection, Rodríguez-Fraile has played a pivotal role in the global presentation of HUMAN ONE by Beeple, showcased at renowned institutions worldwide since 2019, including Castello di Rivoli in Italy, M+ in Hong Kong, and currently, the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in the United States. This incredible work represents a definitive evolution in depicting the dynamic essence of digital art, introducing a wide-ranging audience to the transformative possibilities inherent in this medium. Each presentation of HUMAN ONE further established his instrumental role in advancing the global narrative of digital art across both traditional and contemporary platforms.
More recently, it was announced in October 2023 that Rodríguez-Fraile led the co-donation of Refik Anadol’s Unsupervised - Machine Hallucinations - MoMA to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). This gift marked a historic moment in digital art; Unsupervised becoming the first tokenized digital artwork to enter the museum’s esteemed permanent collection. This monumental gesture was accompanied by an exceptionally successful exhibition, which generated a fresh narrative that revitalized the museum's visitor dynamics. His ability to forge robust partnerships with like-minded professional groups, has positioned Rodríguez-Fraile as a key figure in the art world, fostering impactful cultural collaborations that help shape the digital art ecosystem. In addition to his art patronage, Rodríguez-Fraile’s acumen extends to incentive systems and nascent markets, embodying an ambassadorial stance towards virtual worlds and the metaverse concept.
Desiree Casoni
Architect and interior designer Desiree Casoni is a leader in the domain of digital art and design, dedicated to elevating the nexus of art, architecture, and digital innovation. With an undergraduate degree in Architecture from Columbia University and a Master’s in Architecture from Parsons School of Design, her creative ventures are fueled by a boundless passion for the arts. The evolving digital landscape has provided her an expansive canvas for experimentation and amplifying her design and architectural practices, enriching her aesthetic ethos through a merger of the digital and physical realms in her work.
The RFC Art Collection, co-curated with Pablo Rodríguez-Fraile, showcases her discerning eye for the innovative and iconic. This collection, one of the foremost collections of tokenized digital art globally, has made a significant impact on the evolving digital art landscape. A notable milestone has been the co-donation of Unsupervised – Machine Hallucinations by Refik Anadol to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), marking a significant stride in promoting tokenized digital art within traditional art institutions.
As a pioneer in crafting galleries in virtual environments throughout the metaverse, Casoni creates digital environments to showcase the work of today’s leading artists (including Beeple, Skygolpe, Luxpris and Hackatao). Through bespoke collaborations, she provides a supportive digital platform that defies traditional exhibition norms, offering a novel avenue for artists to extend their work beyond the physical. Desiree's signature flair is unmistakable in all her projects, both within the metaverse and the physical world, orchestrating a unique blend of digital elements within architectural and design spaces in cities across the globe.
Casoni is an innovative designer and curator, particularly within her private residence, which has become an influential salon-style exhibition space for the RFC Art Collection. This space, an elegant, refined enclave for digital art, fosters a dialogue between digitally native art and other design works, transcending conventional art domains. The sophisticated arrangement minimizes reliance on screens, facilitating organic interaction with digital art. Casoni frequently welcomes distinguished guests, serving as a hub for intellectual and artistic discourse, and establishing a new paradigm in experiencing digital art in a refined, elegant setting.
Through her multifaceted engagements, Casoni is a vital pillar of the RFC Art Collection, enriching the discourse between the digital and physical domains, and championing a new era of artistic expression and appreciation. Casoni’s design projects are featured in publications such as Architectural Digest, Wall Street Journal, DesignBoom, and Wallpaper Magazine.