Lee Jun-won, artist and co-founder of blockchain startup NPER, poses with his painting. / Courtesy of Lee Jun-won



By Baek Byung-yeul



Local artist Lee Jun-won felt something was unfair whenever he sold his paintings.



Though it took plenty of time to create his own artwork, he always had to pay almost half the price of his paintings for commission fees.



"After paying the commission fees, I couldn't sustain my livelihood through my paintings," Lee told The Korea Times, Wednesday.



From the awareness that creators don't get their copyright for their works and don't get paid properly from their works, Lee joined blockchain startup company NPER as a co-founder last year.



"With the current intellectual property industry structure, it is not easy for creators to defend their legitimate rights for their works. So I started a project called NPER to allow creators to take the legitimate rights of their works," Lee said.



Based on blockchain technology, NPER's network platform allows peer-to-peer trading of licenses and ownership rights of intellectual property. As chief design officer of the company, Lee has developed NPER's business strategy.



NPER has its digital tokens listed on the cryptocurrency exchange platform Bibox and is being traded on Bibox. As of Monday, its current value is $0.12.



Lee said the NPER project is still in its beginning, but once it gets going the project will help creators earn more money.



"With NPER's network, creators can simplify the distribution channel. It fulfills the needs of both creators and investors," Lee said.



While working as chief design officer for NPER, Lee said he will keep concentrating on painting at the same time.



Last year, his paintings were put on display on international stages including the Asia Contemporary Art Show in Hong Kong in September and the international art fair in Carrousel du Louvre in Paris in October.



Lee also has met with local audiences. His works were featured in local exhibitions such as the "Geeky Land" exhibition at K Museum of Contemporary Art in Seoul last January.



After taking part in the Grand Palais Independent Exhibition in Paris last February, Lee continues to work on his painting.



"I enjoy the feeling working on my paintings gives me because I can figure things out that even I didn't know about myself. Probably, this feeling inspires me to keep drawing," Lee said.

