MoMA Adds Eight CryptoPunks to Its Permanent Collection

• MoMA added eight original 2017 CryptoPunks to its permanent collection in the Media and Performance department.
• The Punks were donated by Larva Labs and big collectors like Cozomo de’ Medici and Ryan Zurrer.
• It’s a huge nod to on-chain art as real culture, not just crypto hype, from one of the top modern museums.

MoMA in New York just added eight CryptoPunks to its permanent collection, putting them in the Media and Performance department alongside video, tech, and experimental art. The Punks are #4018, #2786, #5616, #5160, #3407, #7178, #74, and #7899. It’s a big deal for on-chain art, treating these 2017 pixel characters as serious cultural pieces, not just crypto hype.

CryptoPunks started as a fun experiment by Larva Labs founders Matt Hall and John Watkinson. They coded 10,000 unique 24-by-24 pixel faces and put them straight on the blockchain. No copies, no fakes, with ownership and history locked forever. That setup became the blueprint for NFTs that exploded later.

How They Got There

The eight Punks came as donations from a group effort. Larva Labs gave some, collectors like Mara and Erick Calderon, Rhydon and Caroline Lee, Ryan Zurrer of 1OF1 AG, judithESSS, the Tomaino Family, and Cozomo de’ Medici Collection chipped in others.

Art on Blockchain and 1OF1_art helped make it happen. Each Punk got its own MoMA object number from 423.2025 to 430.2025.This isn’t MoMA buying on the open market. It was the community and the creators themselves handing over pieces they believe deserve a place in art history. Placing them in Media and Performance fits perfectly, grouping them with works shaped by new tools and ideas.

For the CryptoPunks crowd, it’s validation after years of debate. What began as a small experiment rooted in code and curiosity is now part of one of the world’s top modern art museums. It shows that institutions are starting to see on chain art as digital culture and creativity, not just market driven assets.

MoMA’s decision sends a quiet but clear message that blockchain art is no longer on the sidelines. It has found a place in the cultural mainstream.

What started as a small 2017 experiment has now reached museum walls. CryptoPunks show how early internet ideas can grow into lasting cultural works. Backed by well known collectors and creators, it feels less like a market moment and more like a statement that these pieces belong to everyone and should be preserved for the long term.