Ulvi Kasimov

In 2012, art collector and venture capitalist Ulvi Kasimov initiated an application for the “.art” domain under a new gTLD program to create a digital community for the creative world. The domain name was officially launched in December 2016. With “.art,” artists and art institutions can register clear and concise web addresses that reflect their profession.

More recently, Kasimov and his team launched a new product called .art Digital Twin, a provenance and authenticity tracking solution that uses both the universally accepted DNS (domain name system) and blockchain. “The great thing about this solution is that it utilizes both new and old technologies,” Kasimov told Observer. “Use just one of them, and it is not trusted anymore.”  

This year, .art Domains took part in the online version of the Contemporary And Digital Art Fair (CADAF), which is the only art fair focused on contemporary digital art, and co-hosted the first-ever digital edition of Ars Electronica, the oldest arts and technology festival in Europe. “These partnerships were incredibly well-timed for .art Domains, showing that the trajectory and core values we adopted at conception have allowed us to be at the forefront of digital change in the pandemic aftermath,” Kasimov said.

Outside of his day time job, Kasimov and his wife are actively involved in charitable work and social causes. Over the years, they have worked with a wide array of organizations, including hospitals, shelters, schools and cultural institutions. Kasimov also has a book coming out soon about the complex issues involved in reducing social inequality.