PR93804

LONDON, Dec. 21, 2021 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

-- THE NFT IS A DIGITAL ORIGINAL OF THE ARTWORK CREATED BY RABAB TANTAWY, AN

EMERGING MIDDLE EAST-BASED ARTIST

Due to high demand from fans in both the art and racing worlds, the original

artwork that inspired McLaren Racing's 2021 livery for the final race in Abu

Dhabi is being auctioned in digital form with proceeds going to charity.

Launching on December 20th, the non-fungible token (NFT), "Together As One" by

Rabab Tantawy, is a digital original of the artwork by artist Rabab who was

given creative control of the livery by McLaren Racing and its long-standing

partner, BAT's global vapour brand Vuse. She made history by becoming the first

female artist from the Middle East to ever have their artwork appear on a

livery during a Grand Prix(TM).

The exclusive piece by Rabab formed the beginning of Vuse's Driven by Change

initiative, which provides opportunities for underrepresented creatives to

champion their work and passions across various platforms. Creators from around

the world will be offered opportunities like the one Rabab had in Abu Dhabi

from which they can help drive change within the world of motorsport.

Rabab's "Together As One" design celebrates her passion for union, community,

and heritage, incorporating her Nubian Series*** with McLaren Racing's iconic

papaya and blue colourway. The Nubian figures represent togetherness and 'the

world as one' – two themes Rabab is passionate about exploring in her work both

on and off the canvas, which inspired and informed the artwork for the livery.

Rabab Tantawy comments: "The response to the livery has been overwhelming. I've

been receiving messages from art collectors and racing fans from all over the

world asking to buy an NFT of the artwork and I'm so excited to be creating my

very first one! This exclusive piece will be auctioned to raise funds for a

charity that is close to my heart, Driven By Diversity. It's an incredible

organisation that gives access and opportunities to under-represented groups in

the motorsport industry, so it will directly benefit people looking for the

opportunity to showcase their passion, just like I did in Abu Dhabi!"

One NFT will be auctioned for 96 hours via the Objkt platform, with funds

collected from the initial sale of the NFT (excluding any transaction fees or

commissions retained by third party platforms) to be directed to Driven By

Diversity, a not-for-profit organisation which aims to educate individuals and

organisations on the value of diversity and inclusion in motorsports. In

addition, royalty payments arising in accordance with the terms of the NFT

(again excluding any transaction fees or commissions retained by third party

platforms) will also be donated to Driven By Diversity.

Lindsay Orridge, Founder and President, Driven by Diversity, said: "Having been

heavily involved in this project from concept right through to execution, I am

beyond thrilled that Rabab has chosen to donate to our cause in this exciting,

future-focused way. Once the artwork has been sold at the NFT auction, we will

release details of how the funds will be spent to help creatives looking to

break into the motorsport world."

"Together As One" by Rabab Tantawy was born from Vuse's Driven by Change

initiative, which celebrates undiscovered creative talent, working with McLaren

Racing to identify opportunities to bring their work to life, helping introduce

creatives from diverse backgrounds to the masses.

The NFT will be available here (

https://objkt.com/asset/KT1KLHgBQgtZp9Sn4vunkpS25YVPgWPS9keh/2 ) on 20th

December, from Midday GMT. To discover more about Rabab's story and about

McLaren Racing's Abu Dhabi GP 2021 livery design visit social channels for Vuse

( https://www.instagram.com/vuse.worldwide/?hl=en ) Global and Rabab's (

https://www.instagram.com/rababtantawy/?hl=en ) social channels.

Further information on the Driven by Change initiative and how creatives can

get involved will be shared in 2022.

Notes to Editors:

About BAT

BAT is a leading, multi-category consumer goods business with a purpose to

build A Better Tomorrow by reducing the health impact of its business through

offering a greater choice of enjoyable and less risky products for adult

consumers. The company continues to be clear that combustible cigarettes pose

serious health risks, and the only way to avoid these risks is not to start or

to quit. BAT encourages those who would otherwise continue to smoke to switch

completely to scientifically-substantiated, reduced-risk alternatives*. In

order to deliver this, BAT is transforming into a truly consumer-centric

multi-category consumer products business. BAT employs over 53,000 people and

operates in over 180 countries, with 11 million points of sale and 45 factories

in 43 markets. The company's Strategic Portfolio is made up of its global

cigarette brands and a growing range of reduced-risk* New Category tobacco and

nicotine products and traditional non-combustible tobacco products. These

include vapour, tobacco heating products, modern oral products including

tobacco-free nicotine pouches, as well as traditional oral products such as

snus and moist snuff. In 2020, we had 13.5 million consumers of our

non-combustible products, a rise of 3 million on the year before. The BAT Group

generated revenue of 25.8 billion pounds in 2020 and profit from operations of

9.9 billion pounds.

*Based on the weight of evidence and assuming a complete switch from cigarette

smoking. These products are not risk free and are addictive.

About McLaren Racing

McLaren Racing was founded by New Zealand racing driver Bruce McLaren in 1963.

The team entered its first Formula 1 race in 1966, since then McLaren has won

20 Formula 1 world championships, more than 180 Formula 1 grands prix, the Le

Mans 24 Hours at its first attempt and the Indianapolis 500 three times.

McLaren Racing currently competes in Formula 1 globally and INDYCAR in the US. Z

The team is contesting the 2021 FIA Formula 1 World Championship with Lando

Norris and Daniel Ricciardo, and in the 2021 INDYCAR Series with Arrow McLaren

SP drivers Pato O'Ward and Felix Rosenqvist. McLaren was the first F1 team to

be certified carbon neutral ten years ago and has successfully retained the

Carbon Trust Standard Award, most recently in February 2021. They were also the

first team to be awarded the FIA Institute's Environmental Award in 2013, which

they have consistently maintained at three-star level.z

In 2022, McLaren Racing will enter a new category of motorsport when it enters

a team into Extreme E, the innovative all-electric off-road racing series that

highlights the impact of climate change.

About Rabab Tantawy

*** In this series Rabab Tantawy explores the need of human nature to connect

with heritage and community by taking as a matter of study the Nubian culture.

Born in 1971 in Cairo Rabab Tantawy grew up watching her mother draw and

create. Although she did not pursue an artistic career from the get-go, Rabab

always kept an interest in the arts and taught herself different techniques,

ranging from very traditional mediums like oil painting to modern ones like

spray-paints.

When Tantawy decided to dedicate herself to the arts she got involved in

several exhibitions while also actively pursuing street art.

Working with a multitude of mediums the artist created a playful approach to

the otherwise serious concepts that ground her work. Her biggest focus is on

union, community, and heritage.

While often we can see artists approach these subjects from a political point

of view, Rabab tries to bridge the gap and render these subjects through the

lens of universality.

Rabab is an intuitive artist. She doesn't work with preliminary sketches; she

uses the canvas as a support for direct download. There's no expectation for a

final product. In a way the product is the process of creation itself.

Line and colour are the pillars of Tantawy's work. Be it abstract or figurative

the artist's work starts from line. The lines function as a skeleton, informing

the whole process of the artwork in the making. Be it soft flowing lines or

strong angular ones, this step sets the rhythm of the work. While a lot of

artists are choosing to work with limited colour palettes, Tantawy switches

from classical earthy colours to strong neon colours in the same series with

the same ease she switches between mediums.

About Driven by Diversity

Driven by Diversity is a non-profit organisation founded by a group of

motorsport industry professionals whose mission is to help educate, assist and

give access to under-represented individuals wishing to work, participate or

engage with motorsport. They work with industry bodies, teams, brands, drivers

and stakeholders across the motorsport industry to help increase diverse driver

talent on track, encourage individuals into STEM related roles behind the

scenes and engage creative talent to share their passion for the sport with the

world.

www.drivenbydiversity.com

Instagram: @wearedrivenbydiversity

Driven by Diversity is a 501(c)(3) non-profit registered in the USA, company

number C4723983

About Non-Fungible Tokens

NFT stands for "non-fungible token", a digital asset that links ownership to

unique physical or digital items, such as works of art, real estate, music, or

videos.

NFTs can be considered modern-day collectibles (

https://www.businessinsider.com/collectible-investments-valuable-types ).

They're bought and sold online, and represent a digital proof of ownership of

any given item.

SOURCE BAT