The Surprising Way Melania Trump Is Returning To Public Life

It's been nearly a year since former first lady Melania Trump, along with her husband Donald Trump, made their exit from the White House — and in that time, the generally inscrutable ex-FLOTUS has largely kept herself tucked away from the prying eyes of the public. Melania, who has generally been considered one of the more hands-off,  inaccessible presidential wives in recent memory, wasn't necessarily an open book to begin with — a point which was hammered home in "The Art of Her Deal," the first major biography published about her life in June 2020. Perhaps that private nature has also engendered the publication of later tell-alls by former aides Stephanie Winston Wolkoff and Stephanie Grisham, with readers buying their books in droves in order to understand what makes Melania tick. Now, however, it seems Melania's latest re-entry into the public sphere might make her more enigmatic than ever. 

On December 16, Melania launched a new endeavor into what is already a whole new world with a statement posted to her official Twitter account. So what exactly does this new project entail? And is there any way to predict its success so early on in the game? 

On December 16, Melania Trump posted the first of what would become well over a dozen updates on her new venture: a foray into non-fungible tokens, or NFTs. The token itself is a watercolor of the former supermodel's eyes, an image she has since tweeted throughout the latter half of the month. "I am proud to announce my new NFT endeavor, which embodies my passion for the arts, and will support my ongoing commitment to children through my Be Best initiative," wrote Melania, referring to the anti-bullying advocacy program Melania founded during her White House tenure. 

The NFT, a digital painting, was created by French artist Marc-Antoine Coulon and is currently on sale for $175 via Solana, a cryptocurrency blockchain platform program, according to CNN. The painting is available to purchase until December 31, and also comes complete with an audio recording of Melania: "My vision is: Look forward with inspiration, strength and courage." Though Melania also stated that the "technology-based initiative ... will provide children computer science skills, including programming and software development, to thrive after they age out of the foster care community," only "a portion of the proceeds" will go towards charitable causes. Considering the Trump family finances might not be as healthy or stable as the Trumps have previously made them out to be, it's possible, though not in any way proven, that the NFT could be an attempt to forage some extra coin.