Click here to visit the Bonham’s CryptOGs auction page.
Everyone can be an artist. Everyone is creative. That’s what it means to me – open access to art. The world beats it out of us, but creativity is in our DNA. With cryptoart all you need is an internet connection and an idea.
XCOPY
The present work features in “Bonhams & SuperRare: CryptOGs, The Pioneers of NFT Art, June 21st-30th 2021”, Lot 2” and can be found HERE
How did you find out about CryptoArt earlier than most people?
I got lucky. Late 2017, I bought some bitcoin and fell down the crypto rabbit hole. Soon after that I discovered Ascribe.io which was using Bitcoin to create digital editions. I started selling these for a couple of bucks through twitter and geeking out with other nerds. In early 2018 I ended up beta testing what became SuperRare.
Edition 1 of 1
CLEARLY
What was the market and community like back then?
We all thought what was happening was groundbreaking but no one else seemed to care. I was trying to convince artists to join but everyone thought it was a scam. There was barely anyone to sell to. A small group of collectors and artists kept the platform going for a long time. We were just happy to see bids on each others work and it felt like we celebrated every sale.
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XCOPY, 2018
Why did you dive into the CryptoArt world before it was recognized by the mainstream?
Because it was the first and only way to sell my digital artwork in its true form. Minting tokens was a way to sign my art and make it collectable.
How does CryptoArt influence your practices as an artist?
As a new medium, the possibilities feel endless. I find it impossible not to be sucked into the culture. I’ve learned so much from pixel anons on twitter; it’s an entertaining and inspiring space.
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trends HARD.
What do you hope people to experience when they view your works?
I hope it gives them a break from the everyday for a few seconds. If it inspires them somehow: amazing. I want everyone to create more, I always feel better when I’ve made something.
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Choose your favourites or have a browse
On a philosophical level, what does CryptoArt mean to you?
Everyone can be an artist. Everyone is creative. That’s what it means to me – open access to art. The world beats it out of us, but creativity is in our DNA. With cryptoart all you need is an internet connection and an idea.
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CAUTION: May cause anxiety, overwhelm and in most cases death.
How do you envision the future of CryptoArt?
I imagine we’ll see works that evolve and interact with each other, that decay over time or react to IRL events. It’s already happening. NFTs can be so much more than a signed image. As platforms evolve to give artists access to new tools we’ll find more ways to have fun with them.
SuperRare is a marketplace to collect and trade unique, single-edition digital artworks.
