Imagine you’re preparing for the biggest event of your life. You’re traveling out of town, and you’ve made specific wardrobe choices to compliment your groundbreaking moment. While packing for your trip, you had to choose between an additional outfit or an extra pair of shoes because your luggage is too small, and you had to decide which outerwear to bring because there wasn’t enough room in your carry-on for more than one jacket. After nearly missing your flight, you land at your destination only to discover the airline has misplaced your luggage. This happens all the time.

Now imagine how convenient it would be if your whole outfit, including your accessories, were instantly emailed to you. Everything you’re wearing, from head to toe, is created digitally, with your designer’s imagination being the only structural limitation. She receives your body measurements through an app and styles your unique, custom-made garments using computer-aided design software without ever meeting you in person. You can save your design, backup your entire wardrobe closet on a hard drive, and print your clothing locally. You can choose which materials to use based on the weather, season, or style preferences, and you can even change colors to suit a special occasion the next time you print. The materials you’re wearing are completely re-usable, so you’re making environmental sustainability a fashion statement. This may sound futuristic because only 1% of the market’s textiles are being recycled, yet forward-thinking fashion designers like Danit Peleg are hard at work; innovating the wearable future of fashion, today.

Peleg has always been curious about the relationship between fashion and technology. Before her studies at Shenkar College of Engineering and Design, Peleg was experimenting with knitting machines, laser cutting, and digital printing. The focus of her studies landed her a prestigious internship at an Avante Garde fashion house in New York, where Peleg had a firsthand look at 3D wearable objects for the first time. Although the materials she worked with were stiff and breakable, Peleg was inspired by the waste-free simulation process and began to explore the design potential for eco-friendly wearables of her own making.

“When I started to learn about the current situation with the global fashion industry and production, I was really, really depressed,” Peleg recalls. “I started to research and learn how fashion design became the second most polluting industry. Being a participating member, I didn’t want to be part of it. We’re using the same technology we used 100 years ago. But now you don’t have to go through tons of inventory and you can see the digital design and even try on the garment with augmented reality.”

 

With the opportunity to learn an industrial process that rendered 3D printed wearables unaffordable for the everyday consumer, Peleg was determined to find a cost-effective solution to achieve her brand ambitions. The printers being used were massive, so she needed to scale her process to smaller machines in order to work alone or with a core collaborative team. A chance encounter at Burning Man became the galvanizing gift; a 3D-printed necklace that had been created using a commercially available desktop 3D printer. With her design modeling experience and several 3D printers within arm’s reach, Peleg designed her first 3D-printed wearable fashion collection called Liberty Leading the People, which she launched from home while in her graduating year at Shenker. Her collection of five outfits were made entirely of 3D printed materials—including shoes and accessories. Peleg produced her collection on six 3D printers running 24 hours a day; waking up in the middle of the night to change the ink colors, assemble garments, and try them on her models. Peleg’s innovative spirit drove the success of her collection and propelled her career to the forefront of technological research and development in the fashion industry.

With sophisticated printers now at her disposal, Peleg is dedicated to improving upon 3D print materials that are currently available to the public. The focus of her research involves the combination of flexible structures with flexible materials to create softer fabrics. Most of the materials she’s currently using look and behave like rubber; they’re soft, yet nothing like cotton, silk, or leather. Her collaboration with Moon Creative Lab develops sustainable materials for 3D printers that behave like fabrics and are still 100% reusable and recyclable. The traditional process to create a fashion collection results in tremendous waste, leftover fabric, and raw materials that are either buried or burned.

“I imagine all of our clothes can be recycled,” Peleg muses. “You just go to the store, give back your old t-shirt, and get a refund or credit for your next purchase based on the weight—or you can simply reuse your own material,” she emphasized. “You can do something else with it. You’ll have a spool of similar material to wool or cotton or silk, and you’ll be able to choose and reuse your materials over and over.”

 

 

Design manufacturing is now so fast that the latest trends can be released every day, which isn’t entirely unlike NFTs on the blockchain. When combined, you can produce an NFT garment with zero inventory, and sell as many pieces as you want. Peleg’s NFTs come with an unlockable folder containing the 3D printable files and a document explaining how to print and assemble your clothing. A virtual file is also included for your avatar to wear the very same garment in the metaverse. An augmented reality filter on Peleg’s Instagram offers the convenience of viewing her clothing in your own home, and if you don’t have access to a 3D printer, Peleg will print your garment in pieces and ship them to you. You also have the option to order the entire garment printed in her studio.

“I believe the proof of provenance and ownership that NFTs offer will help revolutionize fashion, specifically digital and 3D-printable fashion,” Peleg says. “This will enable designers to sell their work directly to customers who will not only want to wear and promote their fashion in the metaverse, but will also print and wear them in the physical world. If you want to prove you own the Gucci bag with its NFT twin, you need to own both the digital and physical piece.”

 

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SUMMARY

In partnership with the Botswana Red Cross Society and acclaimed artist Remo Camerota, Leyline has just dropped their first-ever charity NFT auction. Their mission: To validate how NFT auctions, gaming, art, and social impact development organizations can work together, advancing a common goal of eliminating poverty and rewarding acts of altruism around the world.

 

About Leyline

In addition to being an Open Knowledge, Open Source project, Leyline is a California Nonprofit Organization – A Transformative Digital Economy Nonprofit. By rewarding those who do good, Leyline strives to eradicate poverty. For individuals who perform small acts of altruism every day, the mission is to create a perpetual passive income stream. By using Leyline, users can connect with wellness activities, blood donations, and community service opportunities. In order to validate these actions, Leyline partners with trusted nonprofit organizations, academic institutions, and NGOs which verify the various good actions people may undertake. Leyline points are given as rewards for these good deeds which can be redeemed for goods of cash value, cryptocurrencies, and Non-Fungible Tokens.

“Our revenue above operating costs will be reallocated back to a prize pool to help get funds into the hands of people who truly need it. We’re not here to become billionaires; we’re here to solve the biggest problems facing humanity” explains Jeremy Dela Rosa, founder and CEO of Leyline. 

The biggest problem humanity faces cannot be solved by becoming billionaires. To join the Leyline movement:  Sign up today

 

About Botswana Red Cross Society

There are almost 200 national and International Red Cross and Red Crescent associations around the world. It is considered the world’s largest humanitarian network. 

Allied to no government and without political, religious or cultural affiliations, the nonprofit Red Cross and Red Crescent associations, were founded to respond to the well-being of war-wounded by providing assistance without discrimination on the battlefield and to prevent and alleviate suffering. Botswana Red Cross Society is one branch of these organizations with the same directive.

Botswana Red Cross Society essentially has two purposes: To protect life and health as well as to ensure that human rights are respected. Throughout the world, its ideals and principles are aimed at promoting friendship, cooperation, and lasting peace.

“Our mission is to alleviate human suffering by providing humanitarian services to the most vulnerable communities. They are powered by over 10,000 volunteers across Southern Africa.”

 

About The Artist – Remo Camerota

Remo proudly collaborated with Leyline on the organization’s first NFT drop to advance the social cause and help as many families as possible. A distinguished artist, Remo is also an award-winning photographer, director, and recognized figure in the NFT space. The magazine “Lurzer’s Archive” recently named him one of its 200 best creatives. Some of his works have been exhibited at Carrousel du Louvre (Paris) and he has collaborated with today’s leading brands and artists to create artwork such as Banksy, Obey, and Tommy Hilfiger, among others. Art is a vehicle for him to promote social awareness and contribute to important causes.

For more info: https://www.whitewallstudios.net/

About The Fundraiser

The artwork auction proceeds will be split between artists, social impact organizations, Leyline’s altruistic platform, and its users to create a win-win-win ecosystem.

In honour of Remo Camerota’s work and to establish a new standard for the commissioning of artists, he will receive 30% of the proceeds, donating the other 70%.

40% of each sale will be distributed directly to individuals in extreme poverty by the Botswana Red Cross Society.

In total, Leyline will receive 30% of the proceeds to fund the development and administration of its altruistic platform.

“Our shared goal for this auction is to create sustainable passive income for individuals in need and create a compounding effect for impoverished communities,” says Jeremy Dela Rosa, founder and CEO of Leyline. 

The proceeds that go to the Botswana Red Cross Society will be used to buy ‘Internet/NFT Starter Kits’. A smartphone, solar battery charger, and data plan will be included in these kits. Teams from Botswana Red Cross Society are on the ground directly supporting communities and will identify and continue to provide support to the recipients. As a result, recipients are able to share their experiences with the NFT and Leyline communities while earning more rewards and NFTs.

“A $350 starter kit per family can literally transform lives. The more funds we raise, the more individuals we can help. Please join us on our quest to eradicate poverty and rewrite the rules of the economy to reward empathy and compassion!” adds Dela Rosa, founder and CEO of Leyline.

 

About The Auction 

The auction begins on June 18th at 9 am ET and concludes on June 25th at 12 pm ET. A collection of 6 NFT art pieces from Remo Camerota has been donated to benefit the cause.

Here the link to the collection and auction: Remo x Leyline x Botswana Red Cross Marketplace on OpenSea: Buy, sell, and explore digital assets

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This past week, President Biden signed a bill into law making Juneteenth a national holiday.  Although the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation officially freed all enslaved peoples in 1863, June the nineteenth marks the date, two and a half years later (in 1865), when Federal troops marched into Texas to effectively implement this order. Finally recognizing this long-held tradition at the Federal level, Biden’s administration acknowledges the fact that the fourth of July is not everybody’s day of independence in this country. Commemorating the emancipation of enslaved African Americans, Juneteenth celebrates Black Americans’ progress and commitment to continue fighting for equality and meaningful social change in the ever-flawed system we exist in today. 

Official recognition of this holiday is no panacea for the structural inequities Black Americans continue to encounter. However, while celebrating this step forward, we must continue to demand reparations, demand an end to police violence, demand representative and accessible education, and continue to fight for Black liberation. Black contributions in labour, culture, innovation, and the arts, have made this country what it is today, yet Black artists continue to be overshadowed in traditional networks. 

This year, in celebration of Juneteenth, Black Lives Matter (BLM) is collaborating with Nifty Gateway (one of the current largest NFT marketplaces) to host a digital art fair, highlighting the work of several Black creators. The exhibit features artists such as Oto Abasi Attah, Gianni Lee, Shanina Dionna, Julian Gillam (AKA Logik), Kennedy Yanko, and others.  

giannilee
Photo by https://www.instagram.com/giannilee/

 

The exhibit, curated by Damon Turner (founder of Trap Heals), exemplifies a growing trend in the NFT space through which digital partnerships allow influencers, or organizations, in collaboration, to harness their audience in order to maximize sales. This collaborative tactic is not unlike the collective action we see in social activism more frequently. 

 

But why choose NFTs?

The NFT space gives Black creatives the opportunity to transcend geographical boundaries, political barriers, and produce radical art in a radical space. It is understood that the power of truth often depends upon the power of whom it is in the hands of. Many minority groups, notably Black Americans, have had their truths silenced for many decades. Yet, through collective action and political agency, minority groups have, over time, been able to work to translate truth into power. NFTs present a forum for this kind of translation — freeing artists from the constraints of governmental and/or corporate bureaucracy. In the traditional art world, power structures and inequities have solidified themselves over time. NFTs place power in the hands of the artist. Though leading social change in the decentralized space of NFTs at its infancy, BLM and other social movements may be able to play a role in shaping the future of NFT marketplaces and how they might be able to advance a shared cause. 

The NFT platform, aside from its social implications and benefits for artists, holds investment appeal as well. NFTs present unique value to potential donors in terms of the unique return value, provable scarcity, indivisibility, guaranteed ownership through smart contracts, transferability, and cryptographic security. These characteristics of NFTs enable creators and consumers to engage in transactions through secure, transparent, and efficient means. 

In whole, the platform complies with artists’ needs, consumers’ needs, and overall serves to bolster the cause of BLM, in its mission “to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes.” This past Juneteenth, and onwards, it is important to reflect not only upon past realities – but also on the ways in which we can pave the way for greater equality in the future. The decentralization of power propagated by the NFT space is beginning to spur change in this direction. 

Marking Juneteenth as a national holiday has inspired a reclamation of Black stories, histories, and celebrations, as exemplified by this BLM X Trap Heals initiative on Nifty. 

Visit Nifty Gateway or BLM Juneteenth Events Page for more.

 

Image Source: Trap Heals by Oto-Abasi Attah

Main Featured Image By Julian Gilliam aka LOGIC

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Most would agree that music is an important part of the human experience, and we are all wondering what role NFTs will play in the industry. Frequency and rhythm make up our lives as individuals. Every breath we take is a metronome to our thoughts and movements. Our inner rhythms have all been shaken with the pandemic, but issues within the music industry have been brewing for much longer than that. Some believe that NFTs may be the remedy. 

That shared energetic communication is now going to be incorporated into the metaverse. A new green platform has been created to offer musicians of all levels a place to be seen and heard, while also supporting the causes and initiatives that are important to them.  It’s also perfect for the fan bases, as they will be able to connect to their favorite artists regardless of their location or status. With the importance of genres and job titles fading, the music industry has figured out a way to make the system breathe again in an inclusive, sustainable fashion. 

 

Quincy Jones and a very powerful group including Adam Fell, Joshua James, and tech entrepreneur Lyn Dae are the founders of OneOf. These powerhouses have curated a proof of work protocol that is efficient while emphasizing the importance of protecting our environment. While traditional proof of work protocols aren’t necessarily unsustainable, this boasts being 2 million times more efficient than Ethereum platforms. Hopefully, this gives new body and breath to the music industry through NFTs, which will augment what music can be and establish a new structure that can regenerate the industry. With top artists already on board and ready to share themselves in a new way, a much-needed revolution is forthcoming.

Dae’s background as an early investor in Zoom, and Jones’s timeless legacy as a godfather of the modern-day music industry, are a perfect pairing for this project. Their focus will be on creating freedom for any musician to share music on their own terms while utilizing a swift eco-friendly cryptocurrency.  As an added bonus, there will be no minting or gas fees for creating NFTs on this platform. 

“The artist can sell NFTs at any price… one NFT for a million dollars or a million NFTs for one dollar.” Oneof will also offer a team of marketing strategists for new artists, which is incredible. This will heal so many voices and expressions that have been suppressed for so long in the collective consciousness. OneOf offers a place for beginners to come together with established artists and have easy access to their same network. There are limitless opportunities for personal promotion, and fan base participation. As well as options for exclusive content allowing for a more tailored experience. Quincy Jones has also incorporated a way for a percentage of the sales to go to various causes, putting emphasis on the artist’s social and environmental responsibilities and contributions. 

 

Each time an NFT is resold, the artist will receive royalties, even on secondary sales. Jones is granting the wish of anyone who wants a chance to be a musician, skipping the legal processes that often cause songs to become lost in translation. This will likely awaken an infinite fan base, emboldened by the freedom for an artist to market and display themselves as they see fit. Jones will also be minting NFTs from his phenomenal personal catalogue. Unknown artists will have hope that they can leverage the same power of NFTs without the usual gatekeepers closing them out, and without exorbitant fees.

Oneof will be fantastic for recording artists, enabling limitless navigation of NFTs where value can be decided by the creator and the collector, with no authenticity lost. It will also be an amazing platform for fans with the thrill of personal social-media(esque) content that connects them to their favourite musicians. Oneof appears to be a light at the end of the tunnel and has the potential to be the most authentic way music has ever lived thus far.

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With #CryptoCleanUp, a beach clean-up was hosted on South Beach in conjunction with the Bitcoin Conference 21 and NFTs.tips Miami side-events and NFT exhibitions. Clean Miami Beach, a locally based non-profit, collected 148LBS of waste, kicking off a series of 5 beach clean-up events in honor of World Oceans Day 2021. The waste collected was used to make fantastic art pieces that will be minted as NFTs.

Crypto Clean Up
Photo Credit: Bruce Valverde & Zack George

 

Event

45 volunteers participated in #CryptoCleanUp, an event hosted by Clean Miami Beach and Collr.co on June 5th during the Bitcoin Conference 2021. Despite having less than 4 days to organize, the volunteers were able to clean 148 pounds of waste during 2 hours of work. 

Clean Miami Beach is a locally based non-profit that has conducted 124 beach clean-ups across the city since 2019, collecting 28.725 pounds of waste from Miami Beaches with their mission and goal;  “to keep (the) community and natural habitats free of garbage and other harmful land pollutants with a focus on single-use plastics…such as grocery bags, food packaging, bottles, straws, containers, cups, and utensils are extremely damaging to the unique fragile ecosystem of Miami Beach and its marine wildlife.” 

Drew Danzeisen, founder of Collr.co, intended for the cleanup to show the passion the crypto community has for the environment at a time when the community has been attacked over its energy impact. Regardless of the debatability of those claims, Drew wanted to show that crypto enthusiasts are also environmentalists and as caring for the planet as anyone else. Collr.co, which works with nonprofits, businesses, and individuals to generate campaigns and experiences through physical and digital collectibles/NFTs is experienced in marketing, branding, and in NFT strategy and hopes to bring his abilities to further noble causes.

 

Crypto Clean Up Miami
Photo Credit: Bruce Valverde & Zack George

 

Sophie Ringel, founder of Clean Miami Beach said, “#CryptCleanUp was amazing. We can’t thank our volunteers and supporters enough for their collective efforts for this cleanup and we are excited to tell our story of eliminating single use plastics through NFTs.”

Drew mentioned that the accomplishment was largely thanks to Sophie’s willingness to dedicate such passion to the event at such short notice. The idea was broached to Clean Miami Beach only 4 days before, and their collaboration on the event in large part drove its success.

As part of the cleanup, the trash collected was made into beautiful art, belying the waste it was made with. A remarkable sense of irony to see such fascinating work made with nothing but garbage. The magnificent art that was made is set to be minted as NFTs, and will be Clean Miami Beach’s official entry point into the NFT community! As their proceeds go towards keeping Miami beaches and our oceans clean, their entry should be well received by many others who share their passion. 

In addition, the organizers and the host expressed their gratitude for the great support of the locals as well as Seafarer Beach Resort, Block Party, and SRelix for contributing to their event giveaways.

NFTs For Good 

As more organizations become aware of NFTs, many recognize a community which can help them grow and increase their impact. In the case of #CryptoCleanUp , it is already noble to have spent so much time cleaning trash on beaches, but to take advantage of the amount of trash gathered by making it art and then into NFTs adds value for comparatively little additional effort. Clean Miami Beach benefits from that added value brought to it by bright folks like Drew and Collr.co, while the NFT community diversifies with more commendable causes.

The ocean-themed art will be minted as NFTs that will launch on Blockparty‘s NFT marketplace, which incorporates both cryptocurrency and credit card payment methods. The proceeds of the sales will be allocated to the local non-profit Clean Miami Beach. The wallet belongs to Clean Miami Beach, so this is their genesis collection and a warm welcome is well-deserved.

Photo Credit: Walter Lethu x Adidas

 

Additional World Oceans Day Campaigns in Miami

In addition, volunteers of the #CryptoCleanUp engaged in a 1K run on South Beach taking part in the Adidas X Parley  “Run For The Oceans” campaign for 2021. 

For the fourth consecutive year, the Adidas X Parley, “Run For The Oceans” campaign returned from May 28 to June 8, coinciding with the Bitcoin Conference 2021 with its mission; to address ocean plastic pollution. 

The Campaign brings together runners from all over the world. Anyone could join the Adidas Running app challenge from May 28 through June 8, and run, walk, or wheel in a  wheelchair to help end plastic waste. In the five-week period from May 28 to June 8, Adidas X Parley cleaned beaches, remote islands, and coastlines at a rate of 10 plastic bottles per kilometer via the Adidas Running App (Strava/Joyrun). 

Check out their websites: Clean Miami Beach and Collr.co

 

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Widespread concerns about the energy use of proof-of-work (POW) blockchains such as Bitcoin and Ethereum impacted crypto artists in recent months due to Ethereum’s prominent role in the NFT ecosystem. Though common beliefs about the actual energy used in minting NFTs are often inaccurate, the crypto art community cares deeply about environmental issues and artists have been responding in a variety of ways. Ongoing responses include utilizing carbon offset services, supporting Ethereum’s move to proof-of-stake (POS) status, and increasing activity on POS blockchains.

Specific attacks on crypto artists began in December 2020 with the launch of CryptoArt.wtf, a site that gauged the energy used in minting NFTs based on the overall use of energy on the Ethereum blockchain. The problem is that Ethereum energy use does not work in such a direct manner, and the blockchain would use the same amount of energy to function even if NFT production stopped entirely.

Though this misperception was addressed to a limited degree by Web 3 developers, such as Sillytuna writing for NFTS WTF, it remains the dominant misunderstanding of both crypto artists, media, and the general public to this day. The resulting bitter attacks on crypto artists via social media led to the creators of CryptoArt.wtf shutting the site down because it had become a “tool for abuse and harassment.”

 

Since many crypto artists are concerned about the environment and did not need attacks to spur them into action, a variety of approaches to the perceived environmental effects of NFT production emerged and continue to be supported.

 

Carbon Offset

Carbon offset efforts, essentially tree planting by third parties, have been a popular choice of crypto artists choosing to remain on Ethereum. The concept of Ethereum energy calculations, though technically inaccurate, does provide a proxy for blockchain usage and is widely employed for energy offset purposes.

Offsetra is a popular carbon offset service. As crypto artist Angie Taylor enthusiastically explained on Twitter:

Another artist, AnonymousNobody used RootedFuture to plant a tree for each NFT Tree he sold in a crypto art project.

Beeple, perhaps the most well known crypto artist to date, organized a charity auction to benefit environmental organizations featuring donated NFTs by a group of high profile artists and additional donated carbon offsets. The Carbon Drop on Nifty Gateway was thus identified as a “Carbon Net-Negative Auction.” The proceeds totalled over $6.66 million including a $6 million winning bid for Beeple’s piece “Ocean Front” by Tron founder Justin Sun.

 

Green NFT Hackathon

Climate change and energy expenditure issues must ultimately be addressed at the source of energy use. Though Ethereum’s move to proof-of-stake will address many of its issues, interim solutions and educational efforts are still in order. One leading example of addressing such issues now is the Green NFT project.

Green NFTs launched on Gitcoin to provide an “Awareness Bounty” for educational resources and a “Solutions Bounty” to improve existing Ethereum-related solutions. Co-created in February by Jason Bailey, aka Artnome, and The Mint Fund, Green NFTs went on to raise funds and hold a hackathon. Grant recipients were announced earlier this month.

Artnome explained in an interview that the “overall goal” of the project is to “raise awareness and give the community a way to take part in owning and addressing the problem.” He feels it is a way to take the “fighting and finger-pointing going on around the ecological impact of NFTs” and “redirect that human energy into a more constructive direction.”

 

SIRSU, who created The Mint Fund to support artists new to NFTs, noted in a separate interview that it was important to move beyond carbon offsets as well as “political grandstanding,” and to find “solutions to avoid making new harm.” He emphasized that the “goal of Green NFT was to kickstart more solutions.” SIRSU also hopes this work can develop further and “evolve into a coalition…dedicated to the creation of public goods related to making our work greener as well as influencing public policy.”

 

Bridging to Ethereum

Many of the current solutions to the problem of Ethereum’s energy use involve moving minting and transactions off the Ethereum blockchain to a variety of sidechains and Layer 2 solutions with the option to later transfer NFTs to the Ethereum mainnet if desired. Related solutions are being built on other blockchains, such as NEAR, which recently received the Climate Neutral Product label.

To facilitate DeFi and NFT movement between NEAR and Ethereum, NEAR created the Rainbow Bridge. It is now the home base for two popular NFT platforms. Paras launched on NEAR in December 2020. This popular platform features NFT art card minting. Mintbase, a leading platform that began on Ethereum, relaunched on NEAR in late May.

 

Beyond Ethereum

Crypto artists are also exploring life beyond Ethereum. The Clean-NFTs Developer Community offers a handy spreadsheet of NFT platforms, identifying POS and POW chains, and adding energy-related notes. The list is a reminder that artists now have a variety of POS chains from which to choose. One crypto art crowd favorite is the Tezos chain whose NFT platforms include Hic et Nunc and Kalamint.

 

Hic et Nunc, in particular, has seen a powerful wave of crypto artist involvement. Claire L. Evans, writing for Rest of World, describes it as “Brazil’s DIY, eco-friendly NFT art marketplace.” She also characterizes it as a “scrappy, community-driven marketplace peopled with misfits, experimental creators, and established artists seeking a break from the big leagues.”

Judging by a variety of glowing recommendations on Twitter by such crypto artists as Tim Riopelle, Hic et Nunc has become a crowd favorite for its combination of an environmentally sustainable POS blockchain, low transaction fees and a strong community vibe. Jason Bailey, writing on his Artnome site, says he sees a “lot of the unbridled experimentation that was present in the early Rare Pepe Wallet days re-emerging in Hic et Nunc.”

 

Ongoing Efforts

These highlights from the responses of crypto artists to environmental concerns about NFT energy use reveal that artists continue to be actively involved in seeking solutions. From funding carbon offsets and technical solutions, to exploring currently available eco-friendly options, crypto artists are taking a creative array of paths forward. 

Despite the often inaccurate attacks on crypto artists and the continuing misrepresentation of NFT energy use by both mainstream and crypto media, many artists have chosen to address the actual issues in a positive manner. Though these actions are unlikely to satisfy all opponents of the existence of NFTs, they should certainly go a long way in establishing the legitimacy of NFTs and crypto art to thoughtful critics.

Featured Image Credit: NFT Tree by AnonymousNobody.eth 

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What’s the value of an NFT? As more people become curious about this emerging market, creatives worldwide are turning to DIY projects to help bridge the gap between the traditional and the unknown. Two weeks ago in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, La Casa Art House presented BK’s first NFT art exhibition, complete with live performance, DJs, and of course, NFT art. But in the NFT space, two weeks is more like six months. Since the La Casa Arthouse premiere, there have been many first exhibitions, new NFT gallery spaces, and record-breaking auctions. There’s now even an NFT wellness app powered by Enjin.

It makes sense that artists in New York, one of the cultural hubs of punk rock, are already experimenting with ways to incorporate NFTs into IRL experiences. From NFT rugs to a movie theatre showing NFTs on loop, La Casa Arthouse showcased a diverse roster of fresh artists from Brooklyn. A standout of the show was artist Charles Bentley, who turns his digital works into physical paintings.

While some artists in the showcase chose not to mint their work, others were trying out the NFT minting process for the very first time. Some were even testing more underground minting platforms. Ksenia, whose work emphasizes the urgency of climate change, chose to mint her pieces on HicEtNunc, an eco-friendly platform that runs on the Tezos network.

 

New York’s favorite pop-punk act, LPX, fronted by Neon Gold founder Lizzy Plapinger is one such artist entering the NFT space for the first time. Plapinger has always been a pioneer of new opportunities that allow for a deeper connection with fans. With all live shows canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, this was not only LPX’s first live show in over a year but also their first foray into this future technology. The band’s set was filmed with live projection mapping, which will later be turned into an audio/visual NFT. Lizzy chatted with us about her experience with NFT’s and why they’re important for musicians.

In a cloud photographed by Sasha Bianca

 

Can you remember who the first person you talked to about NFTs was?

“Absolutely, it was my friend Ryan Rabin of Captain Cuts. After that, it was my business partner Derek (who’s had an interest and foot in this world for some time) while also doing a deep dive into whatever I could find online, glean from clubhouse, or gather from my friend Verite about her experience.”

 

What was it that drew you to La Casa Art House?

“I’m a huge fan of a local NYC artist named Rachael Tarravechia, who was showing her work at La Casa Art House. When I went to check it out, I immediately clicked with Gonzo, who runs the space, and we bonded over our mutual love and appreciation for the NYC art scene, as well as their passion for community, their taste, and their enthusiasm to share it. I started regularly coming by, and the same week I learned about NFTs, I stopped by to talk to Gonzo about it. We’re both really hyped on the possibilities that come with such an intersectional medium. And his interest in educating other artists on the crypto world and inclusiveness/desire to bring more people into the space is really inspiring. We knew we’d love to collaborate on something together down the line, so when he proposed LPX playing this show, it felt like all the pieces were finally coming together. It’s meaningful to me that this collab has come from a really genuine connection and that the piece itself authentically merges IRL and metaverse in a unique way that speaks to both of our interests and spaces.”

 

In a cloud photographed by Sasha Bianca

 

Why is this technology exciting for the music space? Are you working on other ways of incorporating them?

“I’ve always felt like a more holistic artist than just a musician, so this technology to me is a really exciting invitation and creative prompt to create something that can represent that multidimensionality. From a music and technology perspective, it has the potential to better service and pay artists, writers, producers, and the visual artists attached to a project continuously and fairly for their work. I’m especially interested in the artists who use it as an opportunity to think outside the box. Art and music have always gone so hand in hand, but this feels like another way to really honor and explore new levels of collaboration and interplay.”

 

You’ve always had a strong connection with your fan base. Are you exploring POAP (proof of attendance protocol badges) or unlockables?

“I’m not currently, but it’s something I might consider for the future. There’s still a barrier to entry on the tech + NFT side, be it financial or education/understanding/familiarity, etc., but it has the potential to be a really special (and financially beneficial) way to honor and give back to the fans who are there from the start.”

 

 

What’s one of your favorite songs that came out through the coronavirus pandemic?

“The Divine Chord” by The Avalanches. It’s been a bright light on all my best and worst moments of the past year.”

At Bitcoin Conference this past week in Miami, it was clear that the hype surrounding the NFT market is not fading soon. There are a myriad of use cases for NFT technology, and art happens to be one of the most accessible examples. Clubhouse group turned powerhouse community NFTs.tips organized a week of programming around this technology, hoping to educate the curious while also showcasing top-notch art from 116 artists from 6 continents. The power of community in NFTs is also evident by the collaboration between NFTs.tips and La Casa Arthouse at BTC 20201, with the Brooklyn-based gallery designing light forms for the “Out of the Dark, Into the Light” exhibition.

In a cloud photographed by Sasha Bianca

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Kevin McCoy’s “Quantum” Claimed the High Note for Crypto Artists

Sotheby’s concluded its Natively Digital NFT sale with a record-breaking price for a single CryptoPunk. Though the CryptoPunk’s $11.754 million final bid is already dominating the headlines, twenty-seven additional works were on offer with final bids ranging from a high of $1.472 million for Kevin McCoy’s “Quantum” to a still impressive low of $9,450 for LaJuné McMillian’s “Self-Portrait 2”. Responses on Twitter from the crypto art community ranged widely from celebrations of success to expressions of concern that women, transgender individuals, and artists of color ended up with much lower priced sales.

Sotheby’s Natively Digital: A Curated NFT Sale took place online between June 3rd and June 10th with final bids coming in at 10:45 pm EDT on Thursday evening. Sotheby’s used Samsung displays for physical showings in New York, London, and Hong Kong which made for a nice look. Sotheby’s also opened an outpost in Decentraland which was intended to support both the Natively Digital sale as well as future efforts in the space.

The physical displays of NFTs were well-received in contrast to the initial response by Gmoney, later retracted, to the CryptoPunks displayed physically at an earlier Christie’s auction. However, Santiago Iꜩcoatl did raise a legitimate concern:

 

The attention grabbing sale of CryptoPunk 7523, in addition to leading mainstream media coverage, is being taken up by the NFT and crypto art communities on Twitter as a counterpoint to recent media speculation that NFTs are dead. For more on the CryptoPunk sale, see “NFTs are Dead” here at NFTS WTF.

The overall successful auctions of 27 additional pieces, most by individual crypto artists,  did serve as vindication for many. For example, Brendan Dawes, whose work “The Pandora Variations” sold for $52,920, shouted out the naysayers as he thanked his supporters:

 

There was also a strong celebratory response to Sarah Zucker’s sale of “Self Transcending” for $22,680 – with many likes and congratulatory comments. Yet it must be noted that for an early piece by a well-known and historically significant crypto artist, the final sale price seems low by contrast to other such works.

As Carlos Marcial noted:

An even stronger and broader critique came from Black Dave:

He went on to share a thread that dug deeper into his concerns regarding the final sales prices of “Black women, female-identifying & non-binary artists.”

The fact that the community is discussing a broader range of identities than one typically encounters at a Sotheby’s auction is testament to the co-curation of Robert Alice and Sotheby’s associates. However, l’arc-en-ciel pointed out the lost opportunity to include an additional woman artist through the community recommendation process:

Given the historical importance of this auction for the NFT and crypto art communities, it would be well worth a researcher’s time to take a closer look at the artists based on identity, sales history, media coverage, and final prices. It would also be worth asking collectors why they chose to purchase specific pieces and what went into decisions about how much to spend. 

Hopefully such research could provide additional insights to support current and future efforts to create a more diverse and equitable crypto art ecosystem. For now, Sotheby’s Natively Digital sale marks an important moment for crypto art, while raising questions about how far the community has come to date.

 

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Twitter has been banned in Nigeria, a move rooted in short-sighted reactiveness as well as a long-standing ethnic conflict. The ban comes after Twitter and Facebook both deleted posts by Nigerian President Buhari in which he threatened genocide against the Igbo population of Nigeria’s southeast. This move, made in anger to save face, has seriously impacted not only exposure of the arts in general but the NFT artists living there in particular.

 

Background History

Nigeria won its independence from British rule in 1960, with the borders drawn encompassing almost 300 different ethnic backgrounds. There were three major groups amongst them; the Hasua-Fulani in the North, the Yoruba in the West, and the Igbo in the East. 

Hostilities have been rising in Nigeria as the government faces inner turmoil and six simultaneous insurrections. The Igbo lead one of these insurrections in a conflict that stretches back decades to Nigeria’s creation and the tumultuous years that ensued.

Despite being less active in Nigeria’s war for independence, the North contained more than half the population of 60 million Nigerians, so they were in control when Nigeria was born. Following 7 years of Hasua rule, the Igbo claimed election fraud against the ruling government and set up the secessionist state of Biafra in 1967. Massacres ensued. Between 600,000 and 3,000,000 people are estimated to have died.

Since then, the Hasua government has remained in power, albeit precariously. With rife corruption across the Nigerian government, economic conditions in the country have continued to deteriorate. The government finds itself in a position of fear and feels the need to showcase its strength, and assumes it could do so by threatening violence against the Igbo on Twitter. 

 

The Ban

When Twitter took down his post, Buhari was embarrassed but did nothing. When Facebook took down a similar post two days later, Buhari became enraged at these companies for silencing him. Realizing that banning Facebook could cause more dissent than it would be worth, Buhari set his sights on the easier target, Twitter. 

Two days after Twitter deleted Buhari’s tweet threatening genocide, the official government account tweeted that Twitter would be banned indefinitely for “undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence.” They used Twitter to ban Twitter. In a sadder twist of irony, the President’s reaction to being silenced was to enforce the same censorship upon the 200+ million people living within his borders.

 

The Impact 

This has a massive impact on Nigerians, many of whom rely on the platform for a living as entrepreneurs, influencers, and artists. At least a third of Nigerians are currently unemployed, giving Nigeria the third-worst employment rate in the world as of December 2020. The ban sets additional barriers on economic mobility, and this latest attempt at censorship displays the fragility of the current regime. 

According to freedommuse.org, the international non-governmental organization campaigning for freedom of artistic expression and cultural diversity, “Artists face a complex system of censorship carried out by a variety of actors, further complicated by multiple censorship boards. In addition to the national censorship boards, states such as Kano in the North and Lagos in the South even have their own censorship boards, with the consequence that artists and cultural producers of these states face double censorship mechanisms.” 

 

Over the past year, there are many brilliant Nigerian artists that have entered the NFT community. In March 2021, one of the leading NFT artists, Jacon Osinachi, sold his pieces “Mirror Mirror” and “Am I Pretty” for a solid 9ETH and 13.2ETH respectively. This was a tremendously important leap forward for all Nigerian artists and the crypto community as a collective. The use of Twitter has been shown to be the most important platform for generating NFT sales.

 

Furthermore, this ban sets a dangerous precedent if allowed to continue. Since this was an order put out by the President but not ratified as law by the National Assembly (NASS), it would mean the President can target any platform it wishes, no matter how unjustified. This not only threatens the many innocent Nigerians living there, but the tech industry that has been booming in the country in the past years.

The Censorship

What happens now? Nigerians stand deprived of access to Twitter, where a large, if not the largest segment of the NFT community lives. The use of Twitter is pivotal, especially for NFT artists, to promote not only their art but to share the stories behind the art and the daily struggles the artists face themselves. These struggles and restrictions result from a structure built by an oppressive regime systemically promoting censorship of the creative and innovative mind.

And yet, the Nigerian presence in the NFT community is strong and passionate. The abundance of beautiful art and the warmth of the Nigerian creators who made them have earned Nigeria a place in the hearts and minds of many people abroad. They’ve collectively put Nigeria on the decentralized map by instilling their roots in the NFTs they produce. Artists like Dammy, Tayo, Gbenga, and Mayor as well as Jacon and many others have brought so much beauty to the space; many abroad cannot separate the beauty they’ve seen from the Nigeria they imagine. This is what causes such great sadness among many as censorship is imposed on the beautiful souls they’ve met.

 

his piece, “Failed State,” is a social commentary on the current state of Africa. The skulls on the ground represent our African ancestors who lost their lives trying to make the continent better.
 
Artist: Owo Anietie
 

The Solution

Nonetheless, where an oppressive government tries to silence many, it is up to the community those many belong to raise their voices on their behalf. The impact Nigerian artists have had on the NFT community has been formative and will not be forgotten. It is up to this community now to help eliminate the impact of the censorship the Nigerian government is attempting to impose. By promoting Nigerian artists on every other platform, the community can ensure any impact to these brilliant artists is only temporary. By speaking with and for Nigerian artists, the NFT community can stand with an oppressed group inside it. By raising its voice to elevate theirs, the community can render the oppression of a government meaningless.

 

 

The title is Puff Supremacy and the purpose of this art so to celebrate the black woman and let them appreciate their hair texture more.
Artist: Taslemat Yusuf
This is an image Taiserat Yusuf’s my personal project titled “Boys Wear pink too” which challenges the stereotype in Nigeria as regards male gender in expressing themselves through their choice of style.
Artist: Taiserat Yusuf

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Igor Kourany – Genesis Drop on Makersplace, June 11, 2021, at 5pm PT

Igor Kourany is an extremely interesting and talented guy – super nice too! Born and raised in Panama, when he first got a glimpse of MTV, he “fell in love with the visual effects.” Early in his career, he got a primitive version of photoshop and started making images. Eventually becoming a professional architect, his artwork developed as the software did. After 10 years he began full-time art creation after putting a few of his pieces in his brother’s furniture store. Clients loved the work and it started selling.

He’s experimented with various mediums for over 20 years; including sculpture, painting, and a lot of photography. Igor has volumes of sketchbooks and plans out his ideas to a degree while leaving space for serendipity. He started out pouring paint over live models. “I wanted to simulate the aesthetic of Terminator and conquer the look of liquid humans.” As the paint was poured, he caught the action in a series of rapid photographs, often thousands. He then separately, painted mannequins, and later, on the computer, fused the images together to construct the finals, utilizing a vast array of software. The idea was to create a liquid simulation and capture the randomness of the phenomena of liquids coming into contact with solids. Developing this technique took years of trial and error. And the final look and methodology are truly unique. 

Igor’s works have been showcased in galleries throughout the world. He now brings his exclusive work practice to the NFT world in this debut drop. Three new pieces will be released each as a 1 of 1 on Makersplace. Each NFT will be paired with a large-scale print signed by the artist. These physical pieces are printed by Igor himself in his studio in Panama, so he can control the quality of which he is very adamant about. Each work will drop in auction format beginning June 11, 2021, at 5 pm PT and will continue until a reserve price is met triggering a countdown timer.

The address of the drop is: https://makersplace.com/igorkourany/

 

Milky Angel

Milky Angel, is a combination of CGI and photography employing models and mannequins. The milky white against the black allows for the viewer to really get a sense of splashing wetness, down to each drop.

 

Mujer Tabaco

Mujer Tabaco, is full on CGI down to the eyelashes. Here Igor gets to flex his obsession with the android, futuristic girl who can live forever so she can smoke tobacco! Her body is made of the strongest earthly material and is covered in a web of flowing gold veins.

Bubble Girl

Bubble Girl, pays homage to African culture, appropriating colors from African clothing into glass balls for hair. The light reflection off the glass in this CGI rendering is astounding.

To learn more about Igor and his process, check out the Apollo NFT Gallery in the 100x Art District in Decentraland which will be hosting an event tomorrow to celebrate the drop. 

All of Igor’s works celebrate the woman as a superhuman with futuristic aspirations. This drop is not to be missed!

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I recently had a zoom chat with Johan of Meme.com wherein we discussed his upcoming launch, how memes fit into blockchain and much more:

D: You’ve recently raised over 5 million in VC backing for this new meme blockchain project.  So, speaking about memes, what makes them so valuable in our society today?

J: I think they are the most fun way to tell stories.  They’re also very effective in getting the story told, and there’s also a really strong internal recognition as in “oh, I understand what this means.” This meme understands, and so do you.  It’s like this connection between people and it’s a lot of fun!  So that’s why I think it’s so powerful.  And that people can relate to it as well is a big part of it.  

So I’ve almost turned into when I talk I find myself more and more referring to memes. “It’s like that meme.”  You know? 

D: It’s become part of our vocabulary at this point, it’s not so foreign. 

J: Yeah exactly!

D: So for you, what’s the connection between memes and blockchain?

J: I think it’s the way to measure the value of the memes.  I think we are moving towards a trend where more and more things become financialized.  And the line between entertainment and speculation is blurring.  And so there I think that memes, and trying to determine the value of memes is a great way for people to speculate on the popularity of things, and try to ascribe value to them.  And that’s where crypto comes in.  

Meme.com

 

D: Excellent, and perfect transition. The first “meme currency” that gained popularity was Dogecoin. How do you feel about Dogecoin?

J: It’s definitely an inspiration, it’s the first time a token’s value came from a meme.  And it kind of opened the door to the notion that anything can be valuable as long as people agree that it is valuable.  So I think that it opened the door to much of our thinking, both around Marvel Cards but also around meme.com as well.  

D: Awesome.  The universal value, or ability to use technology to measure value has been discussed as being one of the most important elements of this whole space.  The certification aspects of NFTs or tokens.  So when you start to see different coins popping up, it makes sense that the ones that are the most popular are the ones that have the most pop-culture value.  So to me, it makes sense.  I’m also someone who has done a lot of research in this space – I did my master’s thesis on NFTs and DeFi. So this next question isn’t coming from a place of criticism – but more so just to get your opinion:

Hearing people use the term “Shitcoin” to describe something like Doge – how does that make you feel – or what is your response to those that tout similar projects as less than valid?

J: I think that people use “Shitcoin” because that’s just what they’ve always said when describing something that’s not Bitcoin.  In most cases, it is just used to describe something as a “non-Bitcoin-coin.” That being said, I can totally understand why people think that Dogecoin is a joke and we look at some of the other meme coins that have popped up recently and many of them are definitely not here for the long term.  But I think that the trend where people speculate on things where the value comes from the name of the coin for example. I think that it’s an interesting trend that will, moving forwards, be refined.  And we will see more interesting use cases pop up that tap into this speculation on trends.  

 

Verify Gems

 

 

D: And I think it also does tap into a little bit of the reality of all kinds of investments within this ecosystem.  A lot is, to a degree, speculation.  You can do your research, you can have 10-year projections; but they’re projections, right?  And I think something really interesting that a lot of companies have done is to just go to “Shitcoin” conferences – like the one that just happened in Miami.  And projects like Cardano were even there, projects that are new but really respected in the space.  And they’re almost embracing the term “shitcoin” as in – call us what you want.  How do you feel about that?  Do you see a future in almost “memefying” the response to these meme coins?

J: Sure – that’s marketing.  If they can get a result from that, then sure, why not.  I do think that the memetic layer of things – take something like Gamestop for example – where people bought into it just because it was a meme on Reddit. I think potentially more companies and coins will try to embrace that and capitalize on that somehow.  So we’ll probably see more and more weird attempts at getting this meme thing running. It will be interesting to see as I’m sure some will come up with interesting ways to achieve that.  So it will be interesting to follow.  

Earn Rewards at Meme.com

 

D: Absolutely, and again – perfect segue – thinking about some of these larger meme coin projects (like Doge or Shiba). A lot of the early adopters are trying to find more and more use cases for those currencies. Even being as simple as accepting them at their local businesses etc. How do you feel about that response from the community?  Do you see a future in people trying to find more use-cases for these coins?

J: I think the value of the coins comes from the value of their memes. And so, if I have a local business that accepts it, I don’t think it has much impact on the actual value of that coin. So I think for a meme coin to be successful, it simply has to have a very strong meme.  Which Dogecoin has, for example.  I think when it comes to meme.com – the coins are means to an end.  The goal of the platform is to try to quantify the value of the memes.  To see what is trending at the moment, what people believe in.  And so the platform itself can give value to the coins.  But I think that for standalone meme coins, the meme is everything.  So for it to be valuable it has to have strong marketing basically.  

D: That makes a lot of sense.  It sounds like something that you’re going to provide which doesn’t exist right now is the quantifiable data about specific memes and their popularity.  Maybe they can go on other sites and databases to see some information about the history, but they can’t really get stats, which people who are investing on any level really want.  So maybe with that in mind – to people who want to make the argument that this is investing and not gambling – what is your response to naysayers? 

J: So we like to describe ourselves as: if Wikipedia and Dogecoin had a baby.  And what we mean by that is – you have sites like Wikipedia, Knowyourmeme, etc. Where you can go to get the history, and maybe some extra links and content. But where it gets interesting is where we can actually get ‘skin in the game data.’ Where we can actually see that people are believing in this meme and putting money behind it.  Or people are creating NFTs around this meme which are selling for X amount. So I think it adds another layer of analytics or data when you add financial mechanics to it.  

D: Perfect. And I think that’s really what people need in the space right now to ease a lot of speculation.  And also just to have some specific projections in the space, so that’s awesome. So just wrapping things up, with this venture in mind – what’s the future of memes in crypto – is there anything in particular with this project that you’re particularly excited about at the moment? 

J: We’re launching the first version of the meme market in July.  Before we were Meme, we were Marvel Cards which is an NFT platform that has been around since 2018.  So we’ve been building that, and now we’re finally ready to start launching big sites that people can “Marvel” from.  So we just launched Spotify, our biggest launch yet. And we’re planning on launching Twitter and Instagram and YouTube in the coming two months. So we’ll correlate with the launch of meme.com hopefully and get a lot of people to engage.

Marble Panel Doge

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The Shitcoin conference was just held in Miami on June 3rd and 4th, just down the road from this year’s largest crypto event, the Bitcoin conference. According to the Shitcoin conference website, “Shitcoin 2021 is dedicated to all the companies that got turned away from participating in one of the largest crypto events.” the event slogan is “because F*ck Maximalism,” and I agree!

 

The event was masterminded by Kenn Bosak, a Bitcoiner since 2015. Bosak has traveled around the world attending over 200 Blockchain conferences, also happens to be one of the most well known NFT creators and influencers in the Wax blockchain ecosystem.  Kenn is great at creating an engaged and loyal community. I have seen first hand his generosity and commitment to his community and in helping others get into the NFT space. He was actually one of the influencers who made me fall in love with what I saw going on in the Wax NFT community.

 

Kenn Bosak NFT

See More Kenn Bosak NFTs Here 

 

One of the key takeaways I received from Kenn was that there is a shift taking place right now. Especially within the creative spaces wherein NFT creators and companies need to transition from acquiring customers to creating communities. This is all made more possible via the use of non-fungible tokens.

The wild, free and open vibe of the Shitcoin conference was evident as soon as you walked in the door. While I did not attend the Bitcoin conference for several reasons, the main one being that I am not a maximalist and personally believe that attitude to be completely anti-innovation, I did run into some incredible characters that I connected with who did attend the Bitcoin conference. One of them goes by the name @hyperspek who had this to say about the Bitcoin conference:

“The Bitcoin maxis really seemed to have blinders to the future of blockchain innovation.  Understandable for some who still have PTSD from getting rekt last cycle.  As they try to adapt an “old” technology not really designed for these applications, they will get left for dead by what is happening on ETH and other platforms.”

Hyperspek is an investor and NFT collector who also happens to be a virtual gallery builder. He showed me his gallery in Crypto Voxels and it was amazing, he likes to make art with other art and is quite good at doing so! His attention to details and his creativity was impressive. You can check out his awesome collection and gallery here

Hyperspek.io
Hyperspek.io

 

To me personally, being a Bitcoin maximalist is like saying “I like airplanes and what they allow, but not helicopters, planes without props or jet engines.

This kind of thinking is nonsensical and will not pass muster in the grand scheme of technological innovation. There will be many protocols, many will fail, but innovation and experimentation will dictate what survives.

The stark contrast of the Shitcoin conference and crowd was much more open to new ideas, fun, and was largely centered around NFTS. The atmosphere was younger, less refined, more tolerant, and brimming with excitement for the future of NFTs and blockchain technology.  It seems quite evident that there will be another event next year because the demand from the community is definitely there. Next year’s event will almost certainly be a few blocks away from the next Bitcoin conference as a statement against the very term “Shitcoin.”  Meant to encompass everything that is not Bitcoin, to include non-fungible tokens, and create something which the community can embrace and own.

 

Photos by Dynamic Eye Studios
Photo by Dynamic Eye Studios

 

The lineup of speakers at this year’s Shitcoin conference can be seen here, and I am sure next year’s event will improve on this.  Some interesting concepts that were discussed while I attended were: the fractionalized ownership of assets by blockcities, regenerative farming, and how blockchain can play a role during the Blockchain for Impact panel. In this particular talk,  Irina Litchfield, founder of Blockchain -Cubed, a blockchain technology consulting firm and adviser for Prochain Capital, discussed some innovative solutions.  

 

From Crypto hedge fund managers to NFT artists, defi protocol developers to musicians, comedians to filmmakers. The diversity represented within this year’s Shitcoin conference is more reflective in my opinion of what the future of NFTs and blockchain looks like. In all fairness, I do believe that an overwhelming majority of the crypto community are not in the cult of Bitcoin maximalist and do support innovation and advancement within this space.

 

Photo by Dynamic Eye Studios
Photo by Dynamic Eye Studios

 

 

Photo by Albert Polanco
Photo by Albert Polanco

 

 

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