DIGITAL/NFT/AI

---

Funny how things work out. 

A year into the Covid pandemic like many artists I was at a loss as to what to do because the world had suddenly become very different and challenging in ways I had not expected. Instead of a wide world out there with street art murals and galleries and group exhibitions and a busy studio it became a very small world that seemed very claustrophobic and vast at the same time. 

In January 2021 I began to hear rumblings as did other artists of this new frontier that opened up called NFTs or Non Fungible Tokens. After watching copious YouTube videos about blockchains and crypto wallets (and getting very confused in the process) I jumped into the deep end of the pool and entered a very vibrant party. I became hooked to the app Clubhouse and those early days were wonderfully hedonistic with chat rooms running for hours at a time and artists both selling and buying. 

As with most things that burn brightly the speed with which the NFT space changed was gloriously disorientating as it reflected the volatile nature of the crypto markets.  The roller coaster analogy was very spot on! And in this playful melee I was able to experiment creatively and embrace digital formats which I wouldn’t have done if the pandemic had not happened. 

Since the recent crashes in the crypto realm the NFT space feels like it has been placed on hold somewhat but I have a feeling the concept and functionality will naturally adapt and reinvent itself. With the Metaverse and WEB 3 fast developing along with AI being so popular, the new exciting manifestations of NFTs will come for sure. What that will be we will have to wait and see.

Below are some images of NFTs I created From Jan 2021 to Apr 2022.

I love the whole conversation about AI. Whilst I do have my reservations like many artists I have also been using it as a great way to expand my creative vision and there is no denying the fact that AI has had for the most part a very positive impact on my artistic journey. 

I think the trick is to reclaim in your own unique style anything it produces. Like the character that became Max The Virus whilst playing around with the AI Art platform DALLE which now is moving forward on it’s own volition but it would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge my debt To AI. 

Also as you can see above it is great to put original artworks into the AI Art platforms to see how it changes them. This image with some surreal cyber punk vibes used https://www.mage.space which I am a huge fan of. I just need to reclaim the image and make it my own again. I read somewhere that someone called AI Art ”PROMPTOGRAPHY” which made sense to me because instead of capturing light it captures words and put them through a sequence of filters (Loras for those of you who do not know). Put your art through these filters and it feels you are collaborating with the AI more. 

Below is an eclectic collection of recent AI images I have done, so much to play with (and slightly more dynamic than Pinterest.