The times, they have changed. The Web3 landscape is not what it once was. It's seen massive spikes in individual growth followed by blood in the streets due to over-inflated prices and some of the most robust products we've seen to date. In the end, everything always works out, but whether we're included in that is completely up to us.
I'm going to start this off with a little story around my most traumatic work experience that lead to me finding this space, and taught me one of life's greatest lessons.
The year was 2021, and I was a part of a team building a new product from scratch that revolutionized the way the company would operate (even after they shut us down). I was with the best and brightest who scaled this team from $0 to a $4m a year business using nothing but free software. I had been at the company for about 6 years and had always exceeded expectations and did more than my job description ever asked of me, was well respected by leaders of all departments, and had a clear growth trajectory ahead of me. Then the day came where the company introduced performance reviews. When I received mine, I was told that I "didn't meet expectations".
This sent my body into actual shock. How could a company that I gave so much too treat me in such a way? There was one problem that I had neatly evaded and entirely ignored until I couldn't anymore. I bestowed my whole being, happiness, and security in the hands of a single entity vs. myself.
People had told me for years to not do this, but I quietly ignored it until it blew up in my face and put me in such a bad state that I didn't sleep or eat for an entire week. This event opened the door to an industry we call Web3 that created tech where we quite literally don't have to be dependent on one single platform/entity for anything.
That said, in the beginning it was not available to someone without technical chops and we needed platforms filled with smart people to abstract some of the terrible UI/UX, thus centralizing art/media storage. Over the coming months and years, platforms like Manifold, Transient Labs, and Highlight came along to provide and democratize the tools that enable a higher level of sovereignty for artist to mint work.
As the bear market started to take hold, the market craved something new. Platforms like Zora & Rodeo ushered in a era of low cost/attention driven mints that met an entirely new set of collectors where they’re at. These platforms make culture accessible to new participants while simultaneously opening the door to buying higher priced works. All built on top of L2's and amplified by decentralized social networks like Farcaster & Lens which reduce friction and march towards the goal of bringing billions onchain.
Onchain Art. There has also been a strong desire to understand the tech on a deeper level and start exploring various levels of onchainness to increase durability and reduce external dependencies. While platforms like Artblocks paved the way to make long form generative art onchain, there was a large group of non-generative artists who still needed ways to make their work more durable. Pioneers like 0xdiid & bright_lightart have built tools to bring work onchain without being a generative artist.
Is the 2021/22 hype gone? Yes. But the amount of tools and tech that are available for free is at an ATH, and the artists I see doing very well are people who are leaning into the ones that makes sense for them and their practice.
Point is, there are infinite options available for us to be not overly reliant on one platform/chain/website, and that we should all take a collective step back to look at the landscape for what it is and adapt.
It’s my belief that this specific lesson is one that we must all go through, and is one of the most startling ones that has the ability to shake people to their core.
Just like companies are responsible for looking out for their own interest, It's also our responsibility as individuals to do the same for ourselves, and nobody will save you except yourself.
Art by @enixsta because it felt appropriate <3
