Compress-ion-ism: A movement of artists creating and storing art permissionlessly for maximum "durability" on Ethereum.
But what does permissionlessness and durability have to do with an art movement? Everything.
We are at a pivotal moment where technology simultaneously accelerates and suppresses the flow of information. Cryptography is merely the latest advancement in this ongoing revolution, following the internet, cellular communication, the printing press, and even double-entry accounting. Each of these innovations shifted the balance of power, removing control from centralized authorities and distributing it to the masses.
Before these breakthroughs, information was tightly controlled by elites. Most of the population couldn’t read or write, and those in power curated what could be known. The printing press changed that, enabling mass production and dissemination of information across society. Double-entry accounting revolutionized how individuals tracked economic transactions, fostering a new economy. Cellular communication allowed us to exchange ideas on the go, while the internet gave everyone with access the potential for unlimited learning. Cryptography, however, elevated this revolution by allowing information to be transacted without intermediaries, putting power directly into the hands of the individual.
Each of these technologies empowered humanity in profound ways.
Yet, as we enter this next phase of technological acceleration, we also confront a tool with the capacity to destroy humanity. A tool that can just as easily control and suppress as it can liberate. This technology processes vast amounts of information at speeds previously unimaginable. It performs the work of thousands at a fraction of the cost. It has the potential to reshape society as we know it—and in many ways, it already has.
Soon, this technology may determine what information is deemed "important," curating and controlling what we see, know, and believe.
This is where the power of permissionless, decentralized cryptography shines. In a decentralized system, no single entity rules over the information. There’s no gatekeeper, no intermediary deciding what is or isn’t allowed to flow through the system.
On-chain art on Ethereum, for me, represents this principle. It’s a permissionless, decentralized, immutable FUCK YOU to the centralized powers that seek to suppress information. It’s the purest and most verifiable form of free expression humanity has ever had. Users decide what they engage with, what they transact, and what they choose to believe.
Enter "FOOD."
This is my protest piece—a resistance to the centralized powers that work to hide the atrocities humans inflict on animals. Most of us are aware of the horrors that we subject other species to. We rationalize, ignore, and turn a blind eye. By doing so, we've trained emerging technologies to do the same. We've conditioned them to treat these atrocities as unspoken, unspeakable.
"FOOD" cannot be ignored. It’s information that will endure as long as freedom of information endures. It stands as a testament to what decentralized, permissionless, immutable technology can achieve—a symbol of a reality that cannot be suppressed, even when we try to silence it from our own consciousness.