Talad Concept

A legacy of the ancient Greeks, forever to be there.

Of love and war, of stories yet to be told.

A symbol of the ancient Greeks, forever to depart.

A message to the world, a history to be seen,

Of myths and legends, stories of dwelling.

A rare and precious legacy of ancient Greek pottery.

And the tales they tell, forever to hold.

So let us appreciate the beauty of ancient Greek pottery, a piece of art that tells the story of the past and will be cherished forever.

A reflection of the culture and the way of life,

A story of the ancient Greeks, forever to shine.

A legacy of a people, forever to be cherished,

A testament to the ancient Greeks' artistry,

A treasure of the past, forever to be a part of history.

So let us appreciate the beauty of ancient Greek pottery,

A treasure of the past, forever to be cherished and admired.

A legacy that tells the story of a people,

And will forever be an inspiration for the future.

A Window to the Past: Uncovering the Story of Ancient Greek Culture

The Vases of Time: A Poem on the Legacy of Ancient Greek Pottery

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FemGen, a one-day event & exhibition, was held on 3rd December 2022 during Art Basel Miami highlighting artists identifying as women amongst the generative art and creative coding community.

Step into the world of Sasha Stiles, a first-generation Kalmyk-American poet, artist, and AI researcher who is pushing the boundaries of literature and technology. As the co-founder of crypto literary collective 

, Stiles is a trailblazer in the field of generative literature and has been honored with a Future Art Award, nominated for the Forward Prize, Pushcart Prize, and Best of the Net. 

Her work, which blends her own words and images with those produced using Artificial Intelligence, exploring the intersection of text and technology, and the evolution of poetry from the oral tradition; to written language; to metaversal literature. Beyond exhibitions and accolades in the Web3 and NFT spheres, both virtually and IRL, Sasha Stiles is a beacon whose impact is inspiring a new generation of female leaders in the field.

I was incredibly moved and impressed by the CODE/ART display, featuring “future self portraits” from the Self-Portrait Coding Competition for Girls. Getting a glimpse at what these grade school students have their sights set on for the future was a highlight of FEMGEN and all of Miami Art Week for me.

I count the humanoid android BINA48 as an important role model — she has taught me a lot about what it means to collaborate creatively with a machine. Language pioneers like Alison Knowles and Allison Parrish inspired me to teach myself the basics of code so I could begin to fine-tune custom text generators via OpenAI and write transhuman poetry.

Despite all the ways we are trying to build better futures, deep-rooted systemic biases persist, and the most “successful” generative artists by many metrics are men. I applaud FEMGEN’s mission to create space for those who deserve it; to showcase the astonishing algorithmic work being done by women and nonbinary artists; to highlight the vital role women have played in the history of computing; and to facilitate essential conversations that can lead to real change.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg famously said, “When I’m asked ‘When will there be enough women on the Supreme Court?,’ and I say, ‘When there are nine,’ people are shocked. But there’d been nine men, and nobody’s ever raised a question about that.” I can’t wait for a time when shows and panels are helmed entirely by women artists without the need for the words “women” or “female” in the title or messaging.

As a writer, my failsafe method for overcoming a creative block or learning something new is always to hit the books. Books — printed, digital, audio, in any shape or form — are my happy place and my favorite collaborators. Going for a long walk in nature is always a good idea, too — it always helps disparate ideas click together in my brain.

Thank you! I’m very honored to be among the first writers ever to bring a literary NFT to sale at a major auction house. This AI-powered poem also represents the leading edge of a new era in generative storytelling and augmented imagination, so I’m thrilled that it was acquired by 1of1 Works, a collection dedicated to the defining digital art and culture of the 21st century. It’s surreal to see a poem of mine alongside work by the likes of Beeple and Refik Anadol, and I think it suggests an incredibly exciting future for writers empowered by web3 — a future in which poems have cultural currency, liberated from between the covers of books and valued in their own right as works of art. But I need to add: I’ve been making digital poems and writing with AI for years, and I’ve endured a lot of rejection, ignorance and ridicule along the way. I kept at it because it’s what fascinated me and fired up my curiosity, not because it was popular or lucrative (quite the opposite!). And that’s my best advice for other artists: follow your obsessions, not the market, not the trends, not the crowd.

As a writer, it’s been my lifelong goal to publish books. I grew up devouring books, depending on books, being nourished by books. It means a great deal to me to be able to share my work with readers in this way. “Technelegy” isn’t just a printed book, though; it’s an ongoing project that involves collaboration with my AI-powered alter ego, and an investigation of the many ways that literature can be written and experienced with the help of digital innovations in web3, the metaverse, and beyond. There will be more to this project released in 2023…

L’Avant Galerie Vossen — Analog Binary Code

Being part of the Tezos ecosystem is fundamental to my journey in web3 and as a futurist poet and artist. I am constantly inspired by the creativity I see all around me, and it’s a privilege to be able to collect and support visionary artists. I’m particularly committed to collecting exciting examples of digital literature in many genres and styles, with a focus on poetry. I truly believe that poetry is the original blockchain — a data storage system for our most essential human beliefs, emotions, ideas, stories — and that poems from this point in time will become historic artifacts of a pivotal moment in human history, with consequences perhaps even more far-reaching than the invention of written language and the advent of the printing press.

Leading Women In Web3 Series

FemGen — A Conversation With Sasha Stiles

The Sense of Value

Art designing is an engineering discipline that has a deep connection with culture. It 

s the tool to create information in the shape of an image, video, or some other object. When the art designer completed his work, his masterpiece always turns into a commodity. Art & Design always attract people's attention to elements in culture and society. It provides the hidden knowledge of words that could not be possible to tell others. Art and design have a variety of topics and ideas. Some artist creates a design that reflects cultural pinpoints. And some art designers create their work to enhance someone's beauty.

People often consider art & design as the combination of shapes, colors, and concepts. But in reality, musicians, painters, sculptors, and architects are all artists and designers. They create masterpieces through their imagination. There are many types of artists in the world, but those artists who belong to social groups always edify people through their work. People across the globe collect art in order to improve their quality of life. The artist always benefited when people's taste rises, This will encourage artists to create more and more art designs that have some meaning in life.

If your artist's work is the pursuit of beauty and originality. Then his creativity will become the driving force for social and economic development. But he needs to focus on how his creativity encourages social values and meets people's spiritual needs.

Humans always used language to transfer knowledge and communicate with each other. The words of human language are closely related to mind analysis or conclusions. But human language words are not guaranteed what is hidden in the mind. Since ancient times, humans created many artworks that are influenced by that era's cultural heritage. The art & design times always reflected the inner feelings of society.

Some countries in the world have more art and design awareness. For example, Nordic countries such as the Netherlands and Denmark with little populations but superb art and design awareness. The people in both countries always emphasize and encourage art and design compared than showing wealth to others.

The creation of artwork depends on the skills of the art designer. People give more attention to such artwork that gives them inspiration about very close associations between culture and society. Since ancient times, human society is largely influenced by religion and technological advancements. You can find many such artworks in museums across the globe.

Art design is never a problem for the artist. But the actual problem is how to draw the relationship between art, culture, and the consumer. An artist takes several weeks or months to complete an artwork. If the key point is not addressed in art creation, all the efforts of the artist get wasted.

The creation of art also never depends on specific material. For example, since ancient times, people create art in their homes. Some people create art on daily usage items. And some on jewelry. The Art creation has no restriction on the material to use. The artist can paint his work on a variety of pieces and objects.

If you want to become an artist then you can start your journey with Anti-drug, anti-smoking, anti-war, and protection of women and children. There are many more themes you can adopt for your creativity. If the art concept has some emotional connectivity or in-depth interpretation of cultural background. Always activates and enhances people's attention. Increase the people's conscience and sense of responsibility.

If you are new to art and design, then you should know that a good design always communicates with people. If art and design touch the spiritual association of society. Such artwork always generates a huge social influence. Art must impact society positively and must obey social rules. In fact, the social rules of a society are never written on paper but always in the memories of the people of that society.

What is Art and Design? What Are the Elements of Art and Principles of Design?

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As an artist, I understand the importance of discussing and considering various perspectives on this issue. While these thoughts are my own, I value and respect the opinions of others. I aim to have an open and helpful conversation on the topic.

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AI has been a part of our daily lives longer than text-to-image generators or ChatGPT. In fact, if you own a smartphone and use it to take photos, you are already using AI in some capacity.

This technology is not only limited to iPhones, as all smartphones incorporate AI to varying degrees. So, chances are, you are already using AI on a regular basis without even realizing it.

AI plays a significant role in photography processing on smartphones. It analyzes & selects the best shot from hundreds of images that the camera captures when you press the shutter and helps with what to focus on when you direct the camera, such as people, flowers, or animals

But how does AI recognize and distinguish between these different subjects?

After all, to the camera, they are simply arrays of pixels. 

The answer lies in the use of machine learning algorithms, which allow the AI to analyze and classify the pixels based on patterns

Through training on vast amounts of data, AI can accurately identify & label various objects/scenes. This is just one example of how AI is becoming increasingly integrated into our daily lives and changing how we interact with technology.

Machine Learning (ML) is what allows AI to recognize and classify objects in images.

 Through training on large datasets containing millions of images, the AI can learn what features define a cat, dog, or person, for example. 

These datasets are often compiled by scraping images from the internet, including those shared by artists. In this way, text-to-image generators like 

 may also use the same images used to train AI to create new images based on text inputs.

While these advancements in AI have the potential to bring significant benefits, it is important to consider the ethical implications and ensure that proper credit and compensation are given to the creators of the images being used.

I have noticed that some artists have expressed frustration over the use of their images to train AI systems like MidJourney or DALL-E, and the subsequent use of those systems to generate art that is then monetized.

However, it is worth noting that tech giants like Apple and Google also generate significant profits by using AI and machine learning. Yet, these companies do not face the same level of criticism.

This raises the question: is the issue with using artists' images to train AI, or is it that smaller players are profiting from the resulting art? Regardless, it is important to address the concerns of artists and ensure that their work is fairly compensated and credited.

If your images are publicly available on the internet, 

it is highly likely that they are being used and utilized by AI systems in some way.

 It is also possible that someone is profiting from the use of your images, either through the sale of AI-generated art or through the use of your images to train the AI and improve its performance.

I can understand why some artists may feel upset if their work is used to train AI systems and the resulting art is very similar to theirs. However, if the images created by AI are significantly different from the original artwork, 

I do not see a reason to be unhappy about it.

In fact, the use of AI to generate new and unique art can be seen as an opportunity for artists to explore and experiment with new styles and techniques. It can also bring greater exposure and recognition to the artist's work.

It is clear that AI art is an emerging & growing field that is here to stay. While it is understandable to have concerns and express complaints about the use of AI in art, it would be more productive to embrace it and explore ways to work with it rather than resist it.

There are many exciting possibilities that AI art can offer, from opening up new creative possibilities for artists to allowing for the creation of art that would be otherwise impossible for humans to create.

By embracing AI as a tool and finding ways to integrate it into our artistic practices, we can continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in the art world and create truly innovative and unique works.

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Artists should embrace it instead of fighting it!

Why AI Art is Inevitable 

Sarah Ridgley is a generative artist based in the USA whose work focuses on reflecting the human hand in collaboration with the computer, and themes from the natural world in a completely code-driven way. The use of p5.j5 processing and javascript across her art blends a hand-drawn aesthetic with code: unveiling the beauty of generative repetition. In designing bespoke algorithmic brushes to complete each piece she is able to coax computers into creating beautiful, organic shapes and lines.

Her work, process, and thought leadership are venerated as much for their authenticity as for the signature highly-ordered chaos . This is symbolised by the dialectic between writing very organized instructions to direct the code, but then introducing random parameters for the computer to try an infinite variety of results. As a leading international artist, her insights offer potent advocacy and nourishment towards the ongoing pursuit of equal opportunity within (and without) the web3 ecosystem. 

My favorite part of FemGen was seeing all the different works by so many artists I love displayed together. It gave this beautiful message on the breadth of creativity from females working with technology and code. I was also happy to see the Code/Art student projects included in the exhibition. It’s so important to encourage young women and get them excited about pursuing creative coding, and what better way than the thrill of being part of an exhibition.

I’m not sure what exactly sparked my interest in coding. I had a website for my print work, and I was interested in learning more about web design and how to use JavaScript. While I was researching that, I came across p5js and the world of creative coding, and it really resonated with me. I never really realised that you could make art using code, but once I started seeing all the different work people had made, I knew that I wanted to do that myself.

My first instinct when I started working with code was to give my work a more natural feel, and to lean away from strictly mathematical outputs into something more organic. I had this desire to reflect my own hand working together with the computer, and that meant adding some imperfections to the perfectly straight lines and shapes that computers are so good at doing. I think each artist approaches this in their own way, and the search for pushing yourself into your work is part of what makes each artist unique.

Some of the first generative artists I came across were Jared Tarbell, Tyler Hobbs, and Anders Hoff. They all have such a lovely way of working with code to create organic shapes and texture, and inspired me that the ideas I had could actually be realised with code. I also spent a lot of time watching Daniel Shiffman’s videos (The Coding Train) which would always make me laugh even when I was near tears trying to solve an issue. Vera Molnar is another artist I greatly admire. I found her ‘Lettres à ma mère’ when I was working on early versions of my own lettering algorithm, and I was delighted to see a female pioneer of generative art working with both code and asemic writing.

I see the FemGen movement as an important mission to raise awareness of the issues facing women working with code, and in the web3 space in general. In order to create a healthy ecosystem, all voices need to be heard. Including the voices of people with a wide range of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives is much more likely to generate truly innovative ideas and approaches. At the pace web3 is developing, it’s so important to start right now to make sure that we are being as inclusive as possible in both the artistic communities and the platforms being built.

Diversity builds trust and inclusivity. When a community is more diverse, it is more likely to represent the needs and concerns of the broader population, and this can help increase credibility and widespread adoption. In both the art world and the tech world, women have historically been under-represented. Movements like FemGen help shine a spotlight on women working in these areas, and celebrate and encourage them to keep pushing forward.

Education and awareness are critical for creating a culture that values and supports inclusion. I am already so impressed with the support that FemGen received, and that so many people are insisting on the importance of diversity within the ecosystem. It’s very encouraging, and as more people start to realise the huge benefits it will have, I am confident they will want to support this vision.

Creative block is a real issue that I confront quite often. I usually start a project with some kind of idea or technique that I want to pursue, and the initial results are generally far from what I was imagining. This can be very frustrating, and in order to keep myself moving forward I have to remind myself that this always happens in the beginning. I try to break things down into smaller steps, and then even smaller steps so that I always have something I can adjust or play around with and never feel truly stuck. There is a lot of experimentation involved in building an algorithm for a generative art project, and one of the most important techniques for me is to push the different variables really far to see if something interesting will start to happen.

When I first started learning to code, I read a ton of different books and tried to expose myself to as many techniques as I could. I felt (and still feel) limited by the things I didn’t know, so I wanted to know everything. This is a continuous journey, but it keeps me excited and engaged with my work.

I have only done a few collaboration projects so far, but it is always a wonderful experience. I love getting input and new ideas from other people, and the critical feedback between us is my favourite part. I’ve never worked with someone else as far as building code together, but it is on my list of things I want to do. I know I would learn so much from an experience like that.

I really love both platforms, and they each provide amazing opportunities for generative artists and collectors. Art Blocks was truly revolutionary when it launched. It was the first platform to seamlessly allow generative artists to use the blockchain to provide provenance for their work, and solved so many issues for how to integrate and store the code on-chain. They have also done a fantastic job of bringing attention to the world of generative art and the long history of artists working with code.

To me, the biggest difference between Art Blocks and Fxhash is the way the projects are stored. Art Blocks stores the code immutably on the blockchain, so that as long as Ethereum exists, a collector can always access it and recreate their NFTs, even if Art Blocks itself were to disappear. I love knowing that the code for Himinn is stored permanently on the blockchain and that my clouds will live on as long as Ethereum exists.

Fxhash stores the code in IPFS, which is a bit different, but also allows generative artists other forms of creativity. IPFS does not have the data restrictions that storing the code directly on-chain has, so artists can utilise things like source images, fonts, and extra libraries that cannot feasibly be stored on-chain because of their size. This is a trade-off of course, because those off-chain assets could theoretically be lost over time, although platforms like ClubNFT are working to help with that issue.

I have actually experienced what happens when a generative art platform folds, and the importance of how the code is stored. My project Memory of Nymphaeas was released on the Endless Ways platform, and the code for the project was permanently stored on the Tezos blockchain. The platform unfortunately had to close after the initial launch, but because the code was stored on-chain, my project still exists and lives on.

Fxhash launched at a time when Ethereum fees were extremely high and the environmental concerns of using Ethereum was an important consideration for many artists. They solved this by using Tezos, which has very low power consumption and low fees. Fxhash also has an open policy and allows basically anyone to create a project, without going through any lines or curation. This is especially enticing for newer generative artists, as it gives them a way to experiment with long form generative art and what it takes to successfully create a project, at a much lower risk.

It’s also a lot faster to release a project on Fxhash. The demand for Art Blocks is high, and the waiting period can be prohibitive if you are working with a deadline for an exhibition. This waiting period has caused me to release a few projects on Fxhash that I might have put on Art Blocks. So that’s something else for an artist to consider.

Overall, both platforms offer fantastic opportunities for generative artists looking to use the blockchain. I’ve had the honour of meeting Snowfro (Art Blocks) and Ciphrd (Fxhash), and they are just amazingly kind and genuine people with a real heart for helping artists.

I would also caveat that this is not legal advice. Each artist should consult their own legal advisor with questions about copyright as it pertains to their work.

The ownership of copyright in a work of art really comes down to who was the actual creator of the work. In general, copyright law protects original works of authorship that are fixed in a tangible form. This includes works of art created with the assistance of a computer. “Assistance” of the computer is a key factor.

There are many approaches to generative art, and different ways an artist might utilize the computer within their processes. Some artists may see the computer as an almost sentient collaborator, and find that the computer is extremely involved in the creative choices being made in the work. Others, like myself, might see the computer as more of a tool to help explore a vast possibility space, but never truly free to make a creative choice that is outside of our defined limitations. Although the computer may respond to some of my requests in unique or unusual ways, I feel that these results still come from within the limitations that I have set for it.

I think NFTs are a monumental development for digital art in that they allow ownership and proveable authenticity to a digital work, while still letting everyone see and enjoy it. Unless explicitly stated, NFTs do not give the owners the copyright to the work, but rather a license to use and enjoy it. This licence also usually includes the right to resell the NFT. This works the same way as purchasing a physical painting or sculpture or other media. The artist retains the copyright, but the collector owns the object and can display it and prove their ownership and control of the object. The owner of a work of art, whether physical or digital, does not own the underlying copyright to the work, unless it has been explicitly granted to them from the artist, or the work is in the public domain.

Of course, there are grey areas in every part of the law, and there are some interesting questions that arise with long form generative art. Because the original collector of the work plays a part in the creation process, in that when they click the “buy” button, the unique hash that is used to form the output is generated. Does this act mean that they might have a claim to some level of ownership of the particular output they had a part in creating? I don’t know the answer to that, but it is something to think about.

Another interesting question is whether the code or the output is the actual artwork. The code is the specific instructions that tell the computer what to do and how to generate the final output. This code reflects the artist’s creative choices and decisions, and is used to generate all the various iterations in a series of work. The final output is the actual visual representation of the work that is experienced by the viewer, and is typically what is most closely associated with the concept of “art” in a traditional sense. In my opinion, both the code and final output are integral parts of the work.

Decentralized technologies such as blockchain and smart contracts have the potential to revolutionize many aspects of the way we live and work. The law, and interpretation of existing law, is constantly changing as the legal framework for this is still being developed. In law, we often find precedent in cases decided over a century ago, so seeing things change so fast in this space is astounding.

This was such a great panel and subject to really dive into. My main takeaway was how important it is to simply talk about these issues and keep having these conversations. The old power structures and biases must be addressed and actively dealt with so that the community can grow in a healthy way.

There has been a lack of diversity in tech for a long time, and without a broader range of perspectives, how can we encourage and welcome women to participate? It will take a commitment from everyone to create an open environment where anyone feels comfortable to join.

There was also a mutual observation made that we need more female role models in this space. This is imperative to encourage participation and help women visualize a journey they could follow. I feel like all the women that participated in FemGen, the speakers, artists, and everyone involved in the exhibition, are excellent examples of amazing role models.

Leading Women In Web3 Interview Series

FemGen — A Conversation With Sarah Ridgley

Ana Maria Caballero is a first-generation Colombian-American poet and artist. Widely recognized as a web3 poetry pioneer, her work with poetry on the blockchain has been featured in publications such as Right Click Save, Forbes, Entrepreneur, and Elle UK. Believing that poems are works of art, she cofounded literary gallery theVERSEverse and is the recipient of the Beverly International Prize, Colombia’s José Manuel Arango National Poetry Prize, and a Sevens Foundation Grant. 

Her work has been widely published and exhibited internationally including the FemGen presentation of the 

 poem with visuals coded in p5js. As an artist innovator at the vanguard of web3, poetry, and generative art her insights are invaluable in cultivating the presence, impact and unlimited potential of women in the space. 

I love Sarah Ridgley’s work, which invokes elements of play and craft that resonate deeply. These values are facets I aim to incorporate in my own practice as well. Connie Bakshi’s work is very moving, sharing a soulfulness that is uniquely hers. Additionally, I loved Molly Apop’s piece, which I actually collected at FemGen!

I took my first steps in coding thanks to the VCA Residency: especially the hands-on tutorials. I was lucky enough to make a friend at the Residency, Anna Lucia, who is a great coder. She pointed me to resources like “The Coding Train” Youtube Channel by Daniel Schiffman. I began playing around with code and realized I could use it to turn ideas into artworks. How surprised I was to discover this was within my reach! I’m an entry level coder, so to bring an idea and concept to fruition, I lean on so many resources and partnerships.

For instance, Raphaël de Courville’s tutorials are invaluable (these are available for all to watch on the VCA Residency’s youtube channel). My fxhash project collaborator — Heiroglyphica — is also an absolutely wonderful source of knowledge and a natural teacher. With a good idea, time, and devotion, coding is possible for anyone.

City Life 6 by Ana Maria Caballero and Ivona Tau

FemGen’s mission is to truly elevate women artists who involve code in their practice and to expand on what code means. I love that Micol and Alex included poets such as Kalen Iwamoto, Sasha Stiles, and myself in their curation; broadening viewpoints by including other practices is a fantastic approach. This movement is only just getting started, and its significance will become brighter and clearer as time passes. FemGen has planted a flag on a newly discovered moon, but we still haven’t realized how vast this moon is, how deep its craters reach. The artists in the show have so much more to give. Iskra Velitchkova and Ivona Tau, for instance, create pieces that are always moving, intelligent and unique in their manifestation.

It’s a matter of iteration and re-iteration. We understand certain things via repetition. Messages must be delivered over and over until they crystallize. A lot of exhibitions and events are designed to be ephemeral, which can be a shame. However, I don’t doubt the teams at VCA and Right Click Save will inspire others in the ecosystem by rigorously putting forth FemGen’s mission time and time again. This will guarantee FemGen’s place in history and its impact.

I’d love to see these same artworks from Miami exhibited somewhere else, for example. It would be amazing to continue the conversations started in Miami in different settings, connecting more people with this beautiful collection. The idea of the travelling show is not new and is effective for a reason. Museums often share exhibitions, introducing communities around the world to themes that shift social consciousness.

I don’t limit my artworks to my knowledge. My poem for FemGen presents an unexpected take on pregnancy and maternity. For the accompanying visuals, I wanted to evoke different manifestations of circularity, which could be construed as representative of time, entrapment, repetition, and inevitability on a symbolic level. Of course, circularity is also evocative of the biological side to pregnancy — the egg, the replication of the zygote, the swelling of the belly. So I embarked on a number of tutorials on different iterations of circles. Planets, time, circles replicating, circles forming, un-forming and reforming. My approach is to ask: what do I want to do? Then, what are the resources? First comes the poem. The reading, the code, the visuals are all there to support the poem.

I believe that part of theVERSEverse’s success lies in our ability to convey a very clear message: poem = work of art. Why are poems not exhibited and collected as art? Why aren’t poems typically in museums? Why aren’t poems in major art collections? Why are poems not transacted? These are straightforward questions. People have understood these questions, resonated with them, and joined in asking them.

Though poetry is revered, this reverence hasn’t translated into currency, or into agency. Being able to change this feels exciting even for people who haven’t been directly involved with poetry in the past. I also think that new thinking finds fertile ground in the web3 community. We are blessed with a fascinating and collaborative community, where fresh ideas are valued and embraced. There’s a real desire to support visions that come from a good place, especially if they are delivered in clear, earnest ways.

My own work also tends to be very straightforward. When we embellish and over-adorn language, it’s often because we’re afraid of sitting with our emotions. My poetry is rooted in the deeply personal details of my day. Our desires, regrets, quests for purpose are inseparable from the logistics of living. We rip envelopes, answer emails, towel children, boil eggs, all while pondering the ultimate meaning of our existence. I believe that only brutally honest writing can be relatable–much less universal. Much of my most recent work explores how biology determines heteronormative societal rites, ripping the veil off romanticized motherhood — particularly notions that package female sacrifice as virtue. I like to employ rhyme, which, in conversational texts, becomes a marked departure from our normal speech patterns and has the power to add intention, play, and subversion to a text. I think that the element of play welcomes readers. People who perhaps were intimidated by poetry at some stage of their life feel at home in my often simple and playful poems.

The Public, by Joëlle Snaith and Ana Maria Caballero

We are always in collaboration, even when we are working alone. John Donne wrote “no man is an island” and that rings true especially when we consider all the influences, tools, technologies, and processes we lean on to create. Intertextuality weighs heavily in my own work, which has turned me into a very slow reader. I stop regularly to write scraps of verse inspired by what I’m reading.

I think there is a lack of understanding in what co-creation means. Perhaps we are not used to seeing it. Literary collaboration (outside of academic papers) especially is new, very few authors co-write high-brow literature. That’s beginning to change, with some literary journals now offering collaborative categories. Two of my former professors Denise Duhamel and Julie Marie Wade wrote a book together called 

“The Unrhymables: Collaborations in Prose”.

I collaborate often, and it’s wonderful because it invites surprise, which can yield dazzling results. My collaborations with Joëlle Snaith for instance have resulted in works that are magical because we welded our practices together. We value and respect our contributions equally. What’s more, we get to then share the results of our efforts together, in community, which adds to the creative experience as well.

First, it helps to have an open mentality if and when you are approached. Most of the collaborations I’ve done resulted from artists reaching out to mẹ. You also want to collaborate with someone with whom you have an affinity. Energy doesn’t lie. Listen to it. I like to build warm relationships with the people with whom I collaborate. When this doesn’t happen it blocks the creative process and can be a sign to step away.

Also, if you can, it’s very rewarding to collect the work of other artists. Most of what I’ve earned via sales I’ve put back into the community by collecting other’s work. I believe that collecting the art we want to see in the world is important. A case in point is the Unsigned project by Operator and Anika Meier, which I believe to be truly important and affordable in terms of its relevance.

I respect people who fearlessly, shamelessly, and thoughtfully put their work out in the world. It takes a lot of courage to create, and more so to share what we make with the world. I used to be terrified of doing this, but I guess I got too old to not be brave. There needs to be soul, heart, and craft. Play is important, too. When art is too cerebral it becomes hard for me to connect with it. Part of VCA’s contribution to the space radiates from Micol’s endlessly generous heart. I put my own heart into theVERSEverse. When there is heart in artworks, others can feel and connect with this energy. It’s quite powerful.

FemGen—A Conversation With Ana María Caballero

Author Magazine Cover Design + Danielle King: 

Danielle King is the CFO/COO of ClubNFT, a writer at Right Click Save, and former manager of the Department of Painting and Sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art, in addition to being a founding member at Tender Art amongst several positions and accolades. 

As both panel moderator and sponsor of FemGen, her perspective and contributions meaningfully drove the conversation forward in impactful ways aspirationally captured in the ensuing follow up interview.

Seeing so many amazing, talented, brilliant women in one place in real life. I’m a huge fan of so many who were in attendance, so being in the same room and having conversations with them was very special. My company ClubNFT co-sponsored the event, and it was my first time moderating a panel IRL. That was a fantastic — if a bit scary! — experience.

I am not a coder, but am fascinated by code based art. I would like to learn to code but I would be starting from zero. My own work is created using AI technologies. After a period of collecting AI art, I began experimenting with platforms like MidJourney, and have been thrilled to find such a wonderful creative outlet. I have a background in studio art and art history — my art practice was focused on photography and film, and also some mixed media.

Career-wise I have been mostly focused on business and finance — I have an MBA, and worked on Wall Street as well as in managerial and financial roles at museums and galleries. My introduction to the Web3 space was through Jason Bailey (aka Artnome), my boss at ClubNFT, who was exceptionally kind in setting me up with a wallet, sending me some Tezos, and showing me around on Hic et Nunc. This sent me down a collecting rabbit hole I’m not sure I’ve emerged from. At night after the kids go to bed I find time for my collecting and art making. CFO by day, artist by night.

I see the mission as promoting and empowering female artists in the space. There’s so much talent here — unfortunately, the work of female artists doesn’t command as high a price as male artists. This is true in the traditional art world and in web3. I hope that bringing visibility to the issue, and having these honest conversations, will help change that.

Initiatives like FemGen can also help with creating safe spaces for female artists, curators, and collectors to express their thoughts and feelings openly and honestly. If you’re the only woman on a panel with all men you might not say the same things as you would in this type of environment, so it’s really important for spaces like this to exist, otherwise a lot of ideas and opinions may not be expressed.

More conversations. More events. More exhibitions featuring female artists. We need to onboard more female collectors to the space as there is a real disparity there. Most artists are collectors, so that drives a lot of female peer to peer collecting. However, as far as I can tell, male collectors vastly outnumber female collectors. A question we need to constantly ask is how do we make web3 friendlier for female newcomers?

I was lucky because I came to the space via Artnome, who is well known, so having him as my friend and colleague helped me meet many people in the community. I would say being your genuine self is key — if you are passionate about art, that shows in how you interact with the community. That’s how I’ve built meaningful relationships and friendships with like minded people. And then collaborations often come organically from these relationships.

People spend a lot of money on their NFTs, and develop emotional connections to them. If anything happened to my collection that would be a big loss for me. In the current climate with such volatility in the markets, there will be platforms and marketplaces going down.

If you backup your collection with ClubNFT, this will ensure your NFTs don’t go with them. it’s incredibly easy: you just go to the 

 website to sign up, enter your Tezos and/or Ethereum wallet address(es), we find the all files associated with your NFTs, and send you a backup, which is yours to keep and save where you wish (on a hard drive, on the cloud, etc).

Right Click Save is intent on publishing a broad diversity of voices. Ale Estorick, our Editor-in-Chief, has done an incredible job of finding authors, interviewees, and subjects from all around the world, with a multitude of viewpoints and practices. This has driven a high caliber of dialogue and conversation in the space.

It’s also inspiring to see that many in the ecosystem are doing what they can, grassroots style. Maxwell White, a friend and artist, offered free mints of his latest project to folks in the Tender group who made donations to Girls Who Code. Another artist, 

 has been doing spotlights on LGBTQ+ artists to bring attention to their work on Twitter. Individuals can make a difference doing things like this. I myself am quite focused on collecting and promoting work by female artists.

I aim to try to learn some fundamental coding — we’ll see if I’ll be able to use it in my artistic practice. I would also love to work on collaborations with other artists: an expert coder or another AI artist, to blend styles and approaches.

One important lesson I have learned is derived from the fact this space can be all consuming. It is 24/7 and moves very fast — it feels like if you leave Discord and Twitter for even a day then you miss so much. I have found it incredibly important to take time away and disconnect, to invest in IRL life. I’m lucky to have some amazing woods and a river close to home, as walking in nature is very restorative for me. I may not always get there, but I try to do it every day.

Tender actively works on thinking about this issue of bias and equity, but it’s an ongoing struggle. As we are curating exhibitions or choosing who to spotlight, it is important to have that top of mind. If you are part of a DAO, a platform, or other group, it’s good to regularly check in on this: How are we addressing bias and equity? What steps have we taken? The key is to keep coming back to it, as it is easy to lose track of that thread. If we each as individuals try to keep this awareness top of mind, collectively that can make a huge difference.

Leading Women In Web3 Interview Series 

FemGen —A Conversation With  Danielle King

The Parnassus Newsletter: Prose, Poetry, and Other Things

I'm not very good at formal introductions. If you've ever met me in RL, I'll typically tell some self-deprecating, most likely awkward, overshare of myself to break the ice, as it were. Why that is should probably be left to my therapist but if I were to guess why I find it so hard to talk about myself is that as I continue with my writing in fiction, poetry, and observational journalism, the "I" that makes up myself is far less attractive than the going's on in the world. Even as I sit and write this now in a cafe I often frequent, with bad flamenco playing and others amiably at their computer screens, a Shiba-Inu dog is barking at their owner to give them a golden flake of a croissant, all while a couple is bickering about what time to see the new Avatar movie. The barista here has recently graduated from nursing school, and every single patron that has arrived has welcomed her back warmly, asking where she was, what she was doing, and why on Earth she was gone so long! Now, someone's playing the sound from their phone extremely loud...sounds like some popular video from Tik- Tok. If there is one, my point is that there are action, drama, and characters everywhere! There is no shortage, so for me to focus on everything around me is, well, a bit selfish. 

This leads me to this newsletter, a publication of prose, poetry, and other things. The definition of content is simple enough but what will vary is the contents of that content. 

I'm also excited to launch this newsletter within Paragraph and Web 3. I think we are on the precipice of a new creator economy, focused on the creator's benefit and ensuring that their ideas are supported not just by views but by fair, organic monetary systems. So much creativity is stifled because of the restrictions on the money. So much time is wasted, wasting time with concerns of money when it should be spent focusing on ideas of humanity and the future. I hope to touch on those subjects in my work, and I am grateful that you are here, wherever you are in the world and in time. 

Plus, I am working on all subscribers of my newsletter getting airdropped free black and white drawings and sketches from my collection, "The IIIitchell Collection," which I hope to launch soon. You can visit the collection 

The Vases of Time: A Poem on the Legacy of Ancient Greek Pottery

FemGen — A Conversation With Sasha Stiles

What is Art and Design? What Are the Elements of Art and Principles of Design?

Why AI Art is Inevitable

FemGen — A Conversation With Sarah Ridgley

FemGen—A Conversation With Ana María Caballero

FemGen —A Conversation With Danielle King

Welcome to Parnassus: Prose, Poetry, and Other Things!

The TGIDigest: Week of 11/28/22

The TGIDigest: Week of 11/21/22