Mint Gold Dust - 79Au

79AU | 12.20-27

Featured Artworks of the Week

Yearly Wrap-Up

As the year comes to a close, we’re reminiscing on past collections featured on Mint Gold Dust. From explorations on AI to collaborations on digitized murals and sculptures, this year was one for the books. Keep reading for a look back at some of our collections from this past year.

Machine Dialogues

Released this Fall, Machine Dialogues is an investigation into how artificial intelligence (AI) can inform the creative process. The artists of Machine Dialogues utilized AI tools across mediums such as Typography, Fine Art, Gaming Artifacts and more. Whether artists were experienced working with AI applications or were new to the programs, Machine Dialogues was an opportunity for them to experiment and expand their vision and art practice with AI.

Butterfly Space Opera

Created using various forms of AI by Joseph Munisteri, aka Butterflies in Space Joe, Butterfly Space Opera is inspired by classical modern artists and nature. What originally started as writing prompts for Munisteri’s poetry blossomed into a collection of operas filled with drama, tragedy, and spirit. This collection invites viewers to experience AI artworks as a collaboration between man and machine and challenge traditional ideas of art.

Dia al-Azzawi

Dia al-Azzawi, a pioneer of modern Arab art, launched his first NFT collection this past year on Mint Gold Dust. His fondness and love for his grandson, Frederick, and the importance of future generations inspired his work.

“I wanted to create a body of work that captures a young child’s energy using the traditional shapes and colours I grew up with. By embracing this connection between the old and the new, the Freddie collection allows me to leave a piece of my childhood in the metaverse for future generations to enjoy.”

Hope Campaign at SXSW

Austin-based muralist collective, HOPE Campaign, teamed up with Mint Gold Dust and Illust Space during SXSW to digitize murals by local Austin artists and mint them on chain. The physical artworks were originally on display at the convention center for SXSW 2022, however, by utilizing the power of the blockchain, these artists can now earn royalties and archive their artworks.

Mint Gold Dust Event Form

In 2022, Mint Gold Dust welcomed our community to events in New York, Miami, Austin, Denver, and Los Angeles. Next year, find out if we’re hosting an event near you! Be the first to know about our upcoming events by filling out our 1-minute survey below.

Have you seen our latest collection, Cu3ntos? Get all the details of our new curation here.

Ready to get started as an artist or collector on Mint Gold Dust? Check out our Metamask start up guide to get started. Ready to start minting? Apply to talk with our curatorial team today.

Weekly Recap

79AU | 12.14-20

Featured Artist of The Week – Chazz Gold

Chazz Gold is a photographer, DJ, addiction counselor, AI/Gan artist, and NFT creator and collector.

“I have been featured twice at NFT.NYC as well as NFT.LA with my Shapes of the Divine collection. The first time I was featured with Searchlight.Art and this past time with Sabat and spatial XR’s stratosphere show. I am involved with a handful of metaverse projects where I have shown work including galleries Cryptovoxel and Decentraland.”

The Cu3ntos Collection

Last week, the Cu3ntos collection, curated by JenJoy Roybal, launched on Mint Gold Dust. The collection features work from LatinX NFT artists reflecting on the role of cuentos in their own journeys and cultures.

Cuentos are passed down from generation to generation, and thanks to the Blockchain, these artists are able to immortalize their own cuentos, building out their digital legacies for the future. Each unique piece highlights the intersection of storytelling and technology while exploring themes of identity on a personal and cultural level.

JenJoy Roybal writes about the collection,

“Identity is a complex thing and the diaspora of Latinos or Hispanics is riddled with conflicting perspectives and experiences. The rise of the term LatinX came out of a desire to be more inclusive of people who self-identify as having Latin American heritage – who are also LGBTQ, or any other number of nuanced differences – and yet the term still falls short of properly defining the vast, multi-layered, global society. Perhaps we can look to sharing stories to better communicate our culture and identities, rather than labels?

Cuentos are often seen as children’s stories or fables that teach a lesson, make people cry or laugh or capture important moments. In this show, LatinX, Web3 artists were invited to explore cuentos with a personal take on the journeys they have witnessed or the ones they are on. The artwork at times reflects on favorite stories specific to their own culture, or were invented anew.

This is an invitation to a conversation and to the discovery of artists via their stories and the cuentos they love, including their own.”

Explore the collection below:

Creatress is a VR Performance artist at the intersection of virtual reality and fine art. Using a VR headset and a custom soundtrack to inspire the energy of spontaneous creation, she creates 3D abstract sculptures in front of live audiences.

Her latest piece “MesoMariposas” is an exploration of the Toltec and Mexica ancient belief that butterflies are the souls of those who have lived short lives. This piece is a mixture of 3D sculpting and AI.

Lucia Diaz is a first-generation Colombian-American and the Founder of LUCIA DIAZ, a Latina-owned business that empowers and honors Latinas through high-quality Illustrations. Lucia’s artworks are created with the goal of providing cultural representation and pride so that mujeres poderosas can see themselves represented in the world.

Layla Pizarro is a Visual Feeling Art researcher and artist who is constantly experimenting with new concepts, ideas, and techniques. For Cu3ntos, she has minted a photograph of maize that was used in preparation of making Humitas, a traditional Chilean dish, during the height of the global pandemic.

“Latin-American cultures have been teaching their children about maize for millennia through stories. These stories are taught in many different languages but share a very similar origin story of the Aztec god, Quetzalcoatl, and as you go down into South America, the Sun God. The importance of maize goes beyond nourishment. It provides the community with purpose, working all together to cultivate and harvest. Each generation of our community grows stronger, smarter, and more resilient, along with the maize and our traditions.”

JenJoy Roybal is an artist, urbanist, writer, editor, and digital content creator. She is inspired by humanity’s oldest stories and artworks related to sacred rituals and sacred space.

“Horse-man, Fire and the Book” is a part of her new series inspired by the cuentos and pueblo Indian (Hopi & Zuni) story dances. To create this piece, she fed an AI with the story as she remembered it from her youth. The output resulted in a piece that reflected the nuances of memory, time, and projection.

“The viewer can draw their own conclusions about what tale is unfolding – in that way, I love playing with my memories while others project their own.”

Born in Harlem, NY, Dr. Lemny Perez is an Afro-Dominican writer, actress, psychologist, abstract NFT artist & collector. She is a curator for the NFT.Tips Search Light Curatorial team & is the former Coaching Lead & Secretary Board Member at the Dream Conduit, a carbon neutral non-profit DAO. Her latest piece, “Mama ‘heard voices'” pays homage to those who battle severe mental illness in her family and beyond.

“Mama- Matriarch
Born Halloween, 1925
2nd youngest of 12
U lost both parents by 16
Had 5 kids & married for 66 yrsYou drank warm lemon water every AM,
used food as medicine
& were tormented by p-noid,
auditory hallucinations—”

Mint Gold Dust Event Form

Did you read our interview last week with Trish Gianakas? Check out her interview in last week’s 79AU here.

Ready to get started as an artist or collector on Mint Gold Dust? Check out our Metamask start up guide to get started. Ready to start minting? Apply to talk with our curatorial team today.

Weekly Recap

6 months ago Weekly Recap by : Mint Gold Dust

79AU | 12.9 – 13

Featured Artworks of the Week

Mint Gold Dust Event Survey

Interview with Trish Gianakis

Today, we’re speaking to artist Trisha Gianakis about her journey into Crypto Art, her history in the augmented and XR art space, and her plans for the future. Keep reading for a look at her artistry and process.

Tell us about your journey to the Crypto Art and NFT space.

I was introduced to CryptoArt in 2018 at the Art World Conference and have been following it until the technology got a little easier to use. I made my first NFT in Feb of 2021.

What was your inspiration behind your piece, Mother Earth?

Mother Earth is part of my cancer survivor story. Gratitude for being alive and how all living things are connected on this planet. Starting with my obsession with trees and bark during cancer treatment, I later found out bark was in my cancer medication. I have created several RAKU sculptures (a Japanese style of pottery) of bark and female faces coming out of the bark. Now I am making NFTs in AR to complement the physical sculptures.

You teach augmented reality courses. Tell us about your history within the augmented and XR art space.

This past summer I was selected to collaborate on various programming/projects for the BronxNet TV as part of the BronxNet team to build a state-of-the art XR/VR/AR Lab and Video Production Studio. I also teach at Bronxnet TV and at Saint Peter’s University in Jersey City. I have a Master’s Degree in Computer Art Installation from the School of Visual Arts in NYC. As far back as 1999, I created my first VR experience. I have always been on the forefront of digital art and technology. In 2007 I started learning about augmented reality. In my first AR experience, I used Unity (2017). The software has come a long way, and now I use several programs (Spark AR, Spatial, Blender, TiltBrush in Oculus Quest 2, and more).

How have you seen your artistry change as time goes on?

My art has changed with technology, but I still maintain my healing themes of nature, humanity, and peace. I am very excited about incorporating my physical art with digital art to create immersive artwork.

What are you working on now?

I am working on a couple projects:

1. ArtWorlds created with TiltBrush, Gravity Sketch, Blender 3D and can be experienced in Spatial. You can view my new Metaverse Artworld gallery here. Another Spatial gallery, viewable here, also has a portal to my work too.

2. My project for the Bronx involves creating a Geofence map using Illust.space with pinned locations that launch augmented reality stories about historical figures, sculptures or landmarks in the Bronx. Some of the AR stories I plan to feature include watching the Piccirilli Brothers carve the statue of Abraham Lincoln at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C.; visiting Myles Davis’ grave while listening to his music; and listening to an Edgar Allan Poe poem at the Poe Cottage. I will be building these experiences using the Oculus Quest Pro headset, Lidar 3D scanning equipment, and various software applications to adapt the 3D objects, video, stills and audio files into a format that can be imported into augmented reality.

Missed our recap of our Fake Basel event earlier this month? Check out the highlights here.

Ready to get started as an artist or collector on Mint Gold Dust? Check out our Metamask start up guide to get started. Ready to start minting? Apply to talk with our curatorial team today.

Weekly Recap

6 months ago Weekly Recap by : Mint Gold Dust

79AU | 12.3 – 12.8

Featured Artworks of the Week

Mint Gold Dust x Fake Basel

Last Friday, we celebrated Art Basel week with our community and showcased the Theo’s Gallery genesis collection at Fake Basel. Artists included Nathan Sonic, Mr. Yuk, and more. The collection also showcased a selection of RAREPEPES, including a set of 6 with the first NFT from CZ (PBOCPEPE) from 2017. The evening was a celebration of the strength of our artist and collector community that we have built over the last year. Check out highlights from the event below.

Along with a live music performance from Otto Von Schirach, we hosted an exclusive one-lot auction, “The Theo Phone.” This iPhone was a mystery lot loaded with an exclusive selection of rare NFTs from Theo Goodmans’s personal collection. In the end, the phone went to Crypto Art collector and advisor Fanny Lakoubay.

In addition, we hosted a second exhibition in Augmented Reality in partnership with Illust Space.

We were also excited to welcome artist Megan Troglio who re-created her recent NFT on Mint Gold Dust on canvas.

The virtual exhibition featured 15 artists from the Mint Gold Dust platform exhibiting works from a variety of disciplines including AI, digital painting, and more.

Stay tuned for more event announcements in 2023 from Mint Gold Dust!

Photography: Nathaniel Portillo

Miss our interview with Mint Gold Dust artist Mila Sketch on her transition from murals to NFTs? Check out the conversation here.

Ready to get started as an artist or collector on Mint Gold Dust? Check out our Metamask start up guide to get started. Ready to start minting? Apply to talk with our curatorial team today.

Events Weekly Recap

6 months ago Events Weekly Recap by : Mint Gold Dust

79AU | Art Basel Edition

Featured Artworks of the Week

Mint Gold Dust x Fake Basel | 12/2/22

Join us tonight, December 2nd from 6-9pm, at 3400 Northwest 7th Avenue to celebrate the launch of the Theo’s Gallery genesis collection on Mint Gold Dust! “Humans & Animals,” curated by “The OG” Theo Goodman, includes exclusive new works from Nathan Sonic, Mr. Yuk, and Otto Von Schirach. It also features a selection of RAREPEPES, including a set of 6 that features the first NFT from CZ (PBOCPEPE) from 2017.

“The tension between the old and known, and the new and unknown increases…It is up to us to put thought to sound, hand to image, voice to story, and build the party that will destroy the legacy system to create new from the ash.” – Curator Theo Goodman

The event will feature a digital gallery showcasing the works, a live NFT auction, and a live performance from Otto Von Schirach.

We will also be exhibiting a second collection virtually in partnership with Illust Space. A selection of Mint Gold Dust NFTs will be geo-dropped into Augmented Reality around the venue. Artists include Chazz Gold, 4everkurious, Rakkaus Art, and more. Each piece can be discovered using your smartphone by navigating to the pins on our exclusive AR map on Illust Space.

We look forward to celebrating and sharing art with you tonight!

Last week on 79Au, we interviewed Mint Gold Dust artist Mila Sketch on her transition from murals to NFTs. Check out the interview here.

Ready to get started as an artist or collector on Mint Gold Dust? Check out our Metamask start up guide to get started. Ready to start minting? Apply to talk with our curatorial team today.

Weekly Recap

6 months ago Weekly Recap by : Mint Gold Dust

79AU | 11.18-22

Featured Artworks of the Week – Rakkaus Art

Rakkaus Art is an intuitive multimedia artist interested in creation, connection, compassion and storytelling. Constantly pushing boundaries and experimenting with various techniques and materials, each creation is vibrant and unique. with its own story.

“I create visual stories from the energy and experiences on my life journey; everything starts with a feeling.” – Rakkaus

Upcoming Events with Mint Gold Dust

Mint Gold Dust will be in Miami next week for Art Basel! We will be throwing the opening party and live auction at Fake Basel in Wynwood on Friday, December 2nd from 6-9pm. Follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the details. We looking forward to seeing you there!

Interview with Mila Sketch

Mila Sketch is a multimedia visual artist. She is recognized internationally and is known for her detailed and intricate large-scale murals, elaborate and meaningful fine art paintings, and digital art. Today, we’re chatting with her about her artistic process, NFTs, and the influence motherhood has had on her work.

You are well known for your iconic murals. How did you go from painting large-scale murals to creating animated digital artwork?

I started my artistic journey as a pointillist working with the ink on paper formats. I was inspired by M.C. Escher and his visual riddles. My series, Bags, exhibited at Pall Mall Gallery in London, emerged as a result. I continued to work in this style for a long time. Years later, I moved to the United States and became interested in public art. The idea of a street gallery fascinated me as I could reach an unlimited number of people and brighten their daily experiences with my murals.

Innovation and technology always interested me. Animation added a new dimension to my drawings and augmented reality came naturally as I explored adding color to my art and working on canvas and wood panels with industrial acrylics.

What drew you to start creating NFTs earlier this year?

A collector interested in my work at Art Miami in December last year asked if he could get an NFT with his 2D painting purchase. I created one for the Texas Birds artwork.

Your art often references historical figures, myths, and regional traditions. What inspires you about that, and how does it manifest in your work?

I love to move in space and create in different places, so travel for work inspires me to investigate and research. I love to translate the sense of the environment through culture and history in my murals and digital artworks.

Tell us about the two pieces you currently have on Mint Gold Dust.

Sophia the Robot was created during my pregnancy last year. I discovered the female body’s magical ability to bring a new life and the miracle of birth. It was painted on a wood panel with an AR feature, then the NFT was added. The painting was sold right away. It now lives in New Orleans.

I painted the Flourish when we lived on the Oaxaca coast in Mexico during the summer of 2021. I was blown away by the vivid colors and rustic environment around me. I connected technology and nature with the accent on sustainable future development in this painting. I used industrial acrylics on the birch tree panel. Then I digitally drew an NFT of it.

Many of your physical pieces include an AR component. Can you talk about that process and your app?

I developed the MilaSketch app so people could easily enjoy augmented reality for my equipped works. It is essential that not only single collectors can access this feature but also people who walk by my art in public places. Austin Bergstrom Airport has several of my works that demonstrate the AR addition. The app is free and available for download on major platforms.

You recently became a mother. Do you find that has influenced your artworks and what you are drawn to create?

Becoming a mother made me treasure my time. I structure my days differently and feel super-charged to create even more.

What will we see next from you?

I am working on several mural projects. Private fine art commissions and a new line of paintings are coming out in the next six months.

Have you read our Founder Kelly LeValley Hunt’s article on artist and collector royalties? If not, take a look at the article here.

Ready to get started as an artist or collector on Mint Gold Dust? Check out our Metamask start up guide to get started. Ready to start minting? Apply to talk with our curatorial team today.

Weekly Recap

7 months ago Weekly Recap by : Mint Gold Dust

79AU | 11.9-17

Featured Artworks of The Week

Since beginning his digital art journey in 2001, VanDi has explored various mediums such as photography, film, and, most recently, digital drawing. earlier this year, VanDi began a new series of digital abstract paintings titled “Color Abstractions.” The artworks in this series sit somewhere between Bauhaus-style and Abstract-Expressionist style while leaning into modern color combinations that result in playful harmonious images. Each piece is designed to work both as physical and digital wall art.

Upcoming Events With Mint Gold Dust

You heard it here first — we’re going to Art Basel! From November 29th to December 5th, the Mint Gold Dust team will be in Miami for all things art and NFTs. Follow our Twitter to stay up to date on upcoming event announcements.

Mint Gold Dust Founder and CEO Kelly LeValley Hunt on Artist and Collector Royalties

Smart contracts for Crypto Art and NFTs have a myriad of unique features that separate them from a sale of an artwork in the traditional art world. One of the most hotly debated differences is the ability to distribute payment automatically to the artist and automatically send the art piece directly to the collector on the primary sale. Royalties are then automatically distributed after a sale on the secondary market and any subsequent sales. This is something that the traditional art world has never been able to offer.

Average NFT royalties on the secondary market typically range from 5 to 10%, and can be set at up to 20% on Mint Gold Dust. For most marketplaces, the creator can choose their desired percentage. Payments are distributed automatically via smart contract on the secondary market, and upon each subsequent sale. The challenge is if a collector decides to resell the work on a different platform to which it was minted, the artist’s royalties do not automatically follow. This is an important point for creators and collectors to consider when navigating the secondary market and is an area which innovators have been trying to address. However, the reality is that the complexity of managing cross-platform royalties is cost prohibitive and unaffordable in the long term for many Crypto Art marketplaces, especially in a Bear Market.

Recently the NFT community has been abuzz after a handful of the largest and most widely used commercial platforms announced potential plans to no longer honor established royalties, making them optional rather than respecting the creator’s chosen royalty percentage. As a result, over the past couple of weeks, the term “Zero-Royalties” was born.

Artists across the space voiced their opinions on one platform’s decision in favor of “Zero-Royalties.” The highly anticipated upcoming release, Badam Bomb Squad, posted their position via creator BobbyHundreds’ Twitter, stating:

Similar sentiment was echoed across the space with artists, creators, and platforms voicing their concerns. Artists and creators worried they would lose essential future income if royalties were not honored, inciting a protest that could not be ignored.

The comments on one platform’s Twitter thread echo this and are proof that the community will not easily forget the quick dismissal of one of the fundamental benefits and differentiators of creating art using blockchain technology. This platform has now reconsidered their stance and have decided to go in the opposite direction by enforcing creator royalties on their platform. While this is a win for those fighting for the creator’s financial legacy, an intervention like this still ignores the web3 ethos of decentralization and disrespects the part that the collectors play in the ecosystem. I think of this ecosystem like, ‘Does a flower grow and bloom without water?’

Mint Gold Dust Community Manager @GiraffeCupcakez comments, “Even with taking the time to build a creative solution that on the surface seems like a worthwhile fix, it’s not easy to dismiss the fact that this platform’s stance flipped only after public backlash.”

Enforcing collectors to honor royalties may also have the opposite of the intended effect, and perhaps the community should be spending time on changing the cultural ethos. In other words, rewarding collectors for opting-in to paying artist royalties rather than forcing payment should be encouraged. As an example, collectors who pay royalties could gain access to exclusive pieces not available to “Zero-Royalty Collectors.” Such a change would be a testament to the power of the NFT and Crypto Art community at large and just the beginning of the next “DEgeneration” of the Crypto Art ecosystem at work.

As we now have a new and improved way of transacting with Blockchain and cryptocurrency, we need to start thinking about how we utilize web3 to improve the economic system of every sector, and not just rebuild what we already had with this new decentralized technology. If we continue with old and out-of-date ways of thinking, we only repeat our existence–never evolving, never changing our world for the better.

Mint Gold Dust believes that royalties should be paid to the artist, especially now that there is streamlined technology to auto-distribute these payments on a single platform. However, in the spirit of true decentralization, we also believe that collectors should have the choice to be a “Zero-Royalty Collector”. Therefore we will be looking at options to implement a “Zero-Royalty Collector” search mechanism on the Mint Gold Dust platform for pieces of art that do not have royalties attached to them.

This will be accomplished by creating a collector verification system that categorizes collectors into 2 categories, “Plus +Royalty Collector” and “Zero Royalty Collector.” This membership program will offer incentives to collectors who purchase Plus Royalty Artworks while making room for those who choose to collect only Zero-Royalty Crypto Art.

This new model gives creators the opportunity to monetize their work the way they want on the primary and secondary markets on Mint Gold Dust. This is not technically addressing the broader picture of cross platform (secondary market) sales. At Mint Gold Dust, artists choose their desired royalty percentage for secondary sales on the platform upon minting, giving them control of their selling power. From the beginning, we have offered 10%, 15%, and 20% artist royalty options in our smart contracts, and soon we will be adding 0% royalties as an option. To learn more about our origin story where we discuss our founding royalty percentages, check out a podcast I did in 2021 here.

As the Crypto Art and NFT space navigates the royalty evolution, we will continue to provide a decentralized platform for smooth, on Ethereum blockchain transactions for artists, creators, as well as our Collectors.

Write your memoirs on the “Plus+Royalty” topic in your profile on Mint Gold Dust and share the link with us on Twitter or post in our Discord.

Did you read our latest 79AU article featuring interviews from Arabella, QueenEarth, and Everyday Research? If not, take a look at the article here for an insight into how they utilize NFTs as an extension of their artistic practice.

Ready to get started as an artist or collector on Mint Gold Dust? Check out our Metamask start up guide to get started. Ready to start minting? Apply to talk with our curatorial team today.

Weekly Recap

7 months ago Weekly Recap by : Mint Gold Dust

79AU | 11.2-8

FEATURED ARTWORKS OF THE WEEK

Goldi Gold is an artist, illustrator, graphic designer, and entrepreneur who’s wearable portraits shine a light on contemporary icons and heroes. Goldi is a humble, generous, and supportive part of the Atlanta art community who’s always giving back to his fellow creatives. Originally from New Jersey, he’s called Georgia home for 20 years, with a resume that includes work with Georgia State University, Creative loafing, Art Beats + Lyrics, Spike Lee, The High Museum, and others.

Upcoming Events with Mint Gold Dust

Did you hear the news? The Mint Gold Dust team is coming to Marfa, Texas this week for Art Blocks and Miami, Florida for Art Basel from November 29th to December 5th! We’re thrilled to interact with our NFT community and have some very exciting events planned. To keep up with our schedule, make sure to follow our Twitter page for the most up-to-date information and message us if you’d like to connect. We hope to see you there!

Artist Interviews with @MintGoldCurator

Recently, we debuted @MintGoldCurator, an Instagram account created to stay connected with artists and act as a resource for our community. We post weekly interviews with a few of our artists about their inspirations, their creative notions, and what they see for themselves next. Today, we’re sharing interviews from Arabella, QueenEarth, and everyday research. Keep reading to hear them talk about how they utilize NFTs as an extension of their artistic practice.

Arabella

Living with terminal cancer, Arabella is navigating and writing her digital legacy through NFTs and the Blockchain. Her personal art combines a pop surrealist take on portraiture with biomorphic abstraction. ⁣

What inspires you about portraiture?

Portraiture has always been interesting to me because every decade seems to have its own aesthetic through the ages, as does each artist. No one person ever creates one that is the same. My favorite female artist is Tamara de Lempicka and she influenced the way I do my portraits because it was so different. Now that I am painting digitally and not with oils, my style has changed to meet the technology in a way. Portraits are for me the ultimate test; you can be doing it for years and still be learning.

Tell us about your upcoming NFT all-female group show.

I am part of a collective called the Super Psychedelic Sisters, and initially it was a way to onboard the other women. Then I realized we could create an immersive show with the goal of not only onboarding more women artists, but being the first show like it in the Midwest and beyond. Women only make up 16%-19% of Web3, and this won’t be a typical white cube with monitors exhibition like we’ve seen so often. We are creating a psychedelic garden along with physical art, too. I was met with a lot of pushback about this show, but I noticed if you say ‘digital art’, over ‘NFTs’, people are more receptive to the ideas around blockchain.

What’s one piece of advice you would give to fellow artists?

Don’t ever copy someone else’s work and try to pass it off as your own, no matter how much you think you altered it. I see so many new artists in the space doing this. Study art and design history, and yes, use images to practice, but you are only hurting yourself by passing it off as your artwork. If you think no one will notice you took liberties with a fashion editorial buried in a 1996 copy of Harper’s Bazaar, you are wrong. Visual memory is a powerful thing, but don’t worry, you will come into your own style.

QueenEarth

QueenEarth’s visual art explores themes of the migrating Black Diaspora and merges her original photography and illustration into mixed media digital collages. She recently minted AI informed artworks on Mint Gold Dust for the Machine Dialogues collection, curated by Jenjoy Roybal.

How has your art changed or evolved since diving into web3?

When I first started Web 3, I minted GAN art and photography. When I was finally ready to share my music (my greatest gift) no one believed it was me singing because my voice is so deep. I got bullied often. Since then I have stopped putting boxes around the type of art that I can create, and use social audio sparingly. My art is better than ever!

What have you been inspired by lately?

I am always inspired by the movement of people in-and-out of cities and towns, houses in neighborhoods, and culture. Lately, my new camera is making me create better collages and uplevel my drawings and visual art. My wife inspires me. She paints at a level and volume that is unprecedented.

What can we see from you next?

Next, I really want to make the most of my connections in Web 3. I have ideas for children’s books, lyrics books to accompany my music, and 3-D renderings of some of my favorite images. I also would love to make merch. I’m excited for how my wife and I will grow as a creative couple because we really do inspire each other to make the best art of our lives.

everyday research

Born in Florida, raised in Hawai’i and now based in Austin, everyday research has professionally painted murals since 2013. He also travels the U.S. and overseas to paint live at music festivals. His versatile style is a mix of vibrant colors, fanciful elements, and composition that gives his work a feeling of movement. His intention with his work is to continue injecting positivity and inspiration into the hearts and minds of viewers while constantly progressing as a vessel of art.

In your opinion, why can NFTs be a great medium for Street Artists like yourself?

There is a finite number of wall spaces in a city. Utilizing NFT’s to preserve murals allows more opportunities for artists and creates an archive of a digital museum of street art.

Tell us about your recent project with ATX DAO.

I was thrilled when ATX DAO approached me to paint a mural and turn it into an NFT as part of their art fund to support local artists. The mission of this project is for the artist to receive a portion of sales from the mural NFT and the other portion of the sales goes into a fund that will pay the next artist to paint another mural in Austin, and so on.

What has been inspiring you lately?

Lately, I have been inspired by the Austin artist community. It’s great seeing a lot of artists getting opportunities to create murals, art shows and events. And in the same way, it’s great seeing the love from the communities that support the arts.

Last week, we spoke with our CEO and Founder Kelly LeValley Hunt for a look back on our first year and her goals for our future. Read the full interview here.

Ready to get started as an artist or collector on Mint Gold Dust? Check out our Metamask start up guide to get started. Ready to start minting? Apply to talk with our curatorial team today.

Weekly Recap

7 months ago Weekly Recap by : Mint Gold Dust

79AU | 10.26-11.1

FEATURED ARTWORKS OF THE WEEK

Interview with Mint Gold Dust Founder & CEO Kelly LeValley Hunt

This week we’re celebrating our one-year anniversary! Today, we’re pleased to share an interview with our Founder and CEO Kelly LeValley Hunt for a look back at the year we’ve had, our future, and her advice to female founders in the NFT space.

What inspired you to start Mint Gold Dust?

I needed to work with artists on a daily basis who inspire me. In Mint Gold Dust I found a way to work with creatives and technology for the good of my soul. I had previously invested in an ecosystem that supports NFT platforms, investing in companies such as Illust Space, Smart Seal, Refashioned OS, and Gilded Finance, and the only missing piece was the NFT Platform itself as the foundation. I just knew that with a platform that used ERC-1155 contracts, I could help promote and work with these companies that supported artists and collectors. So I decided to build.

I had also invested in SuperRare and loved what they were doing, and I could see that the market was evolving really quickly, and artists and collectors were going to need more than a platform to present NFTs; in other words they would need a supporting ecosystem.

An example of this was our project with Refashioned OS. They came to us when they were launching their software platform to work with clothing manufacturers for clothing on demand to minimize waste in the fashion industry. We were able to connect them with graffiti artist Curvazoid to create the design; work with Smart Seal to NFC tag each garment; work with Smart Seal to NFC tag each garment; work with Illust Space to create a 3-D rendering of artist, creator and businesswomen Paulina Vega (who also happens to be Miss Universe 2014) wearing the clothes; and then the NFT asset was geo-dropped in AR in New York during fashion week. A perfect marriage of the ecosystem hard at work.

What has been your favorite project or event from the past year?

The Genesis 8 project that we launched last November has to be one of my favorites. With Eleonora Brizi curating, and Memeconscious writing code, the excitement of a new platform marked the beginning of this journey – the true genesis!

Giant Swan’s Metamorphosis is amazing, and the story about Hackatao’s unique piece Primordial is beautiful, and they are just two of the Genesis 8 which are extraordinary.

What is it like being a female founder in the NFT space?

I hate this question but I get asked it a lot. I don’t know how to answer that because I’ve never been anything else.

That being said, my best piece of advice for women in technology is to do what you want to do and don’t think about who’s watching or judging. At the end of the day, it doesn’t fucking matter. The only thing that matters is that you are doing what you’ve set out to do, and that you’ve built a good community around you that supports you and you can support back. Just do it, and don’t think about the consequences. Just fucking do it. I hate when I curse (but I do curse a lot!) so this shows how strongly I feel about it.

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned from being 1 year in operation?

It’s not just about the technology, it’s not just about the artists, and it’s not just about the collectors. It’s about the community as a whole and the engagement and coordination of that community.

What made you choose to not seek out funding in the first year of operation?

Getting funding can be daunting, and I just wanted to focus on building and making sure I got it right. I didn’t want to take funding to build a product with someone else over my shoulder. I’ve also been too busy talking to artists and creators to do a funding round, so time constraints played a big factor.

What can we look forward to in the next year from Mint Gold Dust?

Valuable engagement with artists, listening more with our community. I feel compelled to support creatives in the way they feel they need to be supported. Better conversations with people and I will encourage my team to do the same. We are going to focus on more partnerships and more innovation with new technology in the NFT sector; including building out a more robust live auction service and platform.

Have you read our latest editorial piece on the importance of curation in a decentralized world? If not, check out the article here.

Stay up to date on all things Mint Gold Dust and 79Au by subscribing to our newsletter here.

Ready to get started as an artist or collector on Mint Gold Dust? Check out our Metamask start up guide to get started. Ready to start minting? Apply to talk with our curatorial team today.

Weekly Recap

7 months ago Weekly Recap by : Mint Gold Dust

79AU | 10.15-25

FEATURED ARTWORKS OF THE WEEK

Re-Thinking Curation for a Decentralized World

In a recent Twitter thread directed at the NFT community, artist @Coldie expressed his frustration about the lack of curation and proper categorization in the NFT Space. This sentiment was echoed in comments by artists and collectors alike giving their opinions on the ‘wild-west’ atmosphere of NFTs. The overwhelming majority agreed that curation is a valuable resource for artists, however there were still those that viewed curation as a form of gatekeeping that could prevent newcomers from entering the emerging market.

The basic argument in the former camp is that artists need a better way to get their artwork in front of the right eyes during a time of growing market saturation. This is where a curator can come in to be a mediator and advocate.

A curator’s responsibility is to handpick voices and creative visions that speak to the time and cultural movements happening locally and globally. In doing so, curation can help spark conversations and encourage progressive discourse within the Crypto Art space and beyond. When done correctly, these curators are not deciding what is and isn’t art, but rather serve as a guide to help lead conversations and help collectors discover artwork that means something to them. They can do this through not only curating collections but also by writing about artists, movements, and trends in the space.

It’s important to recognize that historically, curation in the Art World has morphed into an exclusionary practice often more focused on money and cultural politics than art. Curators in this new decentralized ecosystem now have the cultural responsibility to learn from those mistakes by focusing on the inclusion of new and driving forces in the space without the relentless focus on quick and easy monetary gain.

Without curators, projects with the highest price points and most notable collectors, such as Bored Ape Yacht Club, will continue to be what the Crypto Art space is known for to the outside world. In many ways, curators are writing and preserving Crypto Art’s rich history and culture, a culture that began growing years before the term “NFT” was even coined. This knowledge share will ultimately help Crypto Art become more accessible to those in and out of the space, breaking down barriers for future creators and collectors.

At Mint Gold Dust, we have embraced curation while still being committed to our decentralized ethos and use of smart contracts. We are a 24/7, always on, non-custodial marketplace built with the artist in mind. Curation, in addition to helping us explore new genres and topics in the space, allows for our team to have one on one relationships with each of our artists, supporting them from A-Z– something that would be impossible without our team of curators. It also allows us to showcase each artist on our platform in a unique and personal way via social media, 79Au, and in-person showcases.

Recently, we have also started to collaborate with guest curators who bring new artists to the platform for specific collections. Most recently, we worked with curator JenJoy Roybal to curate Machine Dialogues, an exploration of AI informed artworks on the Blockchain. This collection helped showcase the human side of AI artworks, a genre that has received a lot of scrutiny over the past couple of months. New artists that joined us for the collection included Chazz Gold, QueenEarth, ONe Rad Latina, Tom Laroc, and more.

As Mint Gold Dust continues to grow, we remain committed to being a space for artists to create and mint; for collectors to discover new artists and their work; and for the wider web3 community to engage with each other, and to discuss and explore topics they are passionate about.

Have you read our latest community Op-Ed from artist ONe Rad Latina? Check out piece on The Cultural Algorithm and the effect bias has on AI models here.

Stay up to date on all things Mint Gold Dust and 79Au by subscribing to our newsletter here.

Ready to get started as an artist or collector on Mint Gold Dust? Check out our Metamask start up guide to get started. Ready to start minting? Apply to talk with our curatorial team today.