Blake speaks with Francisco Alarcon (FAR) - artist, engineer and co-founder of Taproot Wizards. They dive into all things art on Ordinals, for a fresh look on the topic.

FAR outlines the differences between creating art on Ordinals and Ethereum including their unique technical capabilities, community expectations and aesthetic trends.

They also talk about the differences (if there is any) between “Bitcoin Art” and “Ordinals.”

The convo continues with FAR chronicling the incredible origin story of Taproot Wizards, one of the fist PFP collections on Ordinals, which was also responsible for the largest transaction in Bitcoin’s history at that time. It’s a fascinating recount of the project and speaks to how the culture of Bitcoin has developed over the past decade.

They wind down by discussing Taproot Wizard’s second collection, Quantum Cats and its unique functionalities, including its ability to evolve over time. Blake also asks how one of FAR’s pieces from this collection ended up at a Sotheby’s auction.

There are so many nuances around Bitcoin and Ordinals that can only be understood through an artistic lens, which is what this conversation aims to do!

FAR: https://twitter.com/0xfar

TapRoot Wizards: https://twitter.com/taprootwizards

Quantum Cats: https://twitter.com/quantumcatsxyz

Sotheby’s Metaverse: https://twitter.com/Sothebysverse

Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

Blake: https://twitter.com/blakefinucane

Blake speaks with Natalie Stone, General Manager for CryptoPunks at Yuga Labs.

This is a CryptoPunks interview like you’ve never heard before! There is so much new info that will make you appreciate the collection and crypto art even more.

Natalie walks Blake through the 3 pillars of the CryptoPunks brand and explains “the North Star” that the collection is always orienting towards.

Blake also asks Natalie if and how she tracks the Punks floor price, how she communicates and maintains her relationship with the Punks community, as well as about the Proof Collective and how Yuga is managing another art centric brand alongside Punks.

Natalie even previews the new CryptoPunks’ book called CryptoPunks: Free to Claim and hints at some of the incredible contributors like the Chief Creative Officer at Balanciaga, Martina Tiefenthaler.

They also talk in-depth about Punks place within the traditional art world… after listening, you’ll be left with a deeper understanding of the power of art (the ultimate goal for the Context Podcast!). You’ll also have a stronger grasp on the significant role Punks play(ed) in the development of the contemporary digital art movement and how they continue to push the bounds of creativity in crypto at large.

Links:

CryptoPunks: https://cryptopunks.app/

Free to Claim: CryptoPunks Book: https://hub.cryptopunks.app/goods

Natalie Stone: https://twitter.com/NaughtalieStone

Blake Finucane: https://twitter.com/blakefinucane

Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

Context presented by Boys Club is partnering with Sotheby’s for Season 3! Each month, we'll be working with Sotheby's to bring you an episode on a different digital art based theme. The goal over this season is to help you more deeply engage with digital art and better understand how it intersects with crypto.

For the first episode of the season, Blake will be speaking to the brilliant Michael Bouhanna, Vice President and Head of Digital Art and NFTs at Sotheby’s. They’ll be discussing the last 10 years of digital art, and how crypto technology has impacted it.

They walk through the definitions of Generative Art, A.I. Art and Ordinals, how an auction at Sotheby’s gets put together, who a typical digital art buyer is, and the barriers to buying something that’s immaterial.

They also talk about Jackson Pollock, Sol LeWitt and how art history can be used as a tool to better understand digital art today (FYI: digital art is over 60 years old).

It's a super informative episode and really sets the stage for the entire season, with lots of art history intertwined.

Links:

Sotheby’s Metaverse: https://twitter.com/Sothebysverse

Digital Art Through the Decades Auction: https://www.sothebys.com/en/auction-catalogue/2024/revolutionaries-digital-art-through-the-decade?s=intro

Michael Bouhanna: https://twitter.com/michaelbouhanna

Blake Finucane: https://twitter.com/blakefinucane

Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

Blake speaks with Sebastian Sanchez, Digital Art Sales Manager at Christie’s. Sebastian gives a behind the scenes look at how an auction gets put together (selecting artists, pricing, display, collectors) while talking though Christie’s latest sale Next Wave: The Miami Edit, taking place at Art Basel Miami Beach.

Sebastian also details some of Chritie’s major partnerships this year including Gucci and The Keith Haring Foundation.

Blake winds down the episode by asking Sebastian to define both Generative Art and AI Art and explain their importance. And if you weren’t sure about what makes a great digital art work…Blake asks Sebastian to define that as well.

This is a super comprehensive episode about digital art from its market dynamics to its art historical significance…its got you covered.

Boys Club Newsletter: https://www.boysclub.vip/newsletter

Christie’s 3.0: https://nft.christies.com/

Sebastian’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/sebastianss527

Next Wave: The Miami Edit: https://nft.christies.com/auctions/next-wave-the-miami-edit-2023

A Collector’s Guide to AI and Generative Art: https://www.christies.com/en/stories/ai-and-generative-art-collecting-guide-998d865bd6a84538a27f640da23b368f

Panter Xhita : https://twitter.com/PanterXhita

Blake speaks with the incredibly talented artist and digital fashion designer GLITCHOFMIND, who is part of the Syky Collective’s inaugural cohort, and the Designer Lead at Syky, Clare Maguire.

They have an enlightening convo about the definition and possibilities of digital fashion and how the genre is still being defined.

Glitch explains how digital fashion can encompass much more than just wearables for gaming characters and social media avatars. As part of his new collection called INTERLôR VOL. 1, he’s releasing highly intricate and detailed editorial images, recalling what you might see in Vogue or Elle…pushing the traditional definition of what is considered “digital fashion.”

Blake also asks Clare to expand the branding and business strategy around digital fashion. They discuss how to create a successful digital fashion brand, how to come across authentic online and her trend predictions for the upcoming year.

The episode really highlights the future of digital fashion for next year and beyond.

Boys Club Newsletter: https://www.boysclub.vip/newsletter

GLITCHOFMIND: https://twitter.com/GLITCHOFMIND

Clare Maguire: https://twitter.com/ClareMaguire

SYKY: https://www.syky.com/

On this special episode, Blake speaks with two incredible artists: Nancy Baker Cahill and Figure 31. She dives into their creative processes: why and how they make art with emerging technology (in particular the blockchain and augmented reality). This leads into an illuminating discussion about the distinct artistic properties of the blockchain (aka: its “medium specificity”), and how it can be uniquely used to challenge existing power structures.

Blake also asks them about their brilliant new pieces; Nancy’s work called CENTO is on view at the Whitney Museum of Art and Figure 31’s PROXY is currently apart of Wild.xyz’s group show called MATERIAL.

It’s a super fascinating conversation about how to combine creativity with technology, and communicate complex ideas through the blockchain and AR in a digestible way. If you are working on any creative projects (artistic or otherwise), this convo its for you.

Note: This is the first live filming of Context! The episode was recorded in front of the attendees of the Wild.xyz Summit in New Orleans.

Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

Figure 31 Twitter: https://twitter.com/figure31_

Info on Figure’s work PROXY: https://wild.xyz/wildxyz/exhibition-material/

Nancy Baker Cahill’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nancybakercahill/

Info on Nancy’s work CENTRO: https://whitney.org/exhibitions/cento

Blake speaks with Alice Delahunt, the founder and CEO of Syky. Alice is previously Chief Digital Officer and Chief Content Officer at Ralph Lauren, and Global Director of Digital and Social Marketing at Burberry.

They have an in depth and educational convo about how to bridge the gap between the traditional fashion and digital fashion industries via web3.

Blake asks Alice to expand on her time leading digital strategies for some of the most iconic luxury fashion houses in the world. Alice recounts the paradigmatic shift caused by social media in democratizing access to luxury fashion, and outlines how she utilized Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter in the early years of fashion’s adoption of these platforms.

Alice also eloquently explains that luxury fashion doesn’t always have to do with price point, but the quality and thoughtfulness of the storytelling and content around a product.

And a Context first….Alice trusts Blake and Boys Club with an exclusive announcement! She reveals the 10 designers selected for the Syky Collective’s first her cohort program. It’s a diverse, world class group who is on the forefront of defining what digital fashion will look like for years to come…if you want to follow the industry, you have to follow this group.

Show notes:

Syky’s website

Syky’s Twitter

Alice’s Twitter

Blake speaks with Dani Loftus, CEO and founder of Draup. They chat about all things web3 fashion, including its actual definition (which she breaks down into 3 subcategories), its history, how its developed over time, and its categories of userbases right now. Blake couldn’t help but question if PFPs actually “count” as digital fashion items.

Blake asks about the term “generative fashion” as well, and how Dani sees it as an extension of haute couture...Draup even released the first (ever!) fashion collection where the designs are generative.

Blake and Dani also discuss how clothes need ~context~ to become meaningful to people and why the traditional luxury fashion consumer still has resistance to buying digital fashion.

Throughout the convo Louis Vuitton, Comme Des Garcons, Chanel, Mugler and the iconic Fendi monster bag are also happily referred to.

This is the episode that will give you an in-depth overview of the digital fashion world: what it is, where it come from and where’s going.

Links:

Draup Twitter

Dani’s Twitter

Dani’s Insta

Dani’s Newsletter

LVMH acquired podcast