Verse Talks

Welcoming Erick Calderon aka Snowfro, to discuss all things generative, Art Blocks, Generative Goods, the difficulty of wearing multiple hats, the weight of people's expectations and dealing with competition in the space.      01:02 - Welcome Snowfro 01:40 - Bringing the energy and shaping culture 03:45 - The headspace of a founder vs an artist 05:25 - Being pulled in different directions 06:38 - The core goal of Art Blocks 09:00 - Democratisation of the art 12:20 - The importance of a longterm perspective 13:35 - Thoughts on the traditional gallery model 16:50 - Not leaning into FOMO as a platform 19:58 - The responsibility that comes with success 22:09 - How to deal with the distribution of audience attention among projects 24:00 - Why the Art Blocks schedule has slowed 26:18 - The still-unexplored potential of generative unchain art 28:04 - Extend your time horizon 30:20 - AB Curated, AB Studio and moving forward 33:21 - How to think about competition 44:50 - The power of generative art and blockchain as a distribution mechanism 46:56 - Navigating the success of Squiggles 50:00 - Collecting, Selling, and financial realities of a digital art platform 52:19 - Artists and projects that are pushing things forward 55:40 - The intersection of AI and code based work 58:58 - A new solo project and the power of constraints 01:02:13 - Juggling AB, Generative Goods and an art practice 01:05:15 - The Generative Goods philosophy and connecting with a different audience 01:15:15 - Different view points, different business models and creating upside 01:22:40 - Snowfro debrief 01:24:20 - The realities of gatekeeping 01:29:00 - Orkhan's Rêveries 01:37:30 - Technical issues with the minting process 01:40:20 - The semantics of gatekeeping 01:44:55 - Artist highlights Snowfro: https://x.com/artonblockchainnikita diakur: https://x.com/nikitadiakur Spencer Yan: https://x.com/spncryn Marcela Bellini: https://x.com/studiobellini Joain: https://x.com/0xjoain  LEGIO_X: https://x.com/legio_x_ Jesse Draxler: https://x.com/jessedraxler Petra Cortright: https://x.com/petcortright                              

Jay, Ivan, Leyla and Jamie sit down with Beeple to discuss the importance of authenticity, virality, the role of galleries in web3 and the responsibility of curatorial uplift in an attention economy. 00:50 - Welcome Beeple 01:33 - Avoiding burnout and connecting with an audience 04:30 - Looking back across an artistic practice 06:06 - When is a work finished and the exploratory role of an artist 08:25 - Developing a physical practice 12:09 - What role do galleries have in the space 14:32 - Beeple Studios as an alternative cultural hub 18:25 - Digital media's potential for greater inclusivity 24:20 - Curator guidance, imparting context and wall text 26:50 - Finding balance in politically charged work 32:30 - How to tell what will resonate 34:40 - The Trump phenomenon and attention economy 36:00 - What community really means in web3 39:30 - Why the imbalance between penises and vaginas 40:30 - Self-censoring, misinterpretation and deleting posts 43:26 - Where will we be in ten years? 44:00 - Post-Beeple debrief 45:06 - Meme-pyromania and community reaction as art 46:18 - The exponential curve of stimulation 49:40 - Beeple's curatorial approach and the democratisation of opportunity 51:36 - Red Chip, Blue Chip and wall text 58:39 - Node's acquisition of the Punks IP 01:04:00 - Verse rundown 01:06:26 - Artist Highlights Beeple: https://x.com/beeplePipiuniversel: https://x.com/pipiuniverselSogaki: https://x.com/sogaki The Galois Connection: https://x.com/thegaloiscxn MACBETH: https://x.com/macbethai                       

A conversation with legendary collector and timeline provocateur Phantom Scribbler. We dive into memes, the social impact of NFTs, the importance of concept & narrative in artworks and the death of aesthetics.01:30 - The state of the market 05:47 - New additions and a rising floor  08:20 - Welcome Phantom Scribbler 09:15 - The effect of price action 10:40 - Phantom's introduction to NFTs 12:05 - Is the NFT trade over? 14:32 - Phantom's approach to collecting 17:00 - Autoglyphs and onchain art 18:57 - The emotional connection with an artwork20:46 - The power of an ugly aesthetic 21:50 - Are aesthetics dead? 22:30 - Lost Robbies and the value of an origin story 24:37 - An impulsive approach to art 28:40 - Bidding on the Giraffe, and understanding memetic value 34:30 - Social stickiness around NFTs 38:00 - The responsibility collectors have to engage and build cultural narrative 50:09 - Brevity, complexity and genuine analysis 52:45 - Phantom's thoughts on physical art 58:35 - The magic formula for a successful release process 01:05:46 - What grabs Phantom's attention 01:09:00 - Artie Galerie and the importance of consistency 01:11:30 - How to onboard new collectors 01:18:57 - Phantom's favourite piece in his collection 01:19:25 - Thoughts on chains, timeframes and liquidity 01:26:28 - Phantom's biggest misses and questionable buys Phantom Scribbler: https://x.com/phantom_scribbs Pipi Universal: https://x.com/pipiuniversel skomra: https://x.com/skomra LEGIO_X: https://x.com/legio_x_ Yuri jjjj: https://x.com/yuri_jjjj                  

Jay, Ivan, Jamie and Leyla sit down with Adam Berninger of Tender and Heft Gallery to dive into Heft's opening, the realities of opening a physical space, artist-gallery relationships, the culture casino and institutional vs influencer gatekeeping.  01:38 - Welcome Adam Berninger 03:50 - The relationship between Tender and Heft 07:49 - What inspired the move to a physical gallery model 12:30 - Connecting in person and object-hood 16:00 - The power of a digital community 18:55 - How digital ownership is understood from outside the space 20:40 - The financial pressures of a physical gallery 25:45 - Galvanising the New York digital art scene 27:40 - Artist-gallery relationships 37:20 - Heft's upcoming program 39:41 - Keeping a balance of blockchain-based and physical works 44:20 - Showcasing the digital art community to people outside 46:30 - The challenges of onboarding and making it sticky 48:02 - What's in Verse's pipeline, working with different galleries and voices 54:30 - Heft's site, Verse white labelling and potential opportunities 59:50 - An expanding gallery presence for digital art in New York 01:01:39 - Meeting and working with Edward Burtynsky 01:07:00 - Fx(hash) airdrop announcement 01:09:51 - Artworks being sold as coins, fractionalisation and editions 01:17:02 - Turning culture into a casino 01:22:10 - Everything is a simulacrum 01:25:41 - Reacting to market conditions and competition 01:32:20 - The bell curve meme takes on gatekeeping 01:40:10 - The issue with the lack of institutional knowledge 01:44:15 - The issue with lack of influencer knowledge 01:50:56 - Artist Highlights 01:56:31 - Verse rundownAdam Berninger: https://x.com/adamberninger Heft: https://x.com/heft_gallerySkomra: https://x.com/skomra Pipi universal: https://x.com/pipiuniverselLEGIO_X: https://x.com/legio_xYuriJJJJ: https://x.com/yuri_jjjjMika Ben Amar: https://x.com/100o111 Orkhan: https://x.com/orkhan_art                             

Kenny Schachter joins Leyla, Jay, Jamie & Ivan to discuss NFT-ism, technology, criticism and all things art before diving into Sketchbook B, content coins and Rodeo's pivot to USD.01:00 - Welcome Kenny Schachter03:20 - Building an audience in a pre-internet world06:30 - Embracing authenticity and integrity 09:00 - Art as a means of social expression 12:49 - Closed mindedness in the art world 15:35 - NFT-ism 19:35 - Dealing with criticism 23:03 - A new audience and the appeal of NFTs 25:40 - Rebuilding the reputation of the NFT space 32:01 - Will the art world and the NFT space ever merge? 35:15 - Presence, reputation and engaging with community 39:50 - Technology and the impact of the computer 44:07 - Surviving in the current landscape 50:12 - Institutional and critical impact vs social media 52:20 - Finding opportunity in failure 01:01:27 - William Mapan and Sketchbook B 01:05:12 - Generative art in 2025 01:09:00 - How do you help to break new artists 01:10:47 - Tinysoul, Zora and content coins 01:19:15 - The impact of monetisation on creativity 01:28:25 - A different outlook on consumption 01:32:17 - The problem with just coining it 01:41:25 - Rodeo's pivot to USD 01:48:27 - Pocobelli and crypto art 01:54:25 - Artist highlights 02:00:02 - Verse Rundown         

Jack Butcher, founder of Visualize Value, brings his expertise in simplifying complex ideas through visuals. He chats about the dynamic relationship between design and art, questioning if the term 'Artist' is still relevant. Jack emphasizes the internet's role as a creative canvas and discusses the importance of authentic connections over mere technical skills. They also delve into the power of networks, the challenges faced in the NFT space, and how independence impacts creativity in the ever-evolving digital art landscape.

01:20 - Recap on William Mapan's SOLOS exhibition in London05:00 - Mapan's holistic artistic approach 07:40 - Are discussion panels boring14:20 - Embracing browser discrepancies 22:00 -  The artist's intent vs breaking emerging standards28:15 - Leyla's wallet boycott 33:10 - Jack Kaido and SuperRare 43:07 - Diving into Holly's collection 47:37 - Toxic positivity and Grace's post 54:17 - Timeframes and an opportunity to miss out 57:58 - Building out context in the digital space01:00:30 - Botto's Liminal Thresholds 01:05:06 - Artists Rooms, formats and new focus 01:12:03 - Developing a release program and striking a balance 01:14:00 - Artist highlights 01:23:45 - Verse rundown  https://x.com/andreasgysin https://x.com/graphicapng https://x.com/reas https://x.com/graceb_art 

00:58 - The Deviates aftermath 02:15 - Unpacking the process 03:45 - The secret 06:40 - Driving variety and collaboration 10:50 -  Battling platform censorship 13:50 - The reveal 16:45 - Great art can come from anywhere 20:20 - Self-expression and acceptance 23:15 - Deviations and community 24:18 - Permanence and provenance 27:09 - Personalised slop machines 35:40 - ChatGPT and the next wave of entrants 40:50 - Overly complex, off-putting tech 43:40 - Digital goes physical 47:30 - Deviates blue chip, red chip, purple chip? 49:10 - Fall out from Ghibli-gate 51:18 - William Mapan, sales mechanics 54:50 - Artie Gallerie and Kevin Esherick 56:29 - Fakewhale and Andy Duboc  

01:22 - A complex practice 05:30 - Reflecting on Sketchbook A 09:50 - Parenthood on creativity  12:15 - Slowing down and escaping a framework 16:00 - Building bridges and the importance of physical work 19:48 - The evolution of Sketchbook B and Etudes 26:05 - Immersed in the process27:33 - The completion of the sketchbook 31:20 - Mark making, self-exploration and identity 34:35 - Dealing with the noise 37:35 - The current focus on AI 39:49 - Does the medium matter 43:15 - Burnout and maintaining a work-life balance 47:30 - Installing Sketchbook B and highlighting the algorithm 53:45 - Authenticity and freedom of expression 56:38 - Thinking on sales mechanics and allowlists 59:19 - Intensity, stress and prerelease thoughts         

01:30 - Jeff Magid 08:50 - Discovering another world 16:25 - Becoming a collector 19:15 - Risks and rewards 24:35 - Breaking convention 28:40 - The future of the art world and digital art 36:19 - Value creation and a complex market 39:55 - Stagnation and exclusivity 44:27 - Welcoming new participants 48:40 - Where digital art is going wrong 57:27 - The stigma of the PFP 1:00 - An outside perspective 01:01:54 - The roundtable returns01:03:10 - Growing the digital space 01:05:30 - Fantasy art funds 01:06:20 - Parallel worlds 01:08:20 - The physicality of digital 01:10:08 - The promise of the metaverse 01:13:40 - Interacting and living with digital art 01:21:13 - Breaking down an outsiders perspective 01:26:20 - Blue chip art in a red chip world 01:36:30 - Converging towards a consensus look 01:41:10 - Agency, exposure and the impact of social media 01:51:49 - Red or blue 01:52:25 - High-end sales and moves 01:54:08 - Artist Highlights 01:58:28 - Verse rundown hicetnunc2000: https://x.com/hicetnunc2000 kiszkiloszki: https://x.com/kiszkiloszki Molly Soda: https://www.instagram.com/bloatedandalone4evr1993 Casey Reas: https://x.com/reas Shl0ms: https://x.com/shl0ms Jeff Magid: https://www.instagram.com/magideye