Coldie and the NFT Gold Rush

0:08 COLDIE: I mean, I literally would be doing this no matter what, if crypto came along or if it didn’t. I was making art for 10 years before this. So if NFTs went away, still going to be making art.

0:35 I bought this one-of-one, and then I got an [inaudible] print of it. The color palette of that is the most muted but vibrant at the same time. It’s just got this [inaudible] to it.

0:35 You know, I started with the physical stuff. That’s actually my real passion, is physical art. And it’s been a crazy journey in the last 3 years, primarily only doing digital.

0:58 So this thing, it’s sound-activated, so if you have a beat going, it changes with the sound. Pretty rare little CryptoKitty I got. This is one of my pre-crypto lenticular light-ups. Like, in CGI, can you make this look really good and crisp and gilded?

1:21 So I made this one for the Bitcoin 2020 show that got cancelled. So we’re all trying to make our cool — to show, and it never happened. So I made this huge Snowden.

1:45 My buddy Roger, who I was collaborating with, he gave me all his comic books. So these are just all — comic books I need to get rid of. But the cool thing is, I learned a lot about illustration from the ’70s from just looking at these books. It’s just the style.

2:07 This is also early-on inspirational stuff. My parents had these. I don’t know how the — they had these, but: stereoscope. This is an old one too, so find one that actually works. The thing is, they didn’t know their lens distances back then. Look at the absurdity of this: some guy’s lowering his buddy down on a — rope.

2:29 I just have a — ton of those. This isn’t even half of them, but I have a lot of View-Master cards. I’m just going to drive through this part now. Oh — dude, I don’t want to do this.

3:03 I have lifelong had anxiety issues. Growing up, I didn’t know what it was. I was just the weird kid. It was very scary to talk, but at the same time I could hide behind the art, and that’s what started giving me my own personal value, and the ability to own what I was making. And that was a big breakthrough. And I still struggle with that to this day. That’s all — time.

3:25 All my art has a story. I don’t do non-story-themed art pieces. The feedback from people who have a reaction to it, and maybe they vibe with it and it makes a connection, dude, that’s so much better than even a portrait I do, or something that’s more obvious to tell what it is. The person taking a chance to step outside of themselves and get into the art, and have that reaction of possibility.

3:48 I feel like I’m more able to get into a flow state, because the wiring is a little different in there. My comfort zone and my ease is the flow state. And that’s why I only want to make art, because I can hop into that flow state pretty quickly, or when it hits me, it’s real hard. That’s really where my brain is in its equilibrium, and it can just go.

4:10 I think you have to do a hundred things before you even have an idea of what you’re doing. And I feel like I’m just figuring out where I’m going. NFTs have really given me an opportunity to get digital and really learn a whole lot of new stuff. And I mean, I’m really getting started. If this stuff goes away, it doesn’t matter. I’m an artist to the bone, and I’m going to keep going forever. I mean, I’m really just getting started.