PROOF Signal: Harmonizing Tangible and Digital Art

In today’s edition:

• Vote: When should the Oddities burn end? 

• Nina Knaack: Harmonizing Tangible and NFT Art

• Sam’s NFT Countdown show is back – only in the PROOF Discord!

PROOF Updates

Oddities Burn Vote 🔥

With fewer than 50 Oddities burning a day, should we stop the burn early on November 15 or keep the window open until February 15, 2024? Learn more on Discord and vote on the Snapshot by November 4.

Moonbirds Moon Launch Update 🌕

Thank you to all those who registered for the Moonbirds Moon Launch event. Unfortunately, Intuitive Machines, the company that developed the lunar lander that will be used during the mission, just announced the mission has been postponed to January. 

We know several of you have already made travel arrangements and apologize for the inconvenience. We hope you’re able to adjust your travel plans and join us in January! Stay tuned. 

PROOF Events 🎉

• This is the last weekend to visit the Notes from a Neutron Star Exhibition at the Foundry in LA! Be sure to let us know if you’re a holder when you visit for a guided tour.

• If you’re a PROOF Collective holder, you’re invited to join us in Tokyo on November 7 for the Sakazuki by Suntory Group event, RSVP at events.proof.xyz.

• We’re so excited for the Lunar Society approved Bonsai event on November 15 and 16, where we explore the art of Bonsai! RSVP here.

Community Updates

Congrats to the winner of the October Command + A art contest by Dead Birds Society, SemberW40! DBS continues to develop the platform with a weekly Wednesday Spaces on X - give them a follow.

Lunar Society Update

Day one Moonbird community member akaGator was approved for his Lunar Society proposal, LaunchPad Web3, and is gearing up for its launch. It's a comprehensive and user-friendly Web3 content platform, which Moonbirds members can access for free. To learn more, follow them @launchpadweb3.

An Inside Look: ‘Harmonizing Tangible and NFT Art’ 

This week’s art piece is written by Nina Knaack, a contemporary art historian working as freelance writer, speaker, curator and tour guide, specializing in digital art. 

Yes, we are in a bear market, an unwelcome reality that, especially in recent weeks, seems to stubbornly dig its heels deeper. The repercussions are apparent. Conversations in podcasts and spaces teeter between uncertainty and pessimism with topics like, "Is this the crypto bottom?" and "Are NFTs dead?" 

While only a select few artists, particularly those who garnered fame during the bull run of 2021, continue to secure impressive sales, many creators revert to the familiar realm of commission work et al., seemingly retracing steps back towards a web2 model. Despite the apparent regression, I maintain: NFTs are not dead. 

Art, being perennially resilient and adaptive, is in a transitional epoch, navigating through a phase where new, yet unknown but hopefully soon-to-be, digital collectors are grappling with recognizing the value of owning art as an NFT ‘only’. 

Besides that, although blockchain technology and associated software for NFT art distribution and display showcase advanced development, hardware lingers in a developmental lag. We are in another shift where museums and individual art aficionados are on the brink of having accessible and affordable means to display their digital art.

In waiting for a harmonious confluence of the physical and digital and the conversion of traditional art collectors to the blockchain-powered platforms - besides their usual IRL galleries, exclusive drops like Dmitri Cherniak's with LACMA and Avant Arte deserve a nod. 

They presented a new silkscreen print edition that hints at algorithmic parameters of generative art, paired with the NFT edition, ‘Ringers #962: The LACMA Iterations’. This tactic not only provides art lovers with a distinctive, tangible piece to admire daily but also a digital token as a contemporaneous asset.

Although not every drop necessitates this format, it does spotlight a crucial message in these trying times: bridging the divide between the digital and physical, while slowly shifting collective mindsets and developing exhibit possibilities, is a gradual progression and requires thoughtful, measured steps with clear guidance.

This Week in PROOF Media

PROOF Digital Art Market Report

Last week’s 100 PROOF Live had special guest ThankYouX. This week, in lieu of 100 PROOF Live, catch Sam, Amanda, Eli and guest Roger Dickerman with a special PROOF Digital Art Market Report. It starts Friday at 10AM PT/1PM ET on YouTube. Bring your questions!

PROOF NFT Countdown

The hit show from Sam/NFTstats (@punk9059) is back! Catch PROOF NFT Countdown on Monday and Wednesdays, only in the PROOF Discord.