Duster

I really didn’t want to write this, I swear. I have real work to do, podcasts to edit and my daughter is home sick; but, it’s like holding in a sneeze, when I have something to say it’s best to get it out. This is not about the @tezos event at Art Basel Miami. It may be what is driving the conversation but this is not really about the displays in a lobby of a hotel. This is the culmination of years of disrespect to a driving force of adoption and endemic of the crypto space (and society) at large. Art rejuvenating dead space is not a novel concept. In fact, in Miami, there’s an entire area that could have been used as a template by all blockchains. It’s called Wynnewood, look it up and you’ll get the New York Times article I reference all the time. What was once an industrial park became a hub for restaurants, music and entertainment: culture. Why? Because some graffiti artist began painting on the cold gray walls of a concrete jungle. Did those artists share any of the financial gain brought to the neighborhood? No, but think of the exposure! Web3 was not built by nor built for creatives like us (yea, I’m putting myself in that group, shut up about it). It was built by boys and men that look, talk and act like me (white, male, presumable douchey based on appearance) but lack a moral and emotional foundation. They use the right words, have picked up key phrases and platitudes, but at the core it’s not about the things many of us value. It’s not about art. It’s not about a reorganization of institutions that were built to keep specific classes, races and sexes subservient. It is not building a utopian-Marxist future where the moral and decent are rewarded financially for their collective effort. Look at the state of streaming services: Netflix, Hulu, Paramount, Peacock, Max. What was once meant to disrupt the cable industry has now become Cable Networks 2.0. The same is true in crypto. What started as a revolution has become a hype parade lead by influencers masquerading as cultural relevance. Remember the @TezosFoundation Permanent Collection drama? In a Twitter space shortly after things began to spiral downward, one of the leads made a comment on the criticisms, “if this is the response maybe we won’t do this again.” We all knew it then. But many of us came here to create something better. So we, many of them my friends, gave second chances, put a positive spin on it and took their opportunity when it was offered. I was jealous. Because I would have done the same. UNDRGRND is just me: a stay at home dad, taking care of a toddler who disrupts the means of production constantly. I know how hard it is to put together something and share it with an audience. But so does every artist I write about. So when we watch people with large budgets, people who are able to make a living on crypto already, getting paid to present the work of others and the result is done with the level of care it takes to hang a Missing Cat poster on a telephone pole, it’s infuriating. Many of the artists I’ve gotten to know over these past three years were creative directors in their web2 lives. Do you know what they could have done with a fraction the amount of money @tezos has in its war chest? It’s disrespectful. It always has been. I’m going to push post on this in a few minutes and the anxiety is rising. I know others are going to criticize what I’m launching in the coming months. I’m in a glass house throwing rocks. The difference is I’m not deluded enough to think I have all the answers or have an ego like I’ve done anything yet. I’m just a guy writing about the things I like while my four-year-old sleeps on me. This was never about the display. It was about the devaluation of creatives for years and the continuation of a broken social contract that promised an idealistic future. So heed the lesson because we’re tired of this shit. And I’m fucking coming… - Founder of UNDRGRND, @NFTjoe