Metavelliott

This is a photo of the most expensive piece of physical art I've ever bought and owned (25eth at time of purchase) before it was destroyed. Many familiar with Jack Butcher's artwork will understand the meaning of the design and why this simple visual is notable, but "art" aside, let me explain why Checks Element "Fire" was interesting. All 152 pieces are unique, and were sold as a pairing of digital and physical items. At the conclusion of the sale, every buyer received both. Many luxury brands have experimented with the idea of attaching a digital, cryptographically secured "receipt" with their physical goods (watches, bags, etc.) but this was one of the first times I had seen an artwork treat the physical counterpart as the diminutive version of the pairing. Within the collection, there were 4 ultra-rare editions (Alpha Edition) that represented the most basic of elements: Earth Air Water and Fire (the one I obtained) Of these, the Fire piece is unique for two reasons: 1) Most of the pieces in this collection were sold in an online auction in partnership with Christies. While this was excellent as a way to increase the visibility of the artist, the auction house is a traditional organization that requires full KYC of buyers and only superficially engages in blockchain-based artwork. This isn't a dig at them in any way, just the reality of the business. But a small percentage of the collection was reserved and sold only through a decentralized auction built by Jack and team. Part of the reason I bought the piece this way, and spent more on it than the other Alpha pieces was to show the importance of decentralized art and the decreasing power of middlemen in creative businesses. 2) As far as I know, this is the only physical counterpart in the Checks Elements collection that has been destroyed. Not all buyers of these original digital pieces claimed their physical piece, but of those that did, all still exist. The Fire piece, ironically, was destroyed on January 7, 2025 during the Pacific Palisades wildfire, and now only exists as a digital item. In other words, one of the most decentralized, anti "traditional" pieces of art in this collection, lost its last connection to anything that doesn't exist on-chain. And to me, the fact that this happened not on purpose, but through powerful external forces, adds a singular and pretty insane provenance to this art. Thanks for reading, to the very few who probably did. This was mostly a diary entry for me, and I appreciate anyone who decided to tag along in this braindump.