As a cornerstone in the generative art movement on the Tezos chain, fxhash has been a catalyst for cultural expansion and development in this domain. It’s distinguished by its rapid adoption of various technical advancements and trends in this space and an open platform welcoming all creators. Despite a cooling market, fxhash has boldly progressed, utilizing a $5 million seed fund and ONCHFS to offer cross-chain architecture and achieve on-chain implementation. The culmination of these efforts is the launch of fxhash 2.0, marking its transition to a multi-chain model, including Ethereum. Here are some key updates from the documentation provided:
- Ability to mint and collect on both Tezos and Ethereum, including on-chain operations.
- Retention of core fxhash features on Ethereum, such as fx(params) for user-defined settings and redeemables for exchanging minted tokens for physical items.
- Introduction of the Open Edition feature, allowing minting for a specified period without limiting the number of editions.
- Continuous development plans include UI/UX improvements, establishing curated spaces, and market statistics…
However, the most significant aspect is the series of releases starting December 1st to celebrate the launch of fxhash 2.0. The anticipation is building as renowned artists, who have captivated many collectors within the fxhash community, make a comeback. True to its open-platform ethos, the launch calendar boasts a vast array of releases. Once the minting period begins, it’s expected to turn into a festive event, marking a new ‘wave’ in generative art history.
This launch’s releases are curated by various partner groups, each bringing their unique flair to the lineup. Launch partners include Tender, ARTXCODE, bitforms gallery, Refraction DAO, Volume DAO, and Japan’s Kumaleon. In this article, based on information from fxhash’s launch calendar, I’ll highlight some noteworthy works, selected subjectively by the author. This should help you find your favorites among the extensive lineup.
* All times and dates are based on JST. Please check the calendar.
* Please note that some information might still be subject to change, and updates will be provided post-publication.
fx(text) version(en) is here
uesYn – Dance
Description: Featuring antialiased lines moving across the screen, leaving traces reminiscent of a simple UI or microscopic organisms. This work’s playful motion earned it the title ‘Dance.’ Inspired by Georges Braque’s ‘Fox’ and the allure of a Head-Up Display (HUD), green lines were chosen as the motif. The piece also aims to uncover invisible pixels through illusion, replicating line aliasing. The size of the jaggies changes randomly, and the afterimages are controlled down to the pixel level, making this a work that contrasts its ‘roughness’ impression with a focus on pixels, the smallest units of display.
→ Project Page
ciphrd & znah – Genomes
December 14, 2023 at 22:00
This project by Google engineer and DeepDream creator znah and fxhash founder ciphrd will be the #0 work in fxhash 2.0, just as fxhash began.
→ Launch Calendar
Piter Pasma – Blokkendoos
December 16, 2023 at 23:30
Partner: TENDER
Piter Pasma, a generative artist, expresses himself through experiments with code and complexity. He has crafted a piece using a Monte Carlo path tracer, a rendering technique for producing photorealistic images of three-dimensional scenes. Remarkably, this artwork is made without any 3D models or external resources and is comprised of less than 10KB of code. Visually, it is an ode to soft lighting and diffuse surfaces, with code that generates three-dimensional shapes and their negative space, merging the characteristics of figure and ground. Pasma states that optimizing the size of the code to 10KB is not only a challenge but also the best way, in his view, to present code art. This approach contrasts with using tools like Photoshop and Procreate, which rely on ‘other people’s code.’ This reliance is also true for tools like Touch Designer, MAX, and Bitwig. Digging deeper, much of generative art depends on libraries such as P5.js. However, Pasma’s work relies solely on JavaScript and the browser, minimizing dependencies. One reason for reducing dependencies is to extend the lifespan of the artwork. Additionally, Pasma believes in the mystical beauty of conveying complex ideas in as little code as possible, a process filled with challenges and unknowns. This pursuit of minimalism, despite not knowing if it’s the absolute minimum, lends a mysterious allure to his work, embodying a kind of universal beauty in the realm of code art.
→ Launch Calendar
ippsketch – Paradigm
December 15, 2023 at 01:30
Partner: TENDER
The artist’s name, suggesting “i++ sketch,” reflects the concept of continuous evolution in tandem with art. This artist has charmed the fxhash community with minimalist style pieces, notably the “Echos” and “Sketch” series. Drawing inspiration from their own previous series “Monuments” and the visual manipulations of artists like Escher, they have created a generative art work featuring a sequence of rectangular prisms that connect the top and bottom of the canvas, symbolizing the connection between heaven and earth.
→ Launch Calendar
REAS – No Distance
December 15, 2023 at 02:00
Partner: bitforms
This is a work by Casey REAS, known as a developer of Processing. It’s a long-form generative art piece created for the exhibition “It Doesn’t Exist (In Any Other Form)” at the @bitforms gallery in New York and is part of the Still Life series. The generative system for this artwork evolved from the code that produced the 2015 woodblock prints HSB-119-006-090-1366-618 / HSB-135-006-090-1232-687, serving as the origin for all works in this series.
→ Launch Calendar
Studio Yorktown – Komšije
Partner: TENDER
“Komšije,” a Serbian word for ‘neighbors,’ is an artwork that blends architectural elements with the Golden Ratio (1:1.618). Studio Yorktown cites the brutalist architecture of New Belgrade, Serbia, as a key inspiration for this piece. Though its aesthetic may have veered from temporary trends, these structures are incredibly robust and well-designed, having withstood the test of time. They represent vertical ecosystems, where numerous private worlds each with their unique space, float in a shared yet individual environment. The Golden Ratio, a recurring element in Studio Yorktown’s creations, is a ratio frequently found in nature. Like the spirals of shells or human body proportions, it offers an aesthetically pleasing and comforting familiarity. “Komšije” employs this ratio to position mainly residential architectural forms in elevation views, melding Mid-Century modernism, Japanese post-modernism, and Eastern European brutalism. The artwork is constructed by repeatedly dividing the width and height by the Golden Ratio, ensuring that every element is proportionally related to the whole. This method aligns the widths of columns and the heights of floors, maintaining a cohesive structure. Although the structures depicted may not be architecturally practical, they are designed to evoke surprise and joy through playful geometry and massing, providing an artistic interpretation that transcends practical architectural use.
senbaku – Color of my sheets
December 15, 2023 at 21:00
Partner: KUMALEON
The trademark ghost represents an unspecified “someone,” a symbol not tied to any specific individual. This artwork was inspired by a previous piece titled “Color of the Soul,” imagining a ghost, typically hiding the color of its soul under sheets, now using the sheets for self-expression instead. The grid motif of a map in the artwork symbolizes stepping out and navigating through space, reflecting the tentative steps and the fluttering of sheets, evoking the soft, floating movement of a ghost.
The artist shares a personal experience: “During my student days in Tokyo, I walked through the crowds every day. Returning home, I realized that although I was physically in the city, I had interacted with no one and remained unnoticed, feeling like an invisible ghost. People walking in the city are like sheet ghosts, using unseen sheets as boundaries, peering out safely while remaining hidden. The color of their souls remains concealed. I felt a sense of loneliness being in the city, transparent and isolated like a ghost. Perhaps it’s not necessary to fully expose oneself, but choosing sheets that represent one’s own color and stepping out might be a good start to becoming more human. Maybe a little self-expression is okay, to show ‘this is the color of my soul.’ And, this is hopeful thinking, but once you step outside, you can keep walking anywhere, surely. Interacting and crossing paths with various people, your soul’s color might change in the process.”
→ Launch Calendar
SamuelYAN – unTie
December 14, 2023 at 23:15
Partner: Volume DAO
From December 15th (Friday) to 17th (Sunday), Volume DAO will host an exhibition at a gallery in Taipei. Inspired by the theme “Ties” of the exhibition, the artwork conceptualizes ‘knots’ and ‘bonds’, expressing some form of connection through twisted lines within the image. A point on the canvas continually emits lines and dots, resembling fireworks or ribbons, swirling and dancing atop the canvas as if celebrating something. This also symbolizes the sudden release of suppressed emotions. The knots of memories from past experiences unravel at this moment, liberating pent-up emotions. While it’s important to cherish significant moments and experiences by tying them into knots in our hearts, it’s equally crucial to untie these knots and release long-held emotions. This sentiment is encapsulated in the artwork’s title, “unTie.”
→ Launch Calendar
.conatus – .empathy
January 3, 2024 at 22:00
Generative artist .conatus is engaged in artistic research focusing on discovering new rules from the convergence of irregularities, as well as exploring geometric art, the three primary colors of light, and additive color mixing. In the latest work titled “.empathy,” created in homage to Pollock, the aim is to harmonize irregular lines based on golden angles, accompanied by the addition of light through additive color mixing. .conatus holds the belief that the golden ratio in chaos theory can be discerned within generative art, similar to how fractals have been identified in the sensibilities of Jackson Pollock. This exploration is a journey towards understanding and applying these concepts in the realm of generative art.
→ Launch Calendar
andreasrau – Duet (Preview)
Partner: PARAMETA
This is a generative performance that unfolds in the interstices between improvisation and composition, between precise directives and free interpretation, between synthetic and natural sounds, and between the human and the machine. In this time-based artwork, the computer assumes the roles of composer, conductor, and performer simultaneously, creating an unceasing flow of sound and visuals in concert with musical scores performed by human musicians. The piece generates a collection of unique NFTs, including still images derived from the performance and deconstructed versions of the musical scores, evoking a sense of the ephemeral.
Gin_ – (No)Color
December 16, 2023 at 21:00
Partner: KUMALEON
A Japanese generative artist, exploring artistic expressions using mathematical methods. They have been developing a technique for creating symmetrical figures through pointillism, applying their work with fractal shapes. Aligning with the theme ‘COLORFUL’ of KUMALEON, this time the artist focuses on color, generating a visual disparity between the process and the outcome of drawing. This approach raises a question about what is more significant: the process or the result.
→ Launch Calendar
Kazuhiro Tanimoto – Yuragi
December 14, 2023 at 23:00
Partner: Volume DAO
This artwork portrays the interaction and flow of objects at various scales through animation and audio. It reveals that even phenomena that appear stable are always changing when observed at different scales of size and time, emphasizing that nothing remains unaltered. When viewed collectively, each entity is as minuscule as a grain of sand, incapable of influencing the whole on its own. Instead, it is engulfed by greater currents, momentarily vanishing while emitting a transient color. This fleeting existence mirrors the nature of human life, reflecting our brief yet impactful presence within the larger tapestry of existence.
→ Launch Calendar
Roni Block – Slott
December 12, 2023 at 21:00
Partner: KUMALEON
“Slott” is a work by a Sweden-based creative coder and generative artist, representing a sibling project of the previous fxhash project “Luft”. It explores new color combinations, more complex tiles, and symmetries, creating patterns that emerge as colorful curved motifs intertwine in a tile-like formation.
→ Project Page
HAL09999 – The WRK Paradox
In their previous work, “The Bridge,” which represented a significant departure from their earlier style, the artist felt a need to create something uplifting based on personal experiences. This piece, the first part of a series, immerses viewers in a gigantic, colorful universe where they can interactively control a small monolith to explore stellar objects, akin to an interactive space journey. The work intentionally connects different aspects of digital art, inspired by video games and the “starfield simulation” screensaver that was part of Windows, aiming to create a linkage between these varied realms of digital art. The artist is currently working on the second part of this series, endeavoring to merge and expand definitions further. This upcoming piece references pioneers like John Whitney in algorithmic music visuals, Terry Riley’s developments in audio techniques, and the imagery created by Stanley Kubrick, blending large graphical color spaces, a touch of sci-fi in the universe, and generative audio.
“I consider this piece an ode to algorithmic practices, whether purely visual and static or more time-based media. This significant shift in my style from previous works aims to heal and reconcile different conceptual areas, and also resonate with the audience”
→ Project Page
Geoff Davis – Time Spectrum
January 18, 2024 at 02:00
Partner: EXPANDED.ART
“TIME SPECTRUM” is a long-form generative art animation by Geoff Davis, a generative artist active since the 1980s. This piece is a modern reinterpretation of “MA1 LINES” from “ABSTRACT ORIGINALS,” and marks his first on-chain work created using p5js. Utilizing seven palettes, the artwork generates seven distinct color pieces, each symbolizing a different phase in the history of the universe. These varied hues represent seven eras: the Big Bang, Biology, Human Diaspora, Mono Media, Colour Media, Cyberpunk, and Transcendence.
→ Launch Calendar
Wren + Kitel - Edge
This collaboration between AI artist Wren, who focuses on landscape themes, and generative artist Kitel, each with their unique creative approaches and styles, was a natural union. “Edge” is a project that displays delicate lines which subtly connect things in the subconscious – not as opposites but as slightly different entities. It represents the fine boundary that separates a dusty country road seen from a car window from the beautiful, colorful landscape beyond. It’s the barely noticeable divide between day and night at sunrise and sunset. This project is also where AI and generative art meet, blending these two distinct realms into a harmonious edge.
→ Project Page
loackme – stranded(ness)
December 19, 2023 at 02:00
A generative artist from France, known for their distinctive monochrome dithering style. Their work involves looping black and white compositions that evoke a sense of limitless non-space. The artist aims to create works of pure abstraction, where time itself eludes capture and definition.
→ Launch Calendar
takawo – Snail Trails
December 22, 2023 at 03:00
Partner: ARTXCODE
This is the first fxhash release by Kobe-based creative coder takawo, known for daily coding and the NFT work “Generativemasks.” Employing fundamental screen composition algorithms like 10PRINT and recursion, the piece captures the transitions of colors. Designed with the intention to express a certain sensuality characteristic of living creatures through code, this artwork represents takawo’s unique approach to blending algorithmic complexity with artistic expression. 🐌
→ Launch Calendar
Okazz - Turn Over
December 14, 2023 at 21:00
Partner: KUMALEON
A Japanese creative coder and generative artist, characterized by a pop aesthetic. Notable works include pieces like KUMALEON, exemplifying their distinctive style.
→ Launch Calendar
sakamura – ephemeral
December 24, 2023 at 21:00
A generative artist based in Japan, who explores new methods of expressing creativity at the intersection of art and technology. In their latest work, the artist diverges from their previous exploration of combining simple shapes, instead attempting to capture and update the expression of Japanese Nihonga painting’s blurred and hazy style through generative art. This represents a new direction in their artistic journey, integrating traditional art forms with modern digital techniques.
→ Launch Calendar
KilledByAPixel – fxVase
December 14, 2023 at 02:00
KilledByAPixel is a generative artist with a broad background in computer graphics and game development. “fxVase” is an on-chain digital pottery tool that allows users to shape, glaze, and mint their own virtual vases. Building upon the previous work “fxPottery,” this new version includes the added feature of creating handles for the vases.
→ Launch Calendar
DistCollective – Focus (wip title)
January 24, 2024 at 09:00
An artist duo based in Istanbul, focused on exploring the organic elements of computational aesthetics through algorithms. Their latest work, “Focus,” as the name suggests, centers on the phenomenon of getting very close to or zooming in on an object, sometimes losing focus and uncovering other details. This work is part of their ongoing exploration of textures using particle systems in p5.js. In “Focus,” they have allocated five different colors to particle systems, each operating at a unique frequency. This arrangement aims to replicate the effect of how musical chords are composed, seeking to establish a correlation between musical harmony and visual color based on complementary relationships. The project also plans to generate artworks in multiple canvas sizes. If feasible, the duo intends to print custom-sized canvases for the holders of the pieces, leveraging fxhash’s redeemables feature. This innovative approach integrates the digital and physical realms, offering a unique artistic experience.
→ Launch Calendar
qubibi – Rehabilitations 1
February 1, 2024 at 00:00
An artist who creates digital works, often interactive, with a unique worldview. Their distinctive generative art, which the artist refers to as “Mimis (worms),” has become a sensation among collectors worldwide. The piece “Rehabilitations 1,” as suggested by its title, is conceptualized around the theme of rehabilitation. The process of rehabilitation encompasses challenges and hope, as well as the gradual journey of recovery. What does rehabilitation mean to him? Is it a return to society, a restoration of a weary spirit, or a process of cultivating new creativity?
→ Launch Calendar