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New York NFT artist Emily Xie explores the tension between creativity and “cold and robotic” algorithms. Punk6529 and DC Investor are collectors.

New Yorks Emily Xie is exploring the new frontier of digital art by combining her skills and passion for computer science and generative art. 

In a little under two years, since she minted her first NFT in March 2021, she has caught the attention of prolific collectors, such as Punk6529, DC Investor and Bob Loukas, and recently left her software engineering job to pursue life as a full-time artist. 

I studied art history, took studio art courses, but also studied computational science and engineering. I made all sorts of art growing up, but it was more in a traditional media way. As a software engineer, I was always hoping to combine my love for programming as well as my love for art and creativity, says Xie. 

Discovering generative art

I found that desire in generative art in around 20152016. It made a lot of sense making art with code. You dont get any more of a direct and elegant combination than that of those two fields.

Its so full of exploration. Youre engaging with technology in a way thats creative because it exercises both sides of the brain, and thats a rare thing to encounter. 

Xie attributes her love for making generative art to the freedom it gives her to let her creativity loose, and she gets lost in the process. 

Generative art is meditative for me. Whenever I made it, I got really sucked into it. The world around me would just disappear, and I would spend hours just programming and seeing what the algorithm might do.

Prior to NFTs, there was not very much opportunity to actually make a living out of it. When NFTs did come along, it was the first time where I actually saw a pathway for myself to be making a living as an artist. 

Inspired by East Asian art, Xies collection Memories of Qilin was launched via Art Blocks a year ago and has now seen over 4,400 ETH ($7.4 million at the current ETH price) in secondary sales.

In July 2022, Xie teamed up with Bright Moments for her 100-piece collection Off Script, which is an algorithmic representation of a 20th-century modern art collage. 

Just recently, the New York resident engaged in a collaboration with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and she also has worked with SuperRare and Objkt (Tezos). 

Influences

Xie takes influence from many artists and styles but specifically singles out Japanese ukiyo-e artist Hokusai, best known for the famous big wave woodblock print, and Spanish painter Picasso who revolutionized abstract art with cubism. 

For me, I love abstract expressionists and early modern collage artists, but a few names that come to mind are Hokusai and Picasso, she says, also referencing the Fidenza NFT artist Tyler Hobbs.

Read more: Tyler Hobbs wrote software that generates art worth millions

Theres a lot of generative artists that have inspired me over the years. Tyler Hobbs is one of those. Id also say Zach Lieberman has been a huge inspiration, says Xie. 

In general, the genre influences for me are collage and textiles. I draw a lot of real-world inspiration from them. 

Personal style of generative art

Xies aesthetically pleasing style takes inspiration from traditional East Asian art, and she has a knack for creating pieces that can be studied with the naked eye at length. 

I would say that my personal style is very influenced by textiles, patterns, collage and wallpaper. This idea of bringing together a lot of different patterns and putting them into one piece and seeing how that can create something so cohesive thats really interesting to me, Xie states.

Her work brings human warmth to what could be a sterile nature of computer-generated art. 

I would say that, a lot of times, my artwork tends to have a very organic feel. It explores this tension between what is handmade and appears very human versus what is computational and somewhat cold and robotic.

Its very fascinating to me to bring in a sense of organic and human into a medium thats inherently digital with the code I use. 

Notable generative art sales to date

NFT artists to watch

Xie points out a number of up-and-coming NFT artists shes excited about. 

William Mapan An artist who works with code and has been featured on Art Blocks, Bright Moments and at Sothebys. 

William is an incredible artist. He has all these beautiful, hand-drawn-looking works. His series Anticyclone is just stunning, and Ive collected one. I think he really loves drawing inspiration from traditional media as well. 

Iskra Velitchkova A computational generative artist whos also been featured at Sothebys. 

Her work has a very digital quality to it. Whilst digital, its also deeply atmospheric. Her style is so consistent. If you see an Iskra Velitchkova piece, you know its hers. 

Sasha Stiles A metapoet and AI researcher.

Sasha is doing some amazing work around artificial intelligence and poetry. Its very cutting edge in my opinion. 

Generative art process 

Using a combination of traditional sketching, photoshop and writing algorithms, Xies process can be quite time-consuming and detailed. 

Programming is a pretty intensive process, so you want to visualize what youre trying to program as concretely as possible before doing it. I typically do that in Photoshop and sketch out what happens if I add a line to a given element. Ill look to see if that makes sense. If it looks good, I will then program it out and see where that takes me, says Xie. 

Often, it starts with a pretty extensive mood boarding process where Ill go and collect a bunch of images that I love that Im inspired by. That gives me an idea of what Im interested in at that moment. Sometimes, I cant articulate or vocalize that myself; its a very subconscious thing. 

Once Xie has an idea of what she wants to make, she starts to code to create the output. 

When Ive got my inspiration, I then start tinkering around with algorithms. Sometimes, that means revisiting an algorithm that Ive already written or learned about, for example, flow field. From there, its a matter of trying to draw inspiration from other elements and attempting to recreate them using code.

Typically, what that means is youll lay down some lines of code and then youll see what it produces, and itll render on your screen. From there, it becomes an iterative process of playing with parameters. For example, if you constrained one parameter, you might get wavy lines instead of something else. Youre constantly going back to your code, editing it and rendering it, and then repeating that process over and over again until you get something you like. 

Throughout my programming process, I actually try to prototype rapidly as much as possible because you can also run into the problem where you have an idea and spend all day programming it out, but it looks bad, and youve wasted all that time.

Physical-to-digital art paradigm shift

Xie says that tokenized digital art is turning the traditional relationship between original and reproduction on its head. 

Its interesting because, in the past, the Mona Lisa physical object is the true piece. Then every other picture of it you find floating around on the internet is just a manifestation of it. In this paradigm, its the complete opposite, which is really funny. I think its really important because, for the longest time, the traditional model left digital artists without a real way to assign originality and collectibility to the artwork, Xie says. 

In the past, there wasnt an easy way for my generative art to be collected. How do you collect something that sits on your computer but could be transferred to any computer all around the world with a click of a button? It required a way to assign rarity to a JPEG. NFTs are it. If people really think about it, it makes so much sense, and it opens up digital art to be finally appreciated and collected. 

Favorite NFT you own

I would have to say Anticyclone by William Mapan and Folio #22 by Matt DesLauriers. I love both of those pieces that Ive collected. 

Links: 

Lynkfire: linktr.ee/emilyxxie 

Twitter: twitter.com/emilyxxie 

Memories of Qilin website: memoriesofqilin.com/ 

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NFT artist Terrell Jones developed a unique method to attract attention that took him from stacking boxes for FedEx to his own Sotheby’s auction.

Artist: Terrell Jones, Michigan
Date minted first NFT: March 28, 2021
Which blockchains? Ethereum, Tezos

Influenced by classic gangster films, Terrell Jones has a distinctive style that captures imagination and nostalgia. He is about to auction a second piece at Sothebys and has a patented soft-shell taco method to garner the attention of notable collectors. 

Who is he?

From childhood aspirations of being a cartoonist to now being one of the hottest new NFT artists capturing the attention of elite collectors and Sothebys, Terrell Jones is well into his launch trajectory.

Born in Ann Arbour, Michigan, Jones has a visually distinct style. But it is his ability to tell stories through his art such as the collections Evil in Color and Good and Evil that sets him apart. Just in the last two months, Jones has had some of his highest-ever sales, and there is growing interest in his work.

A big thing for me has always been to try to connect my stories and images with a deeper part of everyone. With the way things are moving now and with so many artists, people are probably seeing more art within a day than you probably would have seen within a year. Its been a big shift, Jones says. 

Because we can see so much art, I wanted to have my stuff stick to people in a deeper sense. I want them to remember. 

In a similar vein to Grant Yun (featured last week in NFT Creator), Jones is a big fan of drawing on evocative memories and a sense of longing for the past.

Im definitely trying to connect the viewers and collectors of my art with nostalgia. A lot of the music I listen to is for nostalgic reasons. A lot of the movies and shows I watch are for nostalgic reasons. I lead with nostalgia in a sense with my work, stated Jones. 

Especially with the Evil and Color series, a lot of it does come from old gangster films or old crime films. Theyve been super influential for me and I was very much into them. Im talking about The Sopranos, Goodfellas, Scarface and all those types of classics. 

Despite all of the recent interest, Jones remains firmly grounded. 

I can remember times where people didnt care about what I was doing or what I was minting. Recent times have been a huge contrast to that, and its a big change. Im grateful for it. 

Influences

Jones singles out American visual artist George Condo as his No. 1 influence. 

Im a fan of a lot of artists, but George Condo is my favorite for sure. A lot of my early work was pretty much Condo-like copies. 

I also have to give shoutouts to Edward Hopper (American realist painter and printmaker), Hiroshi Guy (Americano pop style painter), David Hockney (English painter, printmaker and photographer), Phil Hale (American figurative painter), Yue Minjun (Chinese contemporary artist). 

Youve also got Takashi Murakami and Mpcoz who are doing amazing things in NFTs.

Personal style

Jones style is simplistic yet fascinating. It takes you to places in your mind and draws out memories you may not have thought of for years or even decades. 

I describe my style as a kind of a blend of pop art from around the 80s. I was definitely inspired by that a lot. Pop-Precisionism is how I like to speak about it its a sub-genre in a sense.

Im working to capture that feeling of nostalgia and that feeling of imagination, like when kids think anything is possible. I want to attempt to reignite that spark in us as adults now. 

In true Jones style, the devil is very much in the details with a number of his creations. 

I come from a religious background where angels and devils are a thing. Its interesting because I think they exist but for me they dont look or act necessarily anything like we think of them. For example, angels are like angelic figures with wings; theyre perfect, and theyre glowing. And with the devils, they are these red figures with the horns and all that stuff. I dont feel like either of those necessarily look like that if they do exist, says Jones. 

His Joy and Wonder series led to a collaboration with notable NFT project Aku Akutars, founded by former Major League Baseball player Micah Johnson. 

The Akutars collaboration with Micah was great. Before I was connected with Micah, I had lots of people telling me that my space boy character reminded them of the Akutar character. It was an easy yes for me when Micah reached out. I had already been thinking of different concepts and pieces. Really fun to be a part of.

Notable sales

NFT artists to watch out for?

Bringing a massive smile to his face, Jones informs us of three artists we should all be looking into. 

Kodak LDN Animator from Nigeria

Hes a Nigerian artist Ive been aware of for a long time. I think I might have been the first person to buy a piece from him. Hes a super talented animator, and I would love to work with him at some point, Jones says.

I really believe hes one of the greatest animators Ive seen. His work is not like anything else Ive seen whether in the NFT space or out.

Niah Artist from Australia

Theres certain artists where I just cant nail how they created a piece of art, and Niah is one of those. Shes one of those artists where Ill zoom in on her pieces and wonder how she got certain parts so clear even though its so intricate. Niah is just super talented.

Rozwell Creator

I described him as our Steve Jobs. Hes insane. The project that hes about to come out with I believe is going to change a lot of stuff for the NFT space. I think that it will definitely start like a whole new meta. People should definitely keep an eye out for that.

Process

With inspiration recently coming from classic crime and gangster films, Jones creativity is often sparked by watching classic films, and he uses the tool Procreate to help bring his creativity alive. 

When Im watching those movies, Ill start to think of ideas and put them into my notes. Other times, Ill be doing the most random things, and Ill just have an idea pop to mind. From there, Ill start to sketch it out. Ive always said, If I have a good sketch, then I can probably finish a piece in a day or two, Jones shares. 

Following the sketch and if Im happy with it Ill start to block out the colors, and from there, I work in a way where I work on individual characters or crucial aspects of a piece like a car separately. I try to work on separate files and eventually combine all the files. Part of that process is due to file size and layer constraints with Procreate, but overall, I think it makes my art cleaner. 

Soft-shell taco method: Attracting collectors

VincentVanDough was the notable NFT collector whose interest helped Jones rise up the ranks. He credits what he called his soft-shell taco method of subtly getting his art in front of the right people, in contrast to the hard-shell taco method of spamming links to everyone and hassling collectors via DMs.

[Its] more on trying to find ways to put your art in front of peoples eyes in a way that isnt forcing it on them. Youre kind of making them run into your art by accident on purpose, says Jones. 

I kind of soft-shell-tacod Vince at a certain point, and he was made aware of me. He dug into my art a bit more and ended up matching my all-time high sale at the time by purchasing my Birthday Boy piece in late 2021. 

Since then, Vince has helped me go on runs with some of his SuperRare purchases. Were super friendly and talk a lot. Even though hes a busy person, hell often have different advice for me or hell see different things and offer perspective. Im definitely grateful for him. 

Links: 

Lynkfire: https://lynkfire.com/terrelldom 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/terrelldom

NFT artist Terrell Jones developed a unique method to attract attention that took him from stacking boxes for FedEx to his own Sotheby’s auction.

Influenced by classic gangster films, Terrell Jones has a distinctive style that captures imagination and nostalgia. He is about to auction a second piece at Sothebys and has a patented soft-shell taco method to garner the attention of notable collectors.

Born in Ann Arbour, Michigan, Jones has a visually distinct style. But it is his ability to tell stories through his art such as the collections Evil in Colour and Good and Evil that sets him apart. Just in the last two months, Jones has had some of his highest-ever sales, and there is growing interest in his work.

A big thing for me has always been to try to connect my stories and images with a deeper part of everyone. With the way things are moving now and with so many artists, people are probably seeing more art within a day than you probably would have seen within a year. Its been a big shift, Jones says. 

Because we can see so much art, I wanted to have my stuff stick to people in a deeper sense. I want them to remember. 

In a similar vein to Grant Yun (featured last week in NFT Creator), Jones is a big fan of drawing on evocative memories and a sense of longing for the past.

Im definitely trying to connect the viewers and collectors of my art with nostalgia. A lot of the music I listen to is for nostalgic reasons. A lot of the movies and shows I watch are for nostalgic reasons. I lead with nostalgia in a sense with my work, stated Jones. 

Especially with the Evil and Color series, a lot of it does come from old gangster films or old crime films. Theyve been super influential for me and I was very much into them. Im talking about The Sopranos, Goodfellas, Scarface and all those types of classics. 

Despite all of the recent interest, Jones remains firmly grounded. 

I can remember times where people didnt care about what I was doing or what I was minting. Recent times have been a huge contrast to that, and its a big change. Im grateful for it. 

Influences

Jones singles out American visual artist George Condo as his No. 1 influence. 

Im a fan of a lot of artists, but George Condo is my favorite for sure. A lot of my early work was pretty much Condo-like copies. 

I also have to give shoutouts to Edward Hopper (American realist painter and printmaker), Hiroshi Guy (Americano pop style painter), David Hockney (English painter, printmaker and photographer), Phil Hale (American figurative painter), Yue Minjun (Chinese contemporary artist). 

Youve also got Takashi Murakami and Mpcoz who are doing amazing things in NFTs.

Personal style

Jones style is simplistic yet fascinating. It takes you to places in your mind and draws out memories you may not have thought of for years or even decades. 

I describe my style as a kind of a blend of pop art from around the 80s. I was definitely inspired by that a lot. Pop-Precisionism is how I like to speak about it its a sub-genre in a sense.

Im working to capture that feeling of nostalgia and that feeling of imagination, like when kids think anything is possible. I want to attempt to reignite that spark in us as adults now. 

In true Jones style, the devil is very much in the details with a number of his creations. 

I come from a religious background where angels and devils are a thing. Its interesting because I think they exist but for me they dont look or act necessarily anything like we think of them. For example, angels are like angelic figures with wings; theyre perfect, and theyre glowing. And with the devils, they are these red figures with the horns and all that stuff. I dont feel like either of those necessarily look like that if they do exist, says Jones. 

His Joy and Wonder series led to a collaboration with notable NFT project Aku Akutars, founded by former Major League Baseball player Micah Johnson. 

The Akutars collaboration with Micah was great. Before I was connected with Micah, I had lots of people telling me that my space boy character reminded them of the Akutar character. It was an easy yes for me when Micah reached out. I had already been thinking of different concepts and pieces. Really fun to be a part of.

Notable sales

NFT artists to watch out for?

Bringing a massive smile to his face, Jones informs us of three artists we should all be looking into. 

Kodak LDN Animator from Nigeria

Hes a Nigerian artist Ive been aware of for a long time. I think I might have been the first person to buy a piece from him. Hes a super talented animator, and I would love to work with him at some point, Jones says.

I really believe hes one of the greatest animators Ive seen. His work is not like anything else Ive seen whether in the NFT space or out.

Niah Artist from Australia

Theres certain artists where I just cant nail how they created a piece of art, and Niah is one of those. Shes one of those artists where Ill zoom in on her pieces and wonder how she got certain parts so clear even though its so intricate. Niah is just super talented.

Rozwell Creator

I described him as our Steve Jobs. Hes insane. The project that hes about to come out with I believe is going to change a lot of stuff for the NFT space. I think that it will definitely start like a whole new meta. People should definitely keep an eye out for that.

Process

With inspiration recently coming from classic crime and gangster films, Jones creativity is often sparked by watching classic films, and he uses the tool Procreate to help bring his creativity alive. 

When Im watching those movies, Ill start to think of ideas and put them into my notes. Other times, Ill be doing the most random things, and Ill just have an idea pop to mind. From there, Ill start to sketch it out. Ive always said, If I have a good sketch, then I can probably finish a piece in a day or two, Jones shares. 

Following the sketch and if Im happy with it Ill start to block out the colors, and from there, I work in a way where I work on individual characters or crucial aspects of a piece like a car separately. I try to work on separate files and eventually combine all the files. Part of that process is due to file size and layer constraints with Procreate, but overall, I think it makes my art cleaner. 

Soft-shell taco method: Attracting collectors

VincentVanDough was the notable NFT collector whose interest helped Jones rise up the ranks. He credits what he called his soft-shell taco method of subtly getting his art in front of the right people, in contrast to the hard-shell taco method of spamming links to everyone and hassling collectors via DMs.

[Its] more on trying to find ways to put your art in front of peoples eyes in a way that isnt forcing it on them. Youre kind of making them run into your art by accident on purpose, says Jones. 

I kind of soft-shell-tacod Vince at a certain point, and he was made aware of me. He dug into my art a bit more and ended up matching my all-time high sale at the time by purchasing my Birthday Boy piece in late 2021. 

Since then, Vince has helped me go on runs with some of his SuperRare purchases. Were super friendly and talk a lot. Even though hes a busy person, hell often have different advice for me or hell see different things and offer perspective. Im definitely grateful for him. 

Links: 

Lynkfire: https://lynkfire.com/terrelldom 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/terrelldom