ART WITH LIMITATION
February 4th, 2024

All humans have one limitation in life. The limitation of how long they are going to live on planet earth. Getting creative on how to use this time is an art of its own.

LIMITATION OF TIME

My creative journey began on the streets of my hometown and spread globally over time. This was thehe first time I experienced the limitation of time and space. It became part of my creative journey.

You often only have a time window of 10 to 15 minutes to create your masterpiece before you have to leave the spot. The challenge is to create something satisfying in such a short time within the limitation of the location and the colors you have brought with you that night.

Limitation of Time & Space
Limitation of Time & Space

LIMITATION OF STORAGE

Growing up also means more responsibility and I had to left my crazy graffiti life. What brought me back to create art was the blockchain technology. Storing my art permanently on-chain, being able to share and connect with people globally was overwhelming. But like everything in life, I also found limitation on the blockchain.

Storing art natively on-chain and making it immortal comes with the limitation of storage and style. The first no code solution I found was 8bidou, a bitmap minter on the tezos blockchain. To make minting affordable, the platform limited the size to 8x8 px and stores the art in a pixel array saved fully on-chain. Pixels become my new spray paint and FILTER8 my new alias.

Smol Portrait Collection on Tezos
Smol Portrait Collection on Tezos

LIMITATION OF SIZE

Limit storage means limited space. Working over a year with only 64 pixels deepen my understanding of expressing something meaningful within such a small canvas. I was getting obsessed on how small i can get.

January this year I released the Weeping Pixels collection with the limitation of 6 colors on a 6x6 canvas. Weeping Pixels originated from Pivs “that feel when” exhibition on foundation. This taught me how important colors are, when reducing it to the limit.

Weeping Pixels on Base
Weeping Pixels on Base

LIMITATION OF COLORS

Limiting yourself to certain size is one thing, but limiting yourself to colors is the next step. When researching about bitmap images I came across the 16 color palette used in the first windows machines. Caught by the nostalgic feel, the strong colors and the reference to something life changing become my go to colors for my pixel projects.

Artworks on FX-HASH
Artworks on FX-HASH
Windows 95 colors palette
Windows 95 colors palette

LIMITATION OF STYLE

When Jack approached me to make an Opepen set I was honored and accepted the challenge to work within the next limitation. The limitation of style. Opepen follows certain rules of aesthetic and making my style merge within such a strong iconic image set the bar high.

The limitation of Style
The limitation of Style

My starting point was the most limiting design I was able to make with my style. The 1- Bit 8x8 Opepen. Being so reduced I felt they needed some description to make them even recognizable.

1 bit Opepen
1 bit Opepen

In the seconds iteration I increased the canvas size to 16x16 and introduced my signature color scheme. Having learned from the my previews projects, I knew that the colors are going to play a crucial role in the final artworks. The reference to the Windows NT systems is an important factor for the set, representing the 3 DECADES OF MAGIC, merging the old designs with the NEW TECHNOLOGIES.

First Iteration of the NEW TECHNOLOGY Opepen Set
First Iteration of the NEW TECHNOLOGY Opepen Set

When exploring the old Windows Icons, one style element that stuck out, where the lines that cut each other out, creating the 3d effect you see on nearly every windows icon. This was the starting point for each edition and set the framework to work with.

Design Limitation
Design Limitation

NEW TECHNOLOGY

A deeper look into the editions with its Windows Icon counter part. Also check out Jacks twitter post with his view on the collection.

TIME

The Edition of 1 represents time. The the most valuable asset we all have in our life!

FLOPPY

The Edition of 4 represents the Limitation of Storage we face in every phase of technology.

FLOPPY
FLOPPY

FILE

The Edition of 5 represents the FILE system where all the data is saved.

FILE
FILE

FOLDER

Edition of 10 is an homage to the legendary yellow folder to maintain your files organized.

FOLDER
FOLDER

DRIVE

The Edition of 20 represents the drive. The disc where all the data is pulled from.

DRIVE
DRIVE

PC

The Edition of 40 represents the Personal computer which makes all the beautiful things visible, from the screens to browser windows to artworks. This set was the most challenging to create, because it required a dive deep into the visual components of all old icons.

PC
PC

Constraints can seem like the last thing you’d want for a creative project, but they’re actually beneficial when it comes to create good work. They force you to be on point in a short and powerful way and create unique art.

THE FUTURE IS UNWRITTEN

I wrote this article to give a deeper inside about my art and the Opepen Collection I created with love and intention. Thanks to Luke for taking his time to write his advice for me and future unknown artist to release an Opepen Set.

At this given time the outcome of the set 30 is uncertain. The link to the collection gonna be this one or maybe another one. The future is unwritten.

NEW TECHNOLOGY ( full set )
NEW TECHNOLOGY ( full set )

Thanks for your time and interest in my art you can find more information about me and art on filter8.xyz.

Wish you a wonderful day.

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