In a life before crypto, NFTs, and the metaverse, I thought I had a good grip on what it meant to be a part of creative communities. Especially with multidisciplinary artists, it was always pretty clear to me that we were building something special. And in many cases, it was true; I made life-long friendships and learned so much.
But then NFTs happened, and I stumbled into what appeared to be a madhouse on wheels, traveling 200 kph into the future, with no clear strategies or ideas as to what that future was. I embraced chaos and found myself in the middle of a shitstorm of mindless shilling, intensely beautiful art, and completely alien ideas about what utility, scarcity, and branding meant.
At some point along the way, I quit my real-world job and embraced web3 in its entirety. I found myself amidst a network of creators, curators, and collectors that put their money where their words were, and spoke clearly with their actions. It quickly became very clear who was genuine, and who was not. Integrity shines incredibly bright in a sea of toxic behavior and dishonesty.
And here I was again, with a grip on what it means to be a part of a creative community. The baseline had not changed, but there were suddenly so many different facets to what it meant; it was not just a creative community, but a new creative economy.
As the number of scams and rugs increased, my circle of peers tightened, and I found myself not just creating art, but building projects. Our team at Stacyverse//Pillheads feels like the apex of this path I have been on. We have a philosophy that was present before we got here; we did not build a mode of thought, but rather found ourselves here because of our commonalities in the way we live our lives.
We are a group of like-minded individuals that share a creative vision. We are here to nurture an identity built on integrity and respect. Our commonalities are difficult to number, but it may be possible to categorize them a little.
Our team is artist-driven. By putting art before money, we are able to prioritize quality and protect the brand’s integrity. Being a collective of artists first and foremost, we are unrestricted in exploring different aesthetics and concepts and can avoid being held back by business-minded thinking.
Our team is culturally diverse. We span multiple timezones from the USA to India, to Australia. Organizing meetings that fall on a reasonable time of day/night for everybody can be a challenge. Our ability to present different cultural mindsets and find different ways to communicate our vision and brand makes up for this inconvenience.
Our team is professionally diverse. We all come from very different backgrounds IRL. We are a mix of artists that have backgrounds in a variety of art mediums and have a wide array of experience with event production, marketing, production logistics, and even web & software development. This assemblage of skills allows us to explore multiple avenues for the brand, ranging from digital presentations to physical assets. These are crucial tenets of what it means to build on web3.
Our team is freaking ridiculous. We are obsessed with having a good time. Laughter envelops all ends of the spectrum of our work; we are here to have a good time. When things get stressful, we discuss them in-depth and do not shy away from resolving any problems we may be encountering. Our mentality is solution-driven, simply because we want to have a good time doing what we’re doing. Besides, conflicts are just opportunities to learn from and grow stronger through.
Our team cares about long-term connections. We’re not here to meet strangers at a rave and never see them again. We’re here to connect with people and share this world we are creating because we believe it can be life-changing. Our community thus far has repeatedly reinstalled our belief that integrity matters in web3. Through our artists and collectors, we have connected with individuals who connect genuinely, stay engaged during market lulls, and provide honest feedback. We want to build and grow alongside our community, with their input and direction. Our party doesn’t stop.
We believe in decentralization. This is not just another product or brand. We are here because we believe in a future where decisions are made by better informed, and diverse interests in society. We spend a lot of time thinking about what best serves the expressed interests of our community, before making any decisions about what we are building. We want to build and innovate with the blockchain. We are incubating ideas for the future of web3 and beyond.
We are not a group of automatons with corporate interests or backgrounds driving our intentions and goals. When the focus is on art, the language of the project becomes centered around creativity, and subsequently how good it feels when those experiencing the art have a positive engagement with it. We love a good dopamine rush, just like anyone else; but it’s so much better when we get to share it with others.
In the metaverse, everything moves differently. Time is compressed. Value is often ephemeral. The utility is often an unclear notion. We are fully immersed in this ecosystem, and we too are moving differently. We are not here to bring a multi-K project that works the same way others do. We are here as an identity that stands for creativity and integrity, facing a future full of potential. We are offering you a metaphorical pill that embarks you on a tangibly life-changing journey.