Renowned artist Brendan Murphy is bringing his work to the Bitcoin blockchain, releasing a new ‘Frozen With Desire’ collection using the Ordinals protocol. The collection consists of 3,100 Bitcoin Ordinal inscriptions with ‘Bitcoin Spacemen’ illustrations inspired by Murphy’s real-life ‘Frozen With Desire’ sculpture.
The four-foot-tall astronaut piece “Frozen With Desire” – which features 6,200 diamonds totaling 517 carats, described as “responsibly sourced” – was offered to Saks Fifth Avenue in 2021 for $25 million. This project follows Murphy’s previous ‘Boonji Project’, a collection of 11,111 unique NFTs launched on the Ethereum blockchain in 2021.
Bitcoin Ordinals Frozen With Desire (FWD) is scheduled to launch on July 18 and will take place on the popular Ordinals and NFT marketplace Magic Eden for 0.00144 BTC each, or approximately $92 at the time of writing.
Image: Magical Eden
“I like to think I’m a pioneer in Bitcoin Ordinals now – it’s just a great space to live in,” Murphy shared. Declutter. “Regardless of anything else, the technical aspects – from an artist’s point of view, to be able to reach new audiences and continue to connect the dots has never existed, so I’m really excited about it.”
According to the project website, the FWD inscriptions on the Bitcoin blockchain will range between the numbers 72,221,454 and 72,226,059. In addition to the pixel profile photo (PFP), owners of the Ordinals will have access to a digital 3D recreation of the real statue.
“It’s been scanned so that all the diamonds, all the fittings, everything looks exactly as it does, and that’s the file that we’re going to put on the Bitcoin blockchain forever,” added pseudonymous project team leader SpaceCat. “That’s a big part of this, documenting one of the most expensive pieces in the world, on one of the strongest blockchains in the world.”
SpaceCat has seen steady progress in the broader art industry’s perception of digital art over the past five years, as NFTs became more mainstream.
“In the first instance [art galleries] were doubtful and disinterested,” SpaceCat said. “Lately, however, these same galleries have become open and curious, even willing to exhibit digital artwork in their physical galleries. That is such a positive change.”
For every spaceman minted, holders can claim one of 3,100 3D FWD Bitcoin Ordinals. Owners can exchange their Ordinal for a physical work of art by Brendan Murphy at his 13 gallery locations worldwide later this summer.
“FWD also means ‘moving forward,'” Murphy said. “If you ask us now, it seems more relevant to think of it as ‘moving forward’ rather than ‘Frozen With Desire.’ So it has a double or even triple meaning. “
Holders of the FWD 3D Ordinal will also get first access to Ordia, a new application that allows FWD holders to vote on the future of the physical Frozen With Desire sculpture.
Although the images in the Frozen With Desire collection are “space explorers,” the image is not really about space exploration, Murphy explained. Rather, it is about the positive energy that comes from creativity, religion and the emotional process and inner experience of someone jumping out of a spaceship.
“I believe the space explorers and dreaminess of galactic travel resonate strongly in Web3,” said Murphy. “It feels like a natural progression from Boonji to FWD and Bitcoin Ordinals,” he said, noting his desire to keep the space vibrant and iconic. “Overall, the spaceman is a fun and memorable figure in the Web3 space.”
Edited by Ryan Ozawa.