In 2021, a new creator economy was born on the blockchain. Since NFTs took center stage, artists have risen to NFT superstardom, forged multi-billion dollar brands in just a few months, and completely transformed lives time and time again. But the most inspiring thing about the NFT space is the number of artists of all faiths and media who have found community and support by embracing this technology.
In line with our mission to empower creators, we present Next one — our monthly franchise dedicated to showcasing emerging artists. While the NFT space has changed significantly over the past few years, one thing has remained true: the sheer number of creative talent in Web3 only continues to grow. In our June issue, we compiled a list of five up-and-coming talents that have been making waves in Web3.
Batzdu
The Nine pic.twitter.com/LDAUsIEO6p
— batz (@batzdu) March 30, 2023
Batzdu, known simply as Batz, is an artist, creator and generalist known for his modern style of memeism. After first gaining traction in the NFT space with GeoMetric Pepes (aka GM Pepes), the enigmatic artist has since capitalized on his growing success by creating a variety of meme-inspired and visual art projects. His journey to fame has so far led to groundbreaking sales of collections such as Pepedenza and The Nine and cosigns from Jack Butcher, Vincent Van Dough and other prominent Web3 figures.
Emily Kusano
gm
Mama’s art sold out!
My AI photography debut “Neural Fad” was featured in the Japan contemporary section in the Bright Moments gallery. The sale started at 5pm yesterday and I am pleased to say that all 100 units sold out by 2:30pm the following day for 0.1 ETH each!… pic.twitter.com/T4NXjQ7rXi
— Emi Kusano
(@emikusano) May 7, 2023
Emily Kusano is a Japanese multidisciplinary artist, entrepreneur and singer/songwriter based in Tokyo. Although Kusano is known in some circles as the lead singer of the 1980s synthwave group Satellite Young, in Web3, she is most revered as a co-founder of the Shinsei Galverse NFT project and her nostalgia and retrofuturism-based creations. Most recent. Kusano made waves with the release of her Bright Moments collection Neural Fad, which explores the relationship between AI and memory.
Gelo
gm
‘Living in LaGuardia’ is available at @AOTMgallery.“Living in LaGuardia expresses the excitement, but also quiet moments of solitude, the memories made as the airport echoes with whispers of our goodbyes and our reunions.”
Feel free to DM! pic.twitter.com/N8gnx8c1kQ
— Gelo (@gelo_arch) June 1, 2023
Gelo is a New York-based creator who brings his more than 20 years of experience in architecture and art to the blockchain through a variety of endeavors. With a self-dictated mission to reinterpret architectural forms as art in another time and space, Gelo uses light and shadow to imbue his pieces with deep emotion. From his 1/1s to editions and collaborations, Gelo’s work tells humanistic stories with architecture as the protagonist.
Ivona Tau
The belated memories of the algorithm, the beauty of forgetting
To be seen on @bitforms gallery in NYC.
The work frees decaying states of memory through algorithmic memory. In this work, Ivona Tau draws from previous AI and GAN models trained on a dataset of… pic.twitter.com/GzTSJ1uCJQ
— Ivona Tau (@ivonatau) March 16, 2023
Ivona Tau is an award-winning generative AI artist from Lithuania. Working from a Ph.D. in AI and 15 years of combined experience in professional photography and AI, Tau has been exhibited widely including at Art Basel, SCOPE, The House of Fine Art, Bright Moments Berlin and Sotheby’s. In Web3 she often works with neural networks and code as a medium in experimental photography and motion painting with the aim of evoking emotions through artificially intelligent tools.
Christopher Shinn
Photos I took on the ferry pic.twitter.com/qJ8zhdXMEd
— Kristopher (@kristophershinn) June 15, 2022
Christopher Shinn is a photographer from the Pacific Northwest who primarily shoots on film. He has found a knack for capturing moments at home and abroad and has released a variety of works over the years, both physical and digital, with his Web3 fame coming from coveted collections such as By Way of Water, Outer and his numerous collaborations with artists such as fellow Next Up/NFT100 honorees Batzdu, Postwook, Efdot and more.