New Collection of CryptoPunks
Cryptopunk A new series called “Super Punk World” has been launched. The collection features 500 digital avatars, combining the famous CryptoPunks look with the artist’s unique style The Cool World of Nina Chanel Abney. For the first time, collectors can experience Abney’s art in 3D format.
Abney’s upcoming exhibition “Lie Doggo” will feature the collection. The exhibition opens on May 18 and runs through October 5 at the Jack Shainman Gallery School in Kinderhook, New York.
Abney’s installation addresses issues of identity through the lens of CryptoPunks. She talked about the economic disparities in digital avatars, noting that white male avatars often sell for more than female or dark-skinned avatars. Her hybrid characters mix racial traits and blur gender lines, challenging the traditional “value” of these digital characters. Visitors can create their own avatars, encouraging them to think about how to build identities in the digital and physical worlds.
The theme of surveillance and anonymity
The installation also explores themes of surveillance and anonymity. Abney studies how identity is performed, particularly online in the context of cancel culture. Her work questions how social pressure affects creativity and freedom of expression. She challenges viewers to consider how digital interactions reflect and reinforce real-world inequalities and conflicts.
In February, Yuga Labs launched the Punk in Residence program. The program celebrates and expands the legacy of CryptoPunks by collaborating with creators to create new works on the blockchain. In this series, Nina Chanel Abney was the first artist to receive a “dev Punk” (Punk #72). She describes it as “relaxed, cool, but a little mysterious.”
Choose Nina Chanel Abney
The choice of Abney as the first artist-in-residence was purely accidental. The team at Yuga Labs discovered her work during an exhibition at the ICA in Miami. Her alignment with the disruptive nature of web3 and CryptoPunks makes her a perfect fit for this collaboration.
Yuga Labs plans to host two residencies per year, inviting two artists from different backgrounds to participate each year. The program will provide artists with mentorship and technical support to bring their ideas to the blockchain, regardless of their previous experience with web3. Profits from art sales will be split equally between the artist and Yuga Labs, ensuring creators benefit directly from their work.
