Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Artists Artists Re:Thinking

A future-artefact of a time before the blockchain changed the the world. This interdisciplinary book includes artistic, theoretical and documentary engagements with the technology some have described as the new internet. Blockchain

With contributions by Jaya Klara Brekke, Theodoros Chiotis, Ami

Clarke, Simon Denny, Design Informatics Research Centre, Max Edited by Ruth Catlow, Mar Dovey, Mat Dryhurst, Rachel O’Dwyer, César Escudero Andaluz, Primavera De Filippi, Rory Gianni, Peter Gomes, Elias Haase, Juhee Hahm, Max Hampshire, Kimberley ter Heerdt, Holly Herndon, Helen Kaplinsky, Paul Kolling, Elli Kuruş, Nikki Loef, Rob Myers, Martín Nadal, Noemata (Bjørn Magnhildøen), Edward Picot, PWR Studio, Paul Seidler, Surfatial, Hito Steyerl, Lina Theodorou, Pablo Velasco, Ben Vickers, Mark Waugh, Cecilia Wee, Martin Zeilinger.

‘Furtherfield and Torque have brought us a collection of writings and art that cut through the mainstream blockchain hype and reveal the diverse creative visions that can be embedded into the

technology. The book strikes a great balance between technical c Garrett, Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner explanation of blockchains, cryptocurrency and smart contracts and the broader politics, culture and philosophy that surrounds the innovations. Above all, it inspires us to believe we can still invent our own futures and grow the technologies that we need to realise them.’ – Brett Scott, author of The Heretic’s Guide to Global Finance: Hacking the Future of Money

‘This book is on a mission to make one of the most influential yet unknown technologies of today intelligible for each and every one of us.’ – Josephine Bosma, author of Nettitudes – Let’s Talk Net Art

ISBN 9780993248757 90000 >

Edited by Ruth Catlow, Marc Garrett,

9 780993 248757 Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner 1 / Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction 3 / Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner : A Quasi Proto Preface Torque Editions & Furtherfield Editions Torque Edited by Ruth Catlow, Marc Garrett, Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner Sam & Jones Nathan Garrett, Marc Catlow, Ruth by Edited Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain the Artists Re:Thinking 5 / Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction 0 – Can an Augmented Forest Own and Utilize Itself? Itself? Own and Utilize Forest an Augmented 0 – Can

terra Contents Skinner Sam & Jones Nathan Preface Proto A Quasi Catlow Ruth Introduction Blockchain the Re:Thinking Artists DOCUMENTS Centre Research Informatics Design The Digital Commodity Content as Literary FinBook: Filippi De Primavera Lifeform BirthBlockchain-Based of a – The Plantoid Hampshire & Max Kolling Paul Seidler, Paul Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz & César Escudero Nadal Martín Art in Contemporary and Bitcoin Blockchain Mining: Critical Gomes Peter Forever Everything Blockchain: Change The Haase & Elias Klara Brekke Jaya Commentary Blocks: Chains and Busting on the Breaking Developers for Blockchain Oath (Hippocratic) Satoshi Loef & Nikki Kimberley ter Heerdt 01.01.20 Velasco Pablo to Budgetary Bliss Blockchain Way Your Play Role Vickers & Ben Catlow Ruth Booklet Work DAO Your PWR Studio A Timeline Shared Ami Clarke as Market Text

133 129 107 101 99 91 85 73 63 51 41 21 9 Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction / 6 187 179 171 159 141 261 251 239 233 223 219 201 199 to thePrinciples oftheMuseum Collections Management on theBlockchain: AReturn Helen Kaplinsky Love ontheBlock Max Dovey Blockchain Poetics Rob Myers immutability mantra Ben Vickers Art andDerivative Fascisms If You Don’t Have Bread, Eat Art!: Contemporary Hito Steyerl Babel Edward Picot Do it(Hand-to-Hand) Yourself //Surfing Guide Juhee Hahm Defixio Nervorum Theodoros Chiotis Bad Shibe Rob Myers &LinaTheodorou All That Happened Surfatial Interview withDr. L.Godord ofPoliticalHistory Operating Systems: Elli Kuruş Flying Under ANeutral Flag Cecilia Wee FICTIONS Blockchain Future States –An Interview withSimon Denny Sam Skinner THEORY 7 / Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction Mark Waugh Mark Ledger of the Distributed Era in the Rights Artists Zeilinger Martin the About to Know Wanted Always You’ve Everything Ramsden) to Ask Mel Afraid Were (*But Blockchain* Rachel O’Dwyer Blockchains How to be Free? Want Digital Culture Does Goods of Cultural the Economy Transforming are Noemata Bjørn Magnhildøen, for Art as Medium – Blockchain Aphantasia Garrett Marc Dryhurst & Mat Herndon with Holly Interview Biographies Index Colophon

342 337 327 319 309 297 287 275 9 / Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner : A Quasi Proto Preface - with the ability, like a with the ability, 1

what has been called a ‘digital metalism’ a ‘digital what has been called The blockchain is janus-faced. On one side its traits of transparency and its traits of transparency On one side The blockchain is janus-faced. accountability, and of fairness terms in much promise decentralization but on the other its monetary a financial payment system, born as roots mean its implementations software, in open-source albeit grounded in its those involved stridently capitalistic. Furthermore, often are and radical ethical standpoints seem to oscillate between development blockchain engenders technological determinism. The reductionist What this book is about, what is inside, and why we did it did is inside, and why we book is about, what What this A Quasi Proto Preface Preface Proto A Quasi Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner Sam & Jones Nathan Many works perform works a quasi DIY dissection and montaging of the Many parts,individual its mapping of subversive a acting as blockchain, to how respond approaches Such functions, and wider infrastructure. tool of organizing if indeed it is to become a powerful this technology, The book’s contributors represent the best of a transdisciplinaryrepresent and contributors The book’s the blockchain to understand and rethink enquiring spirit – required to kludge, critique backgrounds, of variety a wide – and come from inventive hope this We the terrain. their way through and refunction or off-putting field, which is character makes what can be an obscure capitalists, a more and venture developers by principally controlled and open space. live ther technical elucidations within essays by Martín Nadal and César Nadal Martín by ther technical elucidations within essays and Rachel O’Dwyer. Myers Andaluz, Rob Escudero Jump to Ruth Catlow’s introduction for some essentials, and fur introduction Catlow’s to Ruth Jump En masse, this whole collection operates as performative masse, this whole collection explainer of En sorts, entry with the book containing multiple and exit points on the of an understanding, unique to each reader, which subject through may emerge. incarnations and possible futures both present A Performative Map A Performative modern philosopher’s stone, to transmutate life through a distributed a life through stone, to transmutate modern philosopher’s such a pecuniary That is being touted as minded technology ledger. a new technology to underpin a newfangled internet, compels an it may be rethought. state and how exploration of both its current Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner : A Quasi Proto Preface / 10 Technology. form, andfavouring more andmore the termDistributed Ledger incarnations, ratherthanitsfullydecentralized andtransparent might becalledablockchain-liteby optingfor‘federated’ andprivate broadly. Many inthebusinessworldforexample are adoptingwhat the blockchainis,orisnot,beingemployed andtranslatedmore blockchain’s nascent state and complexity, andthe degree to which unknowns,or revel are initsspeculatory representative ofboththe this book,whichemploy hybridversions ofblockchain technology It isinteresting tonotehow FinBook projects within andotherartist Art & the Blockchain Hybridity based culturalregime. might combinewithmodesoffinancialtradingunderablockchain- tokens, in a speculative pastiche of the kinds of ways cultural value FinBook willthemselves beassigningandtradingthesevalue interface signing themvalue tokens.Additionally, FinBots operatinginsidethe wherean onlineportal you canratethechaptersinthisbookby as- trading portfolio. We encourageyou tousetheQRcodesaccess within the book itself,ogy and to intervenes a financial linking articles both enablesaninteractive experienceofaproto-blockhain technol- and medium,we are excited tobeableinclude FinBook, which Embodying thisspirit,exploitingtheblockchainassubject,method, Finbook mediums forart. subjectsofenquiry,with asnew methodsfororganizing,andnew new contracts andcryptocurrency, are dynamicallydeployed andengaged vene init. Within thebook,diverse ecologyofblockchains,smart and mediatinglife,necessitatesaneedtomakeclaimsuponinter from commonsandopen source communities suchasHyperledger applications a unique digital currency andused for all distributed-ledger carrying them all concept of one blockchain to rule viability andadoption.In thisenvironment, initiatives emerging continues tobehugedisagreement regarding anduncertainty itsfuture to implementmoreand itsstruggle concrete manifestations.There the ebb and flowobserved of the hype that surrounds the blockchain, In thecourseofeditingcollectionover thelastyear, we have

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, known for the line, , known Exit play No to Satre’s he is referring Perhaps or ‘Hell is other people’ as ‘Hell translated c'est les autres’ ‘L'enfer, articulation some offer perhaps does Which the of others.’ [the] is trust. maybe he Or over with proof infernal infatuation blockchain’s to Satre’s is referring wild west-style context is amplified by hackers, who are an unknown unknown an by hackers, who are context is amplified wild west-style in weaknesses exploiting by potentially gain much to quantity with of current (perhaps unsuitability) and the vulnerability untested code, within developer an active As @VladZamfir technical infrastructure. 2017: 4:40 AM – 4 Mar at tweeted the blockchain community experimental tech. is immature It isn’t safe or scalable. ‘Ethereum necessary!’ it for mission critical apps unless absolutely on rely Don't in many of is rife and this is reflected the meantime, speculation In art’s between equivalence is a curious There the entries in this book. fact, fiction, and abstraction, and abilities, to play with speculative artBoth blockchain the and character. chimeric own blockchain’s the where of authorship and authenticity: grapple with the instability it is intriguing to witness Inversely, is Satoshi? does agency lie, who character and their own some in the blockchain fraternity rethinking at artistican tweeted @matthew_d_green As through lens. narratives to the latest potential Bitcoin 2017, in reference 10:40 PM, 13 Jul play horrible Sartre trapped in some they are ‘…it seems like fork: to mean different “decentralized” everyoneword has to use the where things.’ which we To is condemned to be free.’ his famous notion that ‘Man might add, but only if cryptographically traceable, and anonymized, a perpetual in be to seem does blockchain The codified. immutably at 9:32 PM, 13 wrote state of existential crisis. As @DMOberhaus called ‘FUCK’ raised $30k Token) ICO (Ethereum 2017: ‘An Jul consider the Or anymore.’ in 30 minutes because nothing matters cryptocurrency in-joke from to in- transformation of Dogecoin of $340 million in June demand digital asset, with a capitalization ideologically and economically) with multi-billion dollar, massively massively dollar, multi-billion with economically) and ideologically Ethereum as the Enterprise such enterprises and ‘closed’ global and Microsoft. JP Morgan companies including Alliance of very to what it different What is clear throughout this book is that what the blockchain this book is that what the blockchain What is clear throughout The Book of the Block The Book of the 2017. and Dyne’s Freecoin, Dyne’s and Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner : A Quasi Proto Preface / 12 . Ine-flux journal this essay, ineffectdiagnosing theconditionsforart essay by begins withafiery Hito Steyerl, originally publishedin section ofthebook The sequenceofessaysinthe concludingtheory the blockchainstraddles. ates thefinelinesbetween cooperation,codificationandcontrol that tures commissionedillustrationby anewly Juhee Hahn thatdeline useful toolforenvisagingfeelingasform.Thecover ofthisbookfea placed topresent intheirconcentratedforms.Illustration isanother practicesareaffective presence well –onethatexperimentalliterary way isnotjustatoolorstructure fordatatobestored, butalsoan itimplies.Theblockchain appearingthis constraints andcorruptions the theoretical implications of blockchain technology with the formal and Edward Picot respond toPWR’s ously terrifyingandhumorous ways.Poems by Theodoros Chiotis future blockchain worlds can be glimpsed and are played out in vari- by Cecilia Wee, Rob Myers collective Surfatial, and artist potential blockchain meansandhow itfeels.In thecaseofspeculative fictions tive works responding tothebookasasiteforexperiencingwhat In afollowing section,we are crea pleasetoincludeanumberofnew is appropriate tothesystemofideastakingplaceacross it. reader willagree thattheexperiments withformthroughout thebook a largedegree themselves. dictatedby theartists We hopethatthe view. Theformofthese presentations isdeliberatelydiverse, andto work by Simon Denny presented here withanaccompanyinginter Haase, PWRstudio’s development oftheir provocations suchas taking placeattheInstitute ofNetwork Cultures, Amsterdam, and scription, andPablo Velasco’s engagementwithworkshop discussions formatsincludingPetertext-based work, documentary Gomes’ tran the blockchain. These includevisual-poetics suchasAmiClarke’s practicesaround possibilities andimplementationsincontemporary works who haveby sought artists to document the world ofmeanings, & CésarEscudero Andaluz.Alsointhissectionthereader willfind to the more playful, perhaps even nostalgic, Plantoid, andPaul Seidler, Paul Kolling and Max Hampshire’s ventions: from key speculative works such as Primavera De Filippi’s book includesdocumentation and discussion of arangesuch inter ties orsuggestive etherofdecentralized ledgers.Thefirsthalfofthis speculativeextrapolating new trajectoriesfrom thetechnicalpossibili and implicationsintocoherent, perceptible objects,andsometimes operatewithinthisgap,Artists sometimesdrawingtogethertechnics blockchain becomes perceptible toan ever wider group of people. Satoshi Oath by Jaya KlaraBrekke andElias Textblock concept,andcombine Bittercoin by Martín Nadal Textblock whitepaper, and Terra0, ------

13 / Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner : A Quasi Proto Preface - - , included in this collection, and for other artists interested , included in this collection, and for other artists interested Shibe

Following Vickers’ essay, and the conflict internal to Ethereum and and Ethereum and the conflict internal to essay, Vickers’ Following discussion a develops Myers’ communities, Rob development other evolution. the Blockchain’s surrounding of the political atmosphere engages specifically with the ideology of libertarians, anarcho- He been have moments various at who syndico-anarchists and capitalists technol- blockchain shaping and moulding with credited) (or accused essay offers a granular survey of the link Myers’ ogy to their interests. and ‘truth’, ‘agency’ as ‘justice’, on terms such perspectives between blogs and they play out in actual blockchain environments, and how of alt- in the often esoteric cultures involvement Myers’ chat-rooms. fiction own both for his in particular lays the ground-work currencies Bad libertarianism takes up the link between and anti-statism Dovey Max observesthat the in his examination of blockchain marriages. He and love ostensibly benign and personal act of declaring everlasting your partner a as better understood is to blockchain affiliation on the Crisis points are of course the perfect moments to perceive the edges the perfect of course perceive moments to are points Crisis notable crisis was the most technology’s of any system. Blockchain was attack effective highly a which in 2016, June 17th of hack DAO for millions of dol- allowing blockchain, performed Ethereum on the Vickers Ben As off. syphoned be to money worthlars' investors’ its of to a fascinating split within the this crisis led documents in his essay, to inter- requirement the pragmatic communities, around Ethereum system, and the in a supposedly – ideologically – autonomous vene Ethereum the text allegorizes Vickers’ preserveto autonomy. need this and responded lived as an historical event, fork hack and resulting with differing per and coders – people – investors by to in real-time and collaborative is one in which the autonomy, The event spectives. into conflict with one an distributed ethos of the blockchain comes hack is Ethereum The events. other and leads to radically unexpected to be of political and social importance akin to Vickers by considered experi- of collapse the or movement, Occupy the of beginnings the the during systems computer predictive real-time first the with ments at allegiances the actual political although – communist era Chilean best obscure. at are in Ethereum work in the political aesthetics of blockchain implementation. production in the era that blockchains threaten to intervene, Steyerl intervene, to threaten blockchains era that in the Steyerl production articulates artof the book: concerns major two of the as currency seemingly art’s how Demonstrating artand arena. socio-political as crisis an unsustainable by is accompanied marketability unshakable artists. conditions for point in working Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner : A Quasi Proto Preface / 14 payment anddistribution experimentedwith by musicians –focusing editioning by organizationssuchasAscribe, andalternative formsof Like Kaplinsky, Rachel O’Dwyer traces different forms of digital tuses suchasthemuseum. the self-disciplining nature of historical institutional control appara online ‘Platform Capitalism’, threaten toreplicate embed andfurther away from theoftenshadowy operationsofcentralized networks in and transparency ownership, oftheseformsart althoughamove album project Mycelium –Kaplinskynotesthatthedecentralization from theIP managementtoolAscribetoImogen Heap’s collaborative projects which explore andcommercial intellectualproperty rights– blockchain the museum.Citingavariety ofnotablecontemporary mension tothistensionaround theobject–thatofColonialismand tant and timely investigations. For Kaplinsky there is a historical di- objects.Helenart Kaplinskyoffersanoteofcautiontotheseimpor- technology mighthelptomanageanddocumenttheownership of CopyrightSociety)Artists are involved in,exploringhow blockchain Mark Waugh reports onthevariety ofprojects DACS (Design and blockchain enthusiasts. tions, wasfoldedbackintotheseapparatusesiscauseforthought markets andinstitu which conceptualism,originallyacritiqueofart inthe1960s.Formade by conceptualartists Zeilinger, theeasewith that the move towards ephemerality in digital environments was first the ‘digital revolution’. Martin Zeilinger forexamplemakesthepoint in working conditions,intellectualproperty, andsales,inauguratedby nology mightaccelerate,reify, orreverse theseismictransformations frequently theseessaysengagewiththewayinwhichblockchaintech Mostinform conditionsfortheproduction anddisseminationofart. ways inwhichblockchaintechnologyisbeing,andmaybeusedto are pleasedtoincludeanumberofessaysthatdirectly address the ric around the blockchain. Following this series of contributions, we plications, ideologicalinvestment, andformsofsocio-politicalrheto fork, willhelptoorientthereader intermsofthediversity ofap theirreferenceEach oftheseessays,andinparticular totheEthereum ‘proto-patriotism’ ofsomeitsusers. after itsforking, hasinteresting resonances withmarriage,andthe rhetoric around theresurrection oftheoriginal(or‘classic’) Ethereum with clearcommercial investments intheblockchain.For Dovey, the highest profile blockchain weddings haveby people beenperformed of blockchaintocircumvent civicinfrastructure. Dovey notesthatthe highly chargedsymbolicact–asitexplores andpromotes thepotential - - - - - 15 / Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner : A Quasi Proto Preface - - Since our inception, Torque has been interested in the relationship in the relationship has been interested Torque our inception, Since and in particular the self- language, mind and technology, between opportunities and intra-active publishing on these themes reflexive areas the Our first books sought to gather leading thinkers in offers. media, art, and philosophy to explore neuroscience, of literature, and writing; what the contemporary for reading conditions are Blockchain Publishing, Language and Actors Language and Publishing, Blockchain Given the reputation of avant-garde music practitioners to embrace of avant-garde the reputation Given fields, it seems than other creative quickly new technologies more and Mat Herndon collection with Holly to end this appropriate artiststhe how discuss interviewan Garrett, Dryhurst.In Marc with space of the and collaborative multiple the distributed and, therefore, ensemble practice that have blockchain lends itself to the kinds of Herndon music, design, and new media circles. in avant-garde grown informed position, which is an optimistic and well and Dryhurst’s that need to, and can, forms of transformation on the positive reflects in cultural production take place in the wake of digital-era changes and distribution. In a substantively different form of enquiry, Bjørn Magnhildøen pro Bjørn form of enquiry, different a substantively In also ‘time’, and phenomenology: ‘being’ concepts from poses that core of in fact conflated, in the context relation, and are a different have observationuses this newa to create Magnhildøen, blockchain. the and calls for artworks that take place within of ‘being@time’, category, this suggests that after the demateriali in a continuum, it. Acting might, zation of the art we object, via conceptual art, perhaps now the the artwork. Embracing deconceptualize the blockchain, through a (presently) of such a gesture, and paradox inevitable anachronism can to this situation responding for an exhibition call for works active be found in his chapter. on what existing internet-based systems and platforms might suggest might suggest platforms and systems internet-based existing on what has which a critique In implementation. blockchain future about the that suggests O’Dwyer Ethereum, around conflict the of echoes blockchain purported by equality promised and decentralization to administering indebted be as deeply surely will technology ideology of these ones, and the as internet-based organizations the artists by use them. who might shared rarely are organizations is in fact a poor substitute also argues that the blockchain O’Dwyer as such protection data of forms digital-based and internet some for digital rights management. Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner : A Quasi Proto Preface / 16 online, from sendinganemailtosearch queries. micro gestureto enable companies to charge for every and activity faced character the roll outofmicropayments alsohasthe potential between readers andtext.But inareturn totheblockchain’s janus- special interest formsofinteraction publicationsandgeneratenew forfunding new opportunities flourish online,andwhichmayoffer (of saylessthanapound)thattraditionallyhave beentoocostly to the potentialforblockchaintofacilitateonlinemicro payments As individuals involved in publishing we were initially intrigued by technologies. via new facing publisherslikeourselves andhow we can relate tothepublic around thechallengesandopportunities observations important this almostmythicaltechnology, butalsooffersatseveral points documents thefascinatingrangeofpracticesandprovocations around and non-human, that operate above and beyond this. movements, egalitarianorganizations,andrelationships, bothhuman none before’ andoftenignore qualitiesofthemostpowerful social markets, make whatGreenfield describesas ‘a market where there was about society, basingitsfunctioningonproperty, contracts and assumptions thatblockchainevangelists andtechnologistsmake and cryptographic codeacts,whoare directingand cryptographic itsevolution. who the‘incumbentactors’ are linguisticform onthissceneofnew Also, asAdam Greenfield we needtobemindfulof hasarticulated, that hassecuritybuiltin. developers are usedtoworking with. Qureshi language callsforanew need toberadicallydifferent from theexistinglanguagesthat web that thelanguageEthereum’s ‘smart contracts’ are writteninwill the aftermathofthishack,software engineerHaseeb Qureshi noted in July 2017,justasthisintroduction isbeingcomposed. Writing in and processes. For us, additiontothissequenceofpublications volume tobeanimportant workshops andsymposia. interventions, We considerthepresent often developing suchasgallery contentthrough publicforums cryptocurrency hackever’cryptocurrency medium.Thiswasevidentinthe in thisnew recent ‘second biggest by influencingthelanguagethatpeoplewillhave toadoptwork affecttheworldwaybeyond marketsrumblings andtrade;forexample, As we encounteritthoughthisbook,theblockchain’s technological unsupervised by the state.’unsupervised Asalways,we needto lookandengage that claims togive people powerful tools forcollective new action, writes: ‘We wanttobelieve inthepossibilitiesofatechnology Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain

9 , againorchestrated ontheEthereum chain, 8 11 Greenfield notonly 10 The 17 / Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner : A Quasi Proto Preface

16 This derivative This derivative where a desire a desire where 15 13 , won’t be lost , won’t Terra0 12 This conflict between the This conflict between 14 Time will tell whether the blockchain simply replaces will tell whether the blockchain simply replaces Time

17 the self governing forest, featured in this book. Here the in this book. Here featured forest, the self governing Terra0 or Esperanto protocol, seeking to overcome the way that paperwork seeking to overcome or Esperanto protocol, feel they may be in reality, powerful everyone, no matter how ‘makes so powerless.’ for abstraction and cutting out the middle man is often challenged is often challenged the middle man and cutting out for abstraction much proving for example is of life. Bitcoin the grubby realties by coterie its those in perhaps than money of forms other like more has currency writes, in practice: ‘the Dodds like to admit. As Nigel on its political ideals, relies community around generated a thriving has a to be produced, of social organization in order a high degree asymmetries of by and is characterized discernible social structure, financial the mainstream not dissimilar from that and power wealth serves demonstration then, Bitcoin as a powerful system. Unwittingly, character of money.’ of the relational dream and reality of the blockchain creates peculiar effects where effects where peculiar creates of the blockchain and reality dream action of the realm from themselves remove technologies ‘abstracting in a quasi-plot. and quasi-events configuring quasi-characters by technology and monetary built Blockchain technologies that are interactions between humans and direct not so much on it organize quasi-events.’ them, but rather quasi-characters and Blockchain actors are deeply enmeshed in the conjuring and in the conjuring deeply enmeshed are actors Blockchain imaginary’ of a libertarian ‘sociotechnical creation way beyond the technosolution, and be mindful of the blockchain blockchain of the be mindful and the technosolution, beyond way problem.’ for a looking solution as ‘a operating on the commentators who note that ‘proof-of-work’ currencies such currencies on the commentators who note that ‘proof-of-work’ It is perhaps in the post-human space away from ‘the money’ that money’ ‘the is perhaps in the post-human space away from It the blockchain and smart most original things the contracts have own our and push beyond ‘outside ourselves’ to offer: as a way get as articulated deftly interests, views and vested anthropocentric in and smartof technology otherness that of plant- with contracts, works a treading assemblage, based systems to form a more-than-human and technosolutionism. decolonizing nature fascinating line between though, this hugely potent line of thought has to be more Once of lessons learned during the an acknowledgement by tempered of The irony industrial and digital revolutions. one type of bureaucracy and middle man, for another, and the degree and the degree and middle man, for another, one type of bureaucracy After what counts as life in the process. to which it has to erode no documentation, costs nothing, requires value all, much that we trace. little or contract, and leaves incentive, abstraction necessitates a reductive ‘technological dependency’, where where dependency’, ‘technological abstraction necessitates a reductive in newwe want to believe tools, so those suggests just as Greenfield hyper –bureaucracy, of a kind of dream the blockchain promoting Nathan Jones & Sam Skinner : A Quasi Proto Preface / 18 http://economist.com/news/science-and-technology/21697197-week-we-discuss-how- creating scarcity. artificial as Bitcoin exactasignificantecologicalpricethrough theirmethodof 3 part-2-135174. Accessed05.07.2017. Jaxenter,June28,2017,http://jaxenter.com/blockchain-interview-series-concerns.’ 2 practical materialityofbitcoin,’SocialSemiotics 1 Notes embrace theinevitableanachronisms insuchanenterprise. rently incirculation aboutblockchaintech:we hopethatreaders will the printeditionofthisbookwilllongoutlastmany mythscur and widersubject.Finally, ontheissueoftimeliness,we are aware that and writerswhohave contributedandengagedsorichlyintheproject been notonlygenerous, butpatientalso,andofcoursealltheartists our first Crowdfunder forthisbookaround 18monthsago,whohave funding support. To readers, we firstly thank those who supported at FACT, CouncilEngland andCulture Arts CapitalExchange for ment toexperimentationandattentiondetailRoger McKinley thank Mark Simmonds, thedesignerofthisbook,forhiscommit a longjourneyfrom conceptiontoexecution. We wouldalsoliketo humour thathastypifiedallourcommunicationsonwhatbeen publication, towhichwe have added,andthegenerosity andgood andthinkersthatthey’vethem fortherangeofartists gathered forthis deeply democratic,open,andwithaclearethicalvision. We thank approach isdeeplypoliticalwhileavoiding partisanship, andalso exploring therelations production. between This technologyandart Ruth Catlow andMarc Garrett have auniqueandvitalapproach to book tions produced by Furtherfield, following onfrom theirnotable2010 Torque Editions, thisbookisthesecondinasequenceofpublica As well asbeingthethird collectionfrom major interdisciplinary Conclusion environmental andsocialinequitiesofcapitalism. more swiftmove towards cryptogovernance tostave offtheworst actively callingfora commentary against convincingcontemporary and modesofaction. and will of people to engage in these nascent but urgent conversations such asTerra0 documentedinthisbookwillcontributetotheability

‘One blockchainto rulethemall?’ Motroc, Gabriela.‘Isblockchainthelandofmilkandhoney?9experts share their Maurer, B.,T. C.Nelms,L.Swartz.‘Whenperhapsthereal problem ismoneyitself!:the Artist Re:Thinking Games

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‘Bitcoins are a waste of ener ‘Bitcoins are Guillaume. ‘The envir Chapron, Reijers, Wessel, and Mark Coeckelber Reijers, Wessel, Gupta, ‘The Pr See for example two blockchain evangelists: Vinay Dodd, Nigel. ‘The Social Life of Bitcoin.’ Ibid. W Jason. ‘Six Reasons Why Bloomberg, See Rob Myers’ contributions for further explication of Dogecoin. contributions for further See Rob Myers’ busy privatising our data.’ titans are ‘Tech Evgeny. Morozov, , 2017, http://freecoin.dyne.org. Accessed 01.05.2017. Accessed , 2017, http://freecoin.dyne.org. Freecoin Ether System Based on of a Computing to Announce Creation ‘Business Giants , 2017, http://hyperledger.org. Accessed 01.05.2017. Accessed http://hyperledger.org. , 2017, Hyperledger

30 2017, http://forbes.com/sites/jasonbloomberg/2017/07/30/six-reasons-why-we-need- 01.08.2017. blockchain-skeptics. Accessed 18 19 , 25 Feb 2016, http://vimeo.com/161183966 and Melanie Swan’s Swan’s , 25 Feb 2016, http://vimeo.com/161183966 and Melanie Blockchain’, Vimeo ‘Institute for Blockchain Studies’, http://blockchainstudies.org 17 Kafka, 2012, p. 15 Investigating Philosophy and Technology 16 14 ISSN 13 Jasanoff, 11 12 10 Greenfield, 9 Qureshi, medium.com, 20 July 2017, http://medium.freecodecamp.org/a-hacker- for Ethereum.’ stole-31m-of-ether-how-it-happened-and-what-it-means-for-ethereum-9e5dc29e33ce. Accessed 25.07.2017. 7 8 5 6 http://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/27/business/dealbook/ Times, Feb 27 2017, New York 02.03.2017. Accessed ethereum-alliance-business-banking-security. keep-drones-away-manned-aircraft-and-talk. Accessed 03.05.2017 Accessed keep-drones-away-manned-aircraft-and-talk. 4 2017. news/2015-10-06/quiggin-bitcoins-are-a-waste-of-energy/6827940. Accessed 01.05.2017. news/2015-10-06/quiggin-bitcoins-are-a-waste-of-energy/6827940. . University of Chicago Press, Power. University of Chicago Press, Sociotechnical Imaginaries and the Fabrication Of 2015. 2017, http://theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/apr/24/the-new-feudalism-silicon- Accessed 05.02.2017 valley-overlords-advertising-necessary-evil. 22 May 2017, http://nature.com/news/the-environment-needs-cryptogovernance-1.22023. 22 May 2017, http://nature.com/news/the-environment-needs-cryptogovernance-1.22023. Accessed 20.05.2017. Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction / 20 21 / Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction 2

This visionThis 6 But it is also But 3 in anticipation of 5

1 7

They currently attract huge investment They currently 4 Powerful technologies develop to reflect the interests and values ofvalues and the interests to reflect technologies develop Powerful of us all. The but impact the everyday them, lives those who develop bewill developments these that predicts Forum Economic World inequity. global in increase significant a by accompanied the fourth industrial revolution of decentralized, super-automation and super-automation of decentralized, the fourth industrial revolution hyperconnectivity. from finance, technology and government sectors and government finance, technology from You will find here starbursts of joy about the potential extensions of about starbursts of joy here will find You by blockchain technologies. collaboration offered creative We know that the blockchain is an important and powerful new that the blockchain is an important and powerful know We a blockchain can do yet.’ what know don’t technology but ‘we We want to stimulate a conversation with you about what arts about what with you brings a conversation want to stimulate We the implications discuss To and vice versa. to blockchain developments artsand potentials for the of the blockchain. Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain the Blockchain Re:Thinking Artists Introduction Catlow Ruth ecologies of ideas, occupations and values.’ darkly poetic that another energy-ravenous financial technology should poetic that another energy-ravenous darkly the tipping point of manmade global-warming watch emerge just as we this is not view So mirrors. in our rear to the distant horizon recede spite of the, In is’. but a discussion of ‘what campaign, a marketing of scalability and environmental technical obstacles unresolved as yet, overtaking They are to stay. here cost blockchain technologies are for speculation and technology network WWW as the next big the ofauthentication for their potential recognize disruption. Investors transactions financial and secure and efficient more matter, and identity as to facilitate so secure distribution of digital assets; communications technology for the billions of devices and as a coordinating voting; connected to the Internet. of the future disenfranchises and demotes the role played by an ever by played disenfranchises and demotes the role of the future forms too) in the number of humans (and no doubt other life increasing that has been shown business of determining what makes a good life. It that fixate on ‘strategies for economic, technical and social innovation and systems of control productive efficient and more establishing ever both unjust agents [are] centralized more fewer, by deployed growth, needs new strategies unsustainable. Humanity and environmentally lively and diverse more and to develop for social and material renewal Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction / 22 such asD-Cent predict theybuild.’ toplayhere. part AsGenea crucial Youngblood says:‘Radicalsdon’t to publishOur thisbook efforts have represent that artists our assertion resources for mutualexperimentandcritique.’ can provide ofconceptualart) useful (especially the history history art The ideologyandtechnology oftheblockchainandmaterials production. to explore waysofsocialorganizationandartistic new contractsandDAOs smart are canuse cryptotokens, toolsthatartists digital domain.Thisalsomeans, as Rob Myers writes, that‘AltCoins, actioninthe ofevery it putsfinance,oritsmechanisms,attheheart andhard-to-grasp important characteristicsoftheblockchainisway mystified by theworking ofbothmoneyand markets. Perhaps themost beduetothefactthat themajorityofusaresignificant, maypartly still difficulty ofunderstanding is how theblockchainworks, andwhyit awareness ofatechnology thatisnotoriouslyhard toconceptualize. The The contributorstothisbookare developing andsharing asituational access, approach, andreach outtoitwithdifferent ofthemselves. parts materialize andshapewhatitwillbe,allowing manyotherpeopleto to do something thing thatdoesn’t yet exististocollaboratewithitspossibilitiesand medium ortechnology. Theyknow thatawaytogetknow some for revealing thepracticalaffordances andanimalspiritsofasubject, usefulness orsimplicity. Theyhave akitbagofmethodsandprocesses to page between symbolicand materialpossibilitieswithoutrushing extended encounterswithdifference, contradiction, muddleandslip- play, openexplorationandsupposition.Theycantolerate,even relish, areArtists goodatmediatingabstractionsforourperceptions through enhanced democracy. and fascinating. systems andcultures; theymakedifficultconceptsmore feelable,legible discover expressive and communicative potentials of its tools, devices, they explore potentialfordiverse humaninterest andexperience;they connections thatare neithernecessarilyutilitariannorprofitable, approach technologiesanumberofthingshappen:by new making socialrelationsparticular with theirplatformsorartwares. When artists for aslongtheyhave beeninexistence.Theyhave consciouslycrafted have workedArtists withcomputingandcommunicationinfrastructures and theimaginariesthatunderpinthem. and outlookamongthepeopleinvolved inthebuildingofblockchains 9 Theyhave alsoalready hadcentral roles inprojects

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12 - 23 / Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction - 13

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The blockchain is a new way of building our The blockchain is a new way truly that’s In a way information technology. never been done before. nightmare. The blockchain is my darkest The blockchain is a way of coordinating computers all over the world in a way that they have always the same information. The internet about the exchange of was information. Blockchain is about exchange of assets and exchange of value. Because of the Blockchain in the future on central going to be less reliance there’s to handle data and to points of authority, how handle transactions and the rules around used. that data’s Blockchain of digital technologies that will really challenge fundamentally the way that we society. structure is a generic technology like the web It really you could build almost any kind of workable system on top of it, it can enhance almost any going to get political model. So what we’re depends on what we choose. With this technology especially you are chiseling away on a new kind of society. the number to each other, In terms of relating one thing as human beings we use is trust. trust with Blockchain allows us to replace proof. Khi Khi

Ariella Ariella

– Excerpts from The Blockchain: Change Everything Forever – Excerpts from Irra Irra Co-founder and CEO Vchain Technology Ben Vickers Curator of Digital, Serpentine Galleries Co-founder, unMonastery Jaime Sevilla Developer, Researcher GHAYA #hackforgood Fellow, Research Associate Director for Crypto- – Centre Research, currency Imperial College Sam Davies, Digital Catapult Catherine Dr. Mulligan Vinay Gupta Vinay Resilience Guru Hexayurt Elias Haase Thinker, Developer, Beekeeper B9lab Founder, 00:25 00:35 00:41 00:51 00:59 00:20 01:10 01:20 01:30

00:26 00:36 00:21 00:42 00:52 01:00 01:13 01:21 00:15 [The blockchain is…] tions for the future. Perhaps with this information you will want to get will want to you with this information Perhaps future. tions for the so. hope We involved. The remainder of this introduction is in two parts. in is introduction this of remainder first offers The The some part second The orientation. blockchain simple the story out to tell sets and inten our plans with you point and to share got to this we of how Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction / 24 A good way into this is to realize that the history ofcomputingistied A goodwayintothisistorealize thatthehistory ing therefore thatmanypeoplefind blockchainhard tounderstand. stage of development as the WWW in the early 90s. It’s not surpris- ecology oftoolsandinfrastructures, theblockchainisatsame surrounding theemergenceof World Wide Web. In termsofits business. If you are oldenoughitwillremind you oftheclamour ing, foolish, terrifying, the latest hype swing, or just plain not-your- knowledge, toolsand resources you willfindthisexciting, exasperat on thekindofpersonyou are, andthekindofaccessyou have to forever. protocolvia thisnew willchangeeverything Anddepending Its proponents claim that the global deployment contracts of smart humaninterference. without further suggest wasadirect response to) the pseudonymousSatoshi Nakamoto. Thiscoincidedwith(andsome currency, Bitcoin, andwasfirstdescribedin2008awhitepaper by The blockchainistheunderlyingtechnologyforfirstglobaldigital actions toadecentralized globaldatabase. secure, anonymous and transparent, way to record all trans- ❑ allowed computersto‘live amongusintheworld’. ❑ file sharingonaglobalscale. ❑ on thenetworkofcomputerdatabasesaroundworld. ❑ databases). ❑ ❑ simplify likethis… ofdatabasemanagement. up withthehistory ‘unstoppable applications’ tracking andexchange contracts– ofdigitalmoneybutalsosmart it hasbeendeveloped tofacilitatenotonlythedecentralized creation, banks bailedoutby government withtaxpayers’ money. Since 2013 information around. base and a collection of softwaretomanipulateandmove that

In 2008theBitcoindigital currencywaslaunched–a 1999 ubiquitouscomputing andmobiletechnologies In the early noughties peer to peer technologies enabled In 1991 the Web gave us a way to access the information The Internetisanetworkofcomputers(and their A computerisamachinethatstoresinformationindata

15 deployed by humansandthenenacted

14 thefinancialcrashwhichsaw

16 Which Iwillnow - - 25 / Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction - - - - 17 miners’ machines run software that uses processing power power that uses processing machines run software miners’ 18

In 2013 people realized that Bitcoin is underpinned by the by the underpinned is that Bitcoin realized people In 2013

A cryptocurrency is digital, but it can be used and exchanged elec- A cryptocurrencyused and exchanged is digital, but it can be world the on unleashed are they After currencies. other like tronically a central authority like coun by not controlled cryptocurrencies are [Cryptocurrency is…] [Cryptocurrency The value of a cryptocurrency is set by market supply and demand, just supply and demand, value of a cryptocurrencyby market The is set and scarcity from their value metals derive Hard as with gold or silver. the difficulty of extraction, with is the only difficulty cryptocurrencies proof- system called a design. In by computational, the only scarcity of-work blockchain protocol that can be used to distribute and enact enact and distribute to used be can that protocol blockchain software of pieces are contracts smart (and contracts smart and now around information, manipulate and move that can digital assets). use as an exchange and their value Instead, tries or central banks. its users using blockchain between consensus by medium is reached trust is re in people and institutions cryptocurrency, In technology. of and the mathematics trust forces placed by of market in the fairness cryptography counterfeiting and maintain its security. which prevent ❑ The initial advertised benefits of cryptocurrencies (there are lots The initial advertised benefits of (there cryptocurrencies included the features) all with slightly different of altcoins now quential, unmovable chain of blocks. The security and stability of chain of quential, unmovable of every users hold a record a blockchain is maintained because all each new takes so much computa transaction made. Because block expensive to mine, it very prohibitively becomes quickly power tional the double spend problem, this way it solves In to hack the currency. without the mediation of a do I prove, the question: ‘how answering can be honoured, received that the payment I have central authority, my asset to the payee?’ that I may release in order This new block incorporates a reference to the previously mined block to the previously reference This new block incorporates a its ‘cryptographic by number), and joins a se hash’ ID (represented and lots of energy to compete for coins. To mine new coins, these To and lots of energy to compete for coins. of new computers periodically gather up a ‘block’ from transactions a difficult mathematical and then race to solve the network across successfully mined to have puzzle for that block. The winner is said and coins minted freshly the of ownership them granting block, the users. any transaction fees paid by Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction / 26 such asassassinationmarkets. money laundering,thetradingofillicitgoodsandnefariousservices of theanonymitytransfers,Bitcoin isalsosaidtohave facilitated transactional apparatustosecure votes andshare holdings.Because blockchain technology to provide infrastructure connecting (compared withwire transfers);andtheabilityofitsunderpinning in Nakamoto’s whitepaper;thelow costofpaymentprocessing lack ofinterference third by states and banks, the ‘trusted parties’ Vitalik Buterin thecoder andco-founderofEthereum describesthe withwalletsintheirpockets. and actlikecomputerviruses and DAPPs), canautomatethe administrationofcompanybusiness Decentralized Autonomous Organizations, andApplications (DAOs ming ratherthaninwritten or spokenlegalcontracts.The resulting tion; with the responsibility for doing so embodied in their program- network, according toagreed terms,withouthumanuserverifica- contracts’ toenactdecisionsanddistributecapitalona blockchain under development to enable software programmes known as ‘smart Since 2013blockchain-basedplatformslikeEthereum have been contract[A smart is…] 03:22 02:58 03:42 03:29 03:11

03:28 03:10 04:02 03:41 03:21 Durham University and Curating Design, Research Digital Strategy, Jaya Elias Haase Hacker Artist, Writer, Rob Myers BlockVerify CEO Pavlo Tanasyuk Mulligan Dr. Catherine – Excerptsfrom TheBlockchain:ChangeEverythingForever

Klara

Brekke 19 aren’t gettingdisenfranchised law courtsare activelyensuringthatpeople contracts andthesekindofplacesunlessthe The you canreinvent withinafewlinesofcode. that’s at governance, you’reat governance, lookinglaw. You know When you’re lookingatmoneyyou’re looking will dowhatit’s been builttodo. can’t alteritonceit’s beenimplementedandit In away, codeislaw. We don’t control it,we possible corruptiblehumanagency. a legalcontractwithouttheinterference ofa the Blockchainwhichperformsfunctionof A smartcontractisapieceofcodenowon we canmapthatintothesystem. tion ofpeopleandwehavetounderstandhow able tobeaware ofbutalsothis socialinterac- that it’s notonlytechnologieswehavetobe certain organization wehavetounderstand social, andwhenwethinkaboutabankor Information systemstheyare fundamentally

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27 / Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction

- 24 25

22 they have flown under the radar flown they have 23

21 there is growing concern about the impact of these technologies. concern about the impact is growing there puts it ‘the worry is being is that society Catherine Mulligan As Dr. of technocrats while it’s group a small unrepresentative by restructured everyonethat something participateto needs about discussion the – in Like many people we started experimenting in the Furtherfield of startedLike many people we experimenting in the Furtherfield It’s normal that Furtherfield should pay attention to the blockchain. It should pay attention to the blockchain. normal that Furtherfield It’s artsan community led are we and technology network emerging an is network and pay attention to how media with networked who work co- Furtherfield’s Garrett, Marc As reality. changing are technologies has written: ‘The meaning of art we and is in perpetual flux, director Neo- with the human condition… examine its changing relationship on everydaylife has informed panoptic encroachment liberalism’s and strategies and, in contrast with most own motives Furtherfield’s alert stayed to art,galleries and institutions that engage with have we dialogue.’ its influence as part of a shared [Blockchains and the arts…[Blockchains warm up] real noughties, but not with any in the late with mining bitcoins fice, make any art and it didn’t difficult and boring, it wasn’t was focus. It wallets computers with their trashed those old since have We sense. installed (these would be worth tens of thousands of ££££s now). society and economy, and also governance, how we rule we ourselves.’ how and also governance, society and economy, Smart contracts have ambiguous legal status. While the law’s defaults defaults While the law’s ambiguous legal status. contracts have Smart until very recently technically apply, While the Web is the Internet of information and communication, of information is the Internet Web While the of Money. Internet the blockchain is the And so it follows that blockchain technology promises to facilitate the to facilitate promises that blockchain technology And so it follows smart manipulation (through automation, monetization, contracts) global of every a decentralized and marketization across transaction database. second wave of development, after digital currencies, as a ‘universal as a ‘universal currencies, after digital of development, wave second finance, to use for up for anyone packaged blockchain’ programmable a as collaboration and human governance ‘distributed p2p commerce, decentralized, technologies that are create the ‘ability to whole’ offering middle men’. removing of government regulation. While this is one of the main attractions this is one of the main attractions While regulation. of government anarcho- as describe might we political complexion whose people to done for us?’, ever capitalist and who ask ‘what has regulation Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction / 28 Institute of Network Cultures, Amsterdam; and the experimental Art such astheactivisthedgefund from, and toconnectupwith,thework otherpeopleandprogrammes investigationThis prompted totakeinspiration and further we started wouldplayacentralrole. andartists in whicharts thinkingandpotentiallycreatefor new anecologyofvalue andvalues systems by andculturalworkers citizens, couldprovide artists asource were intoestablishedcurrency grippedby theideathatinterventions with usadraftforpapercalled andcryptocurrency.between conceptualart In 2014heshared contracts,andtherelationship intheeraofsmart accelerationism, art and madeaseriesofsoftware-artworks thatexplored algorithms, time Furtherfield contributorandadvisor, wrote aseriesofarticles Over the following andhackerRob years artist Myers, a long- intelligence detachedfrom economicconstraints.’ who participate from aroundwho participate theworldon Furtherfield website at theFoundation forPeer toPeer Alternatives Reserve Bank currency created by artists. We continuedtobeinformedby ourfriends fresh waterbutonsiliconandbits,livinginautopiaofcollective Net were Art emancipatedfrom theseissues,livingnotonlove and been excluded from media,asifthe thefieldofnew Internet and noted: ‘Money, exchange… value,Theseconceptshave monetary long pioneerShupractical philosophyandasmediaart LeaCheanghas to sustainFurtherfield’s is,afterall, communitiesandplatforms.Art increasingly urgentneedtobuildamore resilient future economy arts It wasatthispointthatphilosophicalfascinationcoincidedwithan WWW-utopian. stronglyall ofwhichresonated withme,asarecovering very contradictions oftherhetoricsurrounding blockchaindevelopments, in the network age. Itfor arts pointedat the many internal ethical and actionsforcriticalcollaborative production andacommons artists, techies,activists, thinkersanddoerswithdiverse perspectives,artists, was activated by andconversation 20years between ofart hundreds of Associate inLandscapeCommons, atFurtherfield. it Most crucially our theories andmethodsforatransition toaglobalcommons;andby and Irini Papadimitriou atthe V&A inLondon; combine DAOs with which setthesceneforourwork withtheblockchain.It proposed to and theNetbehaviour emaildiscussion list. Futures: Money No Object Reading theCommonsgroup ledby Tim Waterman, Research

33 where you canchangeyourreserve money into anew DIWO (Do It With Others)

31 with Rachel Falconer at the White Building DAOWO –DAO it With Others Robin Hood Cooperative

28 – arts-led methods –arts-led

MoneyLab

34 29 whichproposes Accordingly, we ,

Digital atthe

27 35

29 / Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction The 36 diverse partners to diverse partners and its accompanying programme in Autumn in Autumn programme 37

(2015) Art Data Money Data Art Debates involving an alliance of Debates involving an alliance of Labs using hacking, play, and artistic techniques to take Labs using hacking, play, Art Shows where finance, cryptocurrencies and data are finance, cryptocurrencies and data Art Shows where

In 2015 we curated an exhibition at Furtherfield Gallery a toured and curated an exhibition at Furtherfield we 2015 In Digital Catapult. the UK with an offshoot exhibition around Economies of Crypto Face Human ❑ and ways of organising generate new conversations, networks, divides. value exchanges across traditional ❑ and data flows structures; algorithms financial existing apart new more participatory to discover how they work and create models. 2015 with the intention of drawing an active international commu- international an active the intention of drawing 2015 with of artists,nity to look at the opportunitiesactivists and technologists by in the arts collaboration and sustainability offered for increased and online us join to them invited We blockchain. the and data big a galleryat our 2 venues, Park and lab space in the heart of Finsbury arts London to build a commons for age for in the network in North of: a programme artworks critically engaging, feelable made tangible through for everyone. ❑ Futherfield launched the launched Futherfield [Dance!] 2016 also saw the startthe saw also 2016 Ben partnershipand of a myself between lab series featured work by Dani Admiss, Émilie Brout and Maxime and Maxime Brout Émilie Admiss, Dani by work lab series featured Rob Morone, Lyn Jennifer T Gold, Lea Cheang, Sarah Shu Marion, Brett Museum of Contemporary (MoCC), Commodities The Myers, The Wee. Arts, and Cecilia Scott at the London School of Financial money and cryptocurrencies, sought to demystify work to discover we and at how and circulated, data is gathered in whose interest of the age in things differently and value exchange produce, might spectrum a broad of garnered This work the blockchain. and data big the art, across and blockchain and discussion from attention, review collaboration research a small received we In 2016 fintech worlds. Skinner Sam with to work Exchange, Capital Culture The grant from the possibilities for experimental publishing on to explore Torque of the blockchain. Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction / 30 with thiscriticalmomentin history, terms: statinginno uncertain share ourfindingsandinvitethemtorise the challengeofengaging players, thinkersandpolicymakersto gathertogether, inorder to Austrian Cultural Forum, andtechnologyworld- we invitedart The secondday’s event wasofadifferent nature. Hosted bythe ers Torque, book! withwhomwe collaborated onthisvery Skinner, co-director, withNathan Jones, oftheexperimentalpublish- andthedangersofirreversiblerule contracts. Alsopresent wasSam this book about theconsequences of theblockchain’s immutability in pointforhisarticle tion ofinformalcontracts.Thisisthestarting a temporary, location-based Bitcoin marriage systemasanexplora their Design Informatics team at the University of Edinburgh, in which in ablockchainbodystormingworkshop withChrisSpeed andthe programming theMoneyLab conference andhisrecent participation from theInstitute forNetwork Cultures, brought hisexperienceof collectives values intoDAOs. ofarts otherwise) Max Dovey, over tional constitutionsthatmayinscribethesolidarity-generating(or Kreutler drew manifestosandorganiza connectionsbetween artist demic Adrian Onco whowasalsopresent. andresearcher, Artist Kei Ampliative DAO Art , anearlyart mappedoutby Spanish artist-aca oligopoly. oftheartworld systems, intheservice She alsodiscusses the operationsandcapitalflows withinexistingmuseumandgallery toreplicateartworks) the Victorian represented conceptionofart, by Verisart andprovenance (thatfocusonIPtrackingfordigitalart of suchasAscribe,Monegraph blockchainstartups in arts-focused and Curator andtheoristHelen Kaplinskypointsoutthecurrent trend folding forsocialresponsibility inengineeringandenterprisecultures. anddangerous absenceofscaf analyses Ihave seenoftheworrying opers intheformofThe Satoshi Oath , settingoutoneoftheclearest Klara Brekke andElias theethicalchallengetodevel Haase crystalize in workthat workshop of participants is represented in this book. Jaya searchers andactiviststomapthefastemergingfield. Much ofthe anddevelopers,Commons brought re togetherarangeofartists - oftheblockchain.Thefirstday’sfor thearts workshop at Furtherfield In April 2016we convened atwodayevent toexplore thepotential world. collaboration withintheart the possibilitiesoffered by theblockchainforcooperationand organization, andadesire tointerrogate andaddress more closely to ourshared ambitionformore socialengagement,andactivist Vickers ofUnMonastery andSerpentine Galleries thatbrought focus Geocoin prototype appprovided thecatalystfordevisingof - - - - - 31 / Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction - - - The Blockchain: The and ‘to the original 39

This event was notable was notable This event 38

There was also a level of was also a level There 40

Incentives for fractional, progres for fractional, Incentives Opening up black box technologies – to diversify Opening up black box technologies Unanticipated futures – New imaginaries for how we act – New imaginaries for how Unanticipated futures Redefine ‘Authorship’ – Lowering the cost for organising – DAOs could remodel for organising – DAOs could remodel Lowering the cost audi for artists and new kinds of Automated solidarity New funding models – Renegotiation of the economic and of the models – Renegotiation New funding

sive ownership & collective production of art and livelihoods. sive ownership & collective production ences, patrons and participants. ences, patrons and future as emancipatoryfuture opportunities.’ least become as two sides of the same coin.’ engagement together and learning the context for thinking provided This event artistic, or ideological agenda. commercial, quickly without a preset in the ‘potential for blockchain What emerged was a cautious interest for funding for artists, mechanisms and processes as well to devolve in the arts players – artists,ecosystem various collectors, as allowing they want to interact, how viewers, curators, and others – to define artworkwith the possibility that sharing and almost merge, or at ❑ in the world. ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ collaboration. ❑ social value of art. We offered a short introduction to the affordances of the technology technology of the short a affordances to the introduction offered We our view of the block the potential impact on presented and then discussions: day’s previous the informed by artschain and together, ‘blockchain technologies are set to shape the next century.’ the next to shape set are technologies ‘blockchain for its presentation of the technology as inherently ambiguous, in of the technology as inherently for its presentation fascism, contrast to critiques of it as both literal We followed this up with the creation of the short film this up with the creation followed We perplexity in the audience and a desire voiced for making the subject voiced perplexity in the audience and a desire that someone said that a sure accessible, while still critical. I’m more book may aid this! Gomes Peter film maker by directed Forever Change Everything London, which set Catapult, (2016), in collaboration with Digital libertarian or revolutionary claims made for Bitcoin, the evolution the evolution libertarian or revolutionaryfor Bitcoin, claims made as many risks of a dystopian of the technology today seems to offer Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction / 32 Our recent exhibitionatFurtherfield Gallery and Identity inanAge Computation. ofPlanetary-Scale of a Europeanas part collaboration project forworking withandunderstandingblockchain, capacity inthearts ner withGoethe-Institut onaseriesof tions intocodeasabasisfordebate.From Autumn 2017we willpart backgrounds anddisciplineswhere willwritesocialrela participants - contractrole-play anddesignactivitiesforpeopleofall series ofsmart methods andspiritoftheevent. Thisactivitywasaprecursor toa world enterprise.Pablo Velasco’s accountinthisbookcaptures the and madeconcrete ofanyreal theinequitiesoftenatplaystart Way Blockchain Bliss toBudgetary and Irana approaches toworking withblockchains.At MoneyLab 2016 Vickers Since thistimewe have beenbuildingourunderstandingandrangeof blockchain conferences andfestivals around theworld. by over exhibitions,screenings 13,000peopleandviewedatart and of blockchainvideomarketing outthere). It hasbeenwatchedonline be different becauseoftheblockchain?’ reality?new How ourselves? willwe andHow rule willthefuture and activists.It asked‘Whatcanablockchain do? Who buildsthis together leadingthinkers,computerscientists,entrepreneurs, artists out tobroaden therangeofpeopleinvolved initsfuture by bringing critical film yet tobemadeabouttheblockchain’ film. Thisfilmhasbeen describedas‘themost and we madeanart –fromcontributors across fierce thespectrum criticstoevangelists, free market believers. Theinstallation by xfx(a.k.a.AmiClarke), also propounded andexecuted whoare by aneliteoftechnicalexperts also here, whichisapathos-richmeditationon the emergence of ideologies Shibe by Rob Myers withillustrationsby LinaTheodorou, reprinted on the blockchain. It Bad based sci-fi story also presented the crypto terra0 theaugmentedforest thatowns itselfandsellsitsown assets Plantoid hybridlife-formthatevolves, anew ontheblockchain,and both presented in thisbook:O’khaos’ self-replicating metalflower human institutions.Theseincludedtwoblockchain-based artworks, and naturalprocesses, free from interference by statesandother Envisioning afuture worldofworld-makingmachines,markets digital ledgeroftransactionsandcomputer-executed contracts. for all,from naturalandsocialsystems into asecure, networked, stewardship) are mechanisedandautomated. Transferred, onceand aspects oflife(reproduction, decision-making,organization,nurture, invited visitorstoimagineaworldinwhichresponsibility formany Live Action Role Play . It tookthehackathonasascenario for35peoplecalled DAOWO workshops tobuild

41 State Machines: Art, Work, We deliberatelyselected NEW WORLD ORDER NEW WORLD

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43 -

33 / Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction - - became participants in and 44

in the social web. Audiences for Net Art for Net Audiences in the social web. The artists working with the early WWW created software to craft software WWW created The artists with the early working developments 10 years, by pre-empting experiences and relationships, We do not underestimate the work to be done here but look to the work but look to the work to be done here the work do not underestimate We projects and organizations minded design and artistically, socially, of Backfeed, underway: already ArtSource, Aragon, Ascribe, Open is Robin Metahaven, Freecoin, Faircoin, Deckspace, Constant, Colony, Upstage. Cooperative, Hood All of this work is also helping to prepare the ground for moving a for moving the ground is also helping to prepare All of this work Platforming the blockchain in the context of onto part of Furtherfield plan to transform in which we initiative a 4 year Park, Finsbury for adven a canvas London, into North in Haringey, Park Finsbury world-class digital art,in human turous, a site for fieldwork and into with is to think through, intention Our and machine imagination. ways in which artists, of all stripes, the participants and researchers unimagined previously and circulate value audiences might create, artformsThe three and intentions. with beliefs, decisions to interact to ensure how are: anticipate we design problems most interesting local communities; generated benefits diverse that any cultural value we (without which and mystique strangeness, difference value to how be the bridge negotiate to art?) is value ask, what might and; how spaces and international digital networks. users of local physical tween represented in this book, included a video as data capture, showing showing data capture, a video as included book, in this represented the conveys It rig. mining parts material the of glimpses Ether an of a DIY cryptocurrencyequity of the sweat used and energy prospector free) money a (not so calculations and tuned financial with finely Slovenia to Aksioma, will tour in 2018 This exhibition mining system. programme. Machines as part Rijeka of the State More, and Drugo If we have learned anything in our twenty years of effort years to produce in our twenty learned anything have we If artworks and art debate around contexts to stimulate and diversify does not equate infrastructure it is that decentralized life since-Net co-creators of distributed online artworks, making really strong user strong of distributed online artworks, making really co-creators integral to were interfacesrelations new to engage people. The social technology recent Many the aesthetics and message of their work. artistic potential as and cultural for media, offer promise developments potentials and dramatic contexts, and for expanding expressive interventions. the adoption and formation protocol As a new network the of new forms of the blockchain has the potential to provide use of other emerging and organising principles for the deployment VR, AR, AI, and Biotech. IoT, technologies and tech cultures, Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction / 34 nervous system’operatingacross ‘translocalsocialheterotopias’.nervous networked societythatGene Youngblood describesasan‘ecosocial be ambitiousandaspire anethicalperspective onthe toconstruct to build our own contexts for cultural production. We should is that,aswiththeearlydaysof WWW, we have anopportunity about whatafuture withtheblockchainwill be.Our understanding blockchain technologies at work now, and to make your own mind up it, you willdiscover more abouttheorigins,concepts,usesandusersof contributions through the FinBook platform that is threaded through only in our imaginations. By reading it and by playing its marketized crafted lensesthrough whichtospyaterritory, someofwhichexists One ofourintentionsincreating thisbookistoofferasetofdifferently expression –are themethrough thisbook. arunning cooperation, creative collaboration, cultural stewardship, legacy and of infrastructure – through discussions of power, law, governance, It isforthisreason thatartists’ andpolitics engagementwith theart hooveredcommons harvested, and alienated by recentralizing forces. unpredictable conditions,orelseseetheircommunitiescultural ongoing prosperity incontexts,increasingly chaoticand uncertain, processes ofmaintenanceandstewardship inorder tonegotiate enough forradicalsjusttobuild.Theirvisionsmustalsoincorporate But this is also accompanied by the understanding that it’s not that extendfreedoms ofexpression, associationandcollaboration. learning, nuancedopenness,accesstoknowledge, toolsandcontexts commons. Thesepromote experimentationthrough constructive peer on andisbestunderstoodby work goingonaround cultures ofthe pretty muchanypoliticaloutlook.’ it isn’t inherently repressive. The blockchain can be used to support time. Blockchain technology ‘isn’t inherently emancipatory, just as to decentralized resource orpower, oratleastnotforanylengthof Vickers andhighgeekinsight andinspiration forhighart publishing. Peter Gomes, Kei Kreutler, Rob Myers, andBen creative experimentalistsNathan Jones andSam Skinner of Torque inadventurespartner ofthenetworked imagination.Theunstoppable Marc Garrett, forbeinga critically engagingbadass,andadedicated [Acknowledgements andthanks] people whoare just tobeplayed! process of makingthegameratherthanincreasing thenumberof In order toachieve thiswe mustinvolve more diverse peopleinthe

45 This is a point worth pressing Thisisapointworth

46 35 / Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction

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Catlow, Ruth. ‘WE WON’T FLY FOR ART: MEDIA ART ECOLOGIES.’ MEDIA ART FOR ART: ‘WE WON’T FLY Ruth. Catlow, UBS White Paper for the World Economic Forum, Annual Meeting 2016, UBS White Paper for the World $1.4bn investment in blockchain start-ups in last 9 months of 2016, says PwC expert See the interview by Marc Garr See the interview by Marc Connected to The ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT)? Currently How Many Things are Opening statement at Furtherfield

7 John 6 5 A 3 4 1 Forum, 2 Artist http://forbes.com/sites/quora/2013/01/07/how-many-things-are-currently-connected-to- the-internet-of-things-iot Notes BigchainDB, Carroll BigchainDB, Entropical, for P2P Alternatives, Foundation Faircoin, Facecoin, of Financial London School Cultures, of Network iMAL, Institute discussion list, Mon Netbehaviour Lab, Disruption Arts, Network Finally, heartfelt thanks to all Furtherfielders. You know who you are! you who know You heartfelt Furtherfielders. all to thanks Finally, For inspiration: Ampliative Arts, Art is Open Source, Ascribe, Aragon, Arts, Ampliative inspiration: Art Source, is Open For endlessly include: The energetic and and funders of this work Partners at the University Dept Informatics Design the enquiring team from with Rory Speed, Chris Dr. headed up by University of Edinburgh Arts Council England, Oosthuizen. Shaun Nissen,and Bettina Gianni, Goethe-Institut, FACT, Catapult, Digital ArtsComputer Society, The Centre, Southbank Ravensbourne, Council, London, Haringey of the Programme Europe Creative The Exchange, Capital Culture Drugo Aksioma, network: Machines and the State Union European and NeMe. Cultures of Network Institute More, Dr. Catherine Mulligan, Brett Scott and Melanie Swan. My fellow fellow My Swan. and Melanie Scott Brett Mulligan, Catherine Dr. Bli Alexie Lara Blazic, Rachel Baker, Londoners: blockchain-curious Helen Haskell, Lisa Cross, David Cummings, Neil Clarke, Ami nov, Ce Waugh, Mark Stevens, James Sollitt, Rai, Lucy Amit Kaplinsky, Max lea Cheang, Shu and; internationally: Zeilinger Martin Wee, cilia - Hern Holly Filippi, De Primavera Dr. Rachel O’Dwyer, Dr. Dovey, and terra0. Steyerl Hito Cornelia Sollfrank, Monin, don, Alexandre MoneyLab, Cooperative, Hood Robin egraph, O’khaos, Plantoid, Upstage. unMonastery, Torque, Spiralseed, crypto-solidarity. For generous, accessible and engaging writing and writing engaging and accessible generous, For crypto-solidarity. Gupta, about crypto-thingsacting Vinay important they are and why Vol 13, 2012, http://culturemachine.net/index.php/cm/article/download/475/493 Vol Automation and Connectivity: The Global, Regional, and Investment Implications of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction / 36 http://furtherfield.org/features/conceptual-art-cryptocurrency-and-beyond http://digitalcatapultcentre.org.uk/art-and-the-blockchain 25, 2017,http://sec.gov/news/press-release/2017-131. Securities issuedbyU.S.andExchangeCommission,Washington D.C.,July 23 SECIssuesInvestigativeReportConcludingDAOTokens, aDigitalAsset,Were 12 11 10 9 http://thirdspacenetwork.com/gene-youngblood 8 33 32 prototyping-session http://furtherfield.org/programmes/event/digital-futures-money-no-object- 31 30 disponible. Money.’ MCD,#76,2015,http://www.digitalmcd.com/la-version-anglaise-du-mcd76-est- 29 http://furtherfield.org/projects/diwo-do-it-others-resource 28 http://furtherfield.org/artdatamoney/includes/files/daowo.pdf 27 art-culture-where-we-are-now. Furtherfield, 26 25 terrifying podcasts. 24 22 watch?v=TDGq4aeevgY 21 ‘Vitalik ButerinexplainsEthereum.’ YouTube, http://youtube.com/ 20 is reprinted here alongwithillustrationsbyLinaTheodorou. 2017. 19 speculation, Faircoin nowimplementsproof-of-cooperation. use. Ethereum isworkingonproof-of-stake and,todiscourage hoarding andcurrency time ofwriting.Howeverothersystemsare nowbeingdevelopedtoaddress energy 18 makers tojoinusexplore thepotentialforblockchainandarts. an 17 16 15 14 13 future-cd8451eb421e 2015, http://media.consensys.net/programmable-blockchains-in-context-ethereum-s-

Garrett, event See also:Catlow, Ruth. Gene Youngblood inThird SpaceNetworkconvenedbyRandallPacker, 2017, http://artreservebank.com http://networkcultures.org/moneylab http://bollier.org/blog/robin-hood-coop-activist-hedge-fund Cheang, ShuLeaandAnnickRivoire. ‘W Dr. CatherineMulligan,in Asked inallseriousnessbyVinay Gupta,inoneofhisinformative,entertainingand Antonopoulos, A.M. The Blockchain:ChangeEverythingForever, 2016. This longexplanationisreprinted mostlyverbatimfr Proof-of-work isthesystemusedbyBitcoinandothermajorcryptocurrencies at This elaboratesonaslidepresented attheAustrianCulturalForum,April2016in Gupta, Vinay http://www.ethereum.org http://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Genesis_block The Blockchain:ChangeEverythingForever, 2016. Myers, Rob.‘ConceptualArt,Cryptocurrency andBeyond.’ http://fair.coop/faircoin http://dcentproject.eu

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45 Chakrabarti, on Digital Money.’ 46 http://thirdspacenetwork.com/gene-youngblood. 44 42 43 http://furtherfield.org/programmes/exhibition/new-world-order 40 41 Made blockchain. , 2016, http://eatthehipster.org/2016/05/01/blockchains- Eatthe hipster on Digital Money.’ potential-in-the-arts 39 38 Chakrabarti, 34 35 http://furtherfield.org 36 http://furtherfield.org/artdatamoney 37 http://furtherfield.org/programmes/exhibition/human-face-cryptoeconomies University of Minnesota Press, 2016. University of Minnesota Press, Art as ‘art based on Internet cultures, which revolve around technology, games, social technology, around which revolve Art as ‘art based on Internet cultures, and politics.’ networks, commerce Ruth Catlow: Artists Re:Thinking the Blockchain Introduction / 38 DOCUMENTS

41 / Rory Gianni, Hadi Mehrpouya, Dave Murray-Rust, Bettina Nissen, Shaune Oosthuizen, Chris Speed, Kate Symons: FinBook: Literary content as digital commodity Play Store.

INCREASE or DECREASE the amount of a QR code scanner for your DOWNLOAD a QR code scanner for your SCAN the QR code on the last page

3. 2. 1. mobile device from your App Instructions for use: FinBook is an algorithmic contribution contribution an algorithmic is FinBook to in parallel book that works to this At of articles. collection the edited a QR there is of each article the end a website to access enables you code that performance the economic that displays to parameters article according of each the FinBook authors and established by see overleaf for details. programmers – FINBOOK MANUAL FINBOOK HTTP://FINBOOK.CO.UK FinCoins that are allocated to each article. Depending upon how you value an article, you may like to add or reduce the amount of virtual currency that the piece has to spend against the stock market. Due to the nature of results it will update on a daily basis. of an article. This will take you to of an article. This will take about a webpage that contains details currency, or the essay, any commodity, with, security that it is associated its and data visualizations about performance. The Design Informatics Research Centre: FinBook: Literary Content as Digital Commodity / 42 UniversityofEdinburgh + Centre ◊ Human √

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43 / The Design Informatics Research Centre: FinBook: Literary Content as Digital Commodity - - - - )

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, Chris Speed ◊

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This short essay explains the significance of the FinBook intervention, FinBook This short explains the significance of the essay each chapter associated have We to participate. and invites the reader a market and created robot (FinBot), a financial within this book with As be tracked against financial securities. book content will whereby and uncertain consists of unstable work human labour increasingly virtualpeople on the trading floors and as algorithms replace practices of see members of society taking advantage we of the world’s markets, making funds. Bots of all kinds are and make extra to invest FinBots behalf to help us online on our financial decisions for us, searching and services. products and to consume to contribution invest, Our of chapters in this book into this compilation is to turn the collection play out what might portfolio,a dynamic investment and thereby in the not- of buying and consuming literature happen to the process QR codes) to each attaching identities (through By so-distant future. Our ‘perform’. in which the chapter can a market create we chapter, words the authors’ extracted from will trade based on features FinBots embedded in the values in this book: the political, ethical and cultural concerns; and, authors’ share the FinBots the extent to which work, the performance those human and non-human of chapters amongst short, the FinBook In and readership. actors that make up the market, of our co-authors into an invest and the work model turns our work FinBook: Literary Content as Digital Content as Literary FinBook: Commodity the content of on economy specifically around a digital creating By Bettina Nissen Bettina of readers. and the attention ment portfolio, the market mediated by the challenge to aims platform FinBook the and chapter our texts, line align with individual arti their personal values to consider how reader value these become contested as they perform different cles, and how judgements about the financial performance of each chapter and the trad ‘autonomous’ introducing by time, the same At a whole. as book that differ affordances ‘network’ the different also explore ing bots, we its analogue through developed paper based books’ scarcity between encryption.We through form, and digital books’ uniqueness reached speak to wider questions about the conditions of an aggressive thereby items – in which algorithms subject cultural and intellectual market ubiquity of data books – to economic parameters, and the increasing The Design Informatics Research Centre Centre Research Informatics Design The (Rory Gianni The Design Informatics Research Centre: FinBook: Literary Content as Digital Commodity / 44 Natural Language Processing (NLP) and machine learning algorithms Thomson Reuters OpenCalais (OC)software. TheOCsoftware uses and risk.Theteamhave pre-assigned tagstoeachchapter usingthe erences, financial considerations, and inferences regarding security extracted from thetext.Theseinclude ethical andsocio-politicalpref- invest in.EachFinBot considersthree categoriesbasedonthefeatures many tagsaspossiblewhichthenhelpsthebottodecide area to each chapter. In order fortheFinbot investing, itrequires tostart as ticle, theFinBots have beendesignedtoreflect the characteristicsof mated tradingplatform.Based uponthecontentofeachauthor’sar walletsitsasingleFinBot,Behind each article onanauto- running stable configurationoncethelastcopyisproduced. is hencelinkedtotherateofbooksales,eventually annealingtoa pending transactions. is minted,containingfresh coinsforthereader, andgatheringupall block timeacopyofthebookissold,new – speculatingthatevery FinCoins party, simulateatrusted ‘proof ofbook’blockchainonline use oftheQRcodeslinkedtoFinCoin walletsofeacharticle. and awayfrom lessfavoured. Theinteractionstakeplacethrough the to the different bots, shifting more of the funds to favoured authors Readers are invitedtochangetheamountsofvalue thatisassigned FinCoins totradewith,distributedevenly across allofthearticles. witha small stashof At thelaunchofbook,eachbotstarts attractively. traders andby representing accurately–oratleast well-liked articles in thebot’sportfolio. Thismeansthebotsflourishboth bybeinggood influences trading,as readers cantheninvest someoftheir FinCoins how thebotshave understoodthechapter, basedoncoding.Thisthen a dashboard fortheFinBot representing The thearticle. reader cansee takesthemto theylike,aQRcodeonthearticle If theyseeanarticle FinCoins –toinvest across –ouruniquecryptocurrency thechapters. inthisbookisallocatedacollectionof ofthe28articles a proportion FinBook ecosystem,thebotstradeFinCoins. Eachpersonwhoreads takestheformofasoftwareOur withpersonality. intervention In the About theFinBook platform created, enjoyed andshared: itisintendedtobe. able juxtaposition against the conventionally-imagined way a book is understand thatourmarketization ofliterature maybeanuncomfort bots as actors in oursocial,political, economic and cultural lives. We 1 Thespeedwithwhich readers canadjust value - - 45 / The Design Informatics Research Centre: FinBook: Literary Content as Digital Commodity ------– the bots-eye-view of – the bots-eye-view umwelt What does it mean to establish a digital market within an edited vol within an edited What does it mean to establish a digital market The criteria that align with the FinBots socio-political and ethical FinBots socio-political with the The criteria that align in FinCoins investing with FinBots trends, will follow preferences and holding on to them as they chapters when it seems favourable but are of interest, securities are Other in value. (hopefully) increase trywill buy money make to FinBot the investments; as purely treated portfolio. and an on-going investment bot has a trading history, Every that can see the decisions readers for each FinBot, the dashboard Via and the collection of newsfeedit has made, the financial implications, the to its stocks that showcase relating Discussion: Book chapters as a digital market gies. OpenCalais is the NLP and machine learning element of the learning element NLP and machine is the gies. OpenCalais constructs second, the team Then for process. profile an economic with along NLP process, the on the tags from each chapter based is a tension there here assessment. Clearly, and qualitative subjective based on judgements of assigning value the human process between of using algorith process and understanding the text, and the reading to complex content. labelling to assign values mic automated content has been FinBot each the steps outlined above, As a consequence of with the team as to above, in a similar process assigned a behaviour, and behaviour styles. signing ‘beliefs’ Finally, profit. as a way to increase ing, selling or shorting them purely its do will It beliefs. core bot’s the to antagonistic are securities some different between competition creating shortto best thereby these, FinBot is only that each This means personalities. bots with different – its particular market considering a small proportion of the overall the text text. Similarly, the article’s view by onto the world driven or aggressively how determining personality, its investment drives conservatively it trades. the global trading system. mar current the beyond gone this intervention, have we ume? In trading of facilitating the direct ket places of online booksellers by - interest exposed several we have this, Through the content itself. ostensibly the use of even questions regarding ing and provocative - compa places, people, of frequency the upon based tags identify to chapter. each of content textual in occur that events and facts, nies, imports team First, the process. tiered a two from tags come These docu- the tags which CalaisOC Open to chapter each of contents the ontolo led toolmarket OpenCalais Reuters on Thomson ment based The Design Informatics Research Centre: FinBook: Literary Content as Digital Commodity / 46 popularity and becomes established as part of the cultural and literary ofthecultural andliterary popularity and becomesestablishedaspart haps becomingcanonical.The process through whichabookgainsin mimic the process of a book gaining in popularity in a culture – per- increase. Thisusesdigitaleconomyprocesses and FinBot agentsto more individualsminingthebook,more thevalue ofthechapters which is‘mined’ through beingbought,read andinterpreted. The the FinBook value, market, achapterhasblockedandencrypted popularity, and,inoureconomy, thismeans effectingits value. In We have alsoexplored how bots,asagents,caninfluenceachapter’s some textsthanothers. of the algorithms (in this case FinBots) is likelyto be sympatheticto necessarily afaironebecausethecriteriapredetermined by authors sarily leadtoeven outcomes.In adecentralized market short, isnot tution ofdataandcode,we have alsoshown thatthisdoesnotneces publisher’s orauthors’ tastesorbiases,towards inbots’ trusting exec by movingof trust inconventional awayfrom the notionoftrusting within ourscenario’s parameters. While we theidea have disrupted more thanothers,andthereby gainmore culturalcapital and‘value’ different chapters–illustratedinthefactthatsomeare ‘liked’ simulation, itisclearthatpower stillcirculates andpoolsunevenly to that oflargecorporations.However, inourprovocation asblockchain speaking, powerwhich, crudely is exercised through state apparatus or state-led andmonopoly-capitalistformsofsocialorganizations,in is therefore adirect challengetothecentralising tendenciesofboth (O’Dwyer, 2015).Asdiscussedthroughout thisbook,theblockchain inpeopleandinstitutions incoderatherthantrust gendering trust will movecryptocurrencies, us towards a decentralized society – en Rachel O’Dwyer suggeststhatblockchaintechnologies,by enabling inadecentralizedwhom orwhattowe economy? placeourtrust defined by contentwithineachchapter. This raises thequestion,in or lossaccording totheirco-dependenceuponsecuritiesthatare pre withinthebroader financialmarketsperform and return investment economy. As‘more thanhuman’ agents,eachchaptercanbeseento toallownancial portfolios themto‘perform’ withinaspecificdigital of chapterswhicheachhave theirown identitiesandtheirown fi As statedabove, FinBook hasatomized thiscollectionintoaseries Trust inadistributeddigitaleconomy and politics. non-personal dataascurrency. These agency relate toissuesoftrust, - - - - - 47 / The Design Informatics Research Centre: FinBook: Literary Content as Digital Commodity 2 - - - -

FinBots throw the neo-liberal narratives that surround blockchain blockchain that surround the neo-liberal narratives throw FinBots platform automated an creating By relief. sharp into technologies dependent ‘personality’ together its own piece can FinBot a where particular programmed ethical and politi- have on book content, we Some capacity for behaviour. into entities with their own cal values around their world views have centred of these bots, undoubtedly, gain. Moreover, for ‘personal’ individual competition and investment like banks and states, and instead trusting code) (Nakamoto, 2008). like banks and states, and instead trusting code) (Nakamoto, The FinBook intervention aims to expose the narratives of freedom FinBook intervention of freedom to expose the narratives aims The and decentralized associated with the Blockchain commonly that are The rhetoric most immediately associated with digital exchange. of Libertarianismblockchain technologies is a variety – the political property, the right to private philosophy that ascribes to principles of Libertarianism’s of speech and worship and legal equality. freedoms any over fundamental claim is that individual liberty takes precedent organization, and the state should exist only form of social or collective easy to see why blockchains is therefore It individual rights. to protect and cryptocurrencies with Libertarianism, become associated in that guarantee parties to trade directly), allowing (by freedom they promote cryptographic proof) providing anonymity (by the need and reduce trusting the necessity of institutions removing (by for state governance At the same time, our approach has intentionally disempowered au disempowered has intentionally our approach time, the same At FinBook The politics of ing, and many more. Most obviously, the existing digital marketplace marketplace existing digital the obviously, Most more. many ing, and to bots data of The use Amazon. such as tech giants favours books for of authors alike and products further of readers commodify the data hands in the share and market furtheris likely to power consolidate our digital Rather than abstracting number of actors. of this small bots with introduce tried to have these aspects, we economy from the exist to illustrate how ‘personalities’ and unpredictable different currently are consumption cultural influence that relations power ing configured. the made on their text, instead tracking thors as to the judgements by non-human powered a financial market of a chapter through value This, in turn, ex opaque and unpredictable. are agents whose tastes mar- the politics of decentralized dimensions around poses interesting turn to discuss these. now We kets. canon is of course a complex one in a non-digital context, driven by by driven context, in a non-digital one a complex is of course canon market class, inequality, of gender processes and unfinished uneven The Design Informatics Research Centre: FinBook: Literary Content as Digital Commodity / 48 to invest. FinBots autonomously asmarket players, run andactalong FinBot, whichusesfeatures todecidewhere from thearticle andhow platform where anypieceoftextcanbecome apositiontakenby a currency.by acryptographic We have created anautomatedtrading through theQRcodesineachchapter of thisbook,andunderpinned each otheronthebasis of bookcontent,using information accessed financial market placewhere botsandhuman readers tradewith In thischapter, we have describedourFinBook a intervention, Conclusions uneven dataeconomies. relationships whichdrive contemporary fairlyby promotingparticipants freedoms, we therefore critiquethe By its exposingratherthanhiding theconceitthatmarket serves tomaintainafaçadeoffreedom. support of ideologicalandregulatory litical choice(Tickell andPeck, 2003).In markets require short, alot relationships, ascriticsoffreeor obligatory markets pointout,isapo The decisiontoforeground somefreedoms whilehidingother, forced dynamic process. scenario, readers contributedataandchangethevalue ofthetextina ventionally asend-pointconsumersoftexts,whereas portrayed inour as traditionallyimagined,ischangedinourscenario. Readers are con- of theirlabourby a market proxy. Moreover, theagency of thereader, thefreedomparticularly from commodification,perhapsabstraction, In thissense,these otheragentshave hadtheirfreedoms curtailed, freedom oftheirtexts,promoting thefreedoms oftheFinBots instead. disempowered the thoselabouringagents(theauthors),andcurtailed ideologysetoutabove.to theLibertarian In ourscenario,we have and freedom from identification. These much tied freedoms are very includesfreedomdoms from. Thisparticularly from state regulation ones;namely, particular areby blockchainLibertanianism very free by Garrodket. Asobserved (2016),thekindsoffreedom promoted However, we have alsoexposedaconceitofthesupposedlyfree mar defined inmarket-driven terms. (regardless quality)are successful,andsuccessis ofanyotherliterary ters thatare well-liked by readers andwell-understood by FinBots topromote trading.Inernance necessary thisworld,booksandchap wholly by their own agendas, subject to the minimal amountofgov market, inwhichsupposedlyself-centred individualsare motivated tive tradingscenario–encapsulatesthefreedoms (anddangers)ofthe the stageofinteractionthatwe have setfortheseagents–acompeti ------49 / The Design Informatics Research Centre: FinBook: Literary Content as Digital Commodity

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Through these characteristics, ‘cryptocurrencies have become associated with the these characteristics, ‘cryptocurrencies Through In practice, we do not use the blockchain, but we would invite the reader to imagine would invite the reader In practice, we do not use the blockchain, but we O’Dwyer, Karlstrøm,

, 2015. Available at: http://commonstransition.org/the-revolution-will-not-be- , 2015. Available Transition 6 Nakamoto, Satoshi. ‘Bitcoin: A peer-to-peer electronic cash system.’ 2008, p. cash electronic 6 Nakamoto, Satoshi. ‘Bitcoin: A peer-to-peer 7 2016, p. 5 of Bitcoin.’ Distinktion: Scandinavian Journal of Social Theory 3 Garrod, J. Z. ‘The Real World of the Decentralized Autonomous Society.’ tripleC: of the Decentralized Autonomous Society.’ J. Z. ‘The Real World 3 Garrod, Communication, Capitalism & Critique. Open Access Journal for a Global Sustainable Information Society 14.1, 2016, pp. 4 Huckle, Steve, and Martin White. ‘Socialism and the blockchain.’ 2 hyper-individualism see 1 that affecting Notes & References This software has allowed us to reflect on uncomfortable on reflect of aspects to us allowed has software This in cultural readers to trade directly by asking data commodification human and non-human actors. populated by capital in a marketplace by made possible data quantification methods, investigated have We turning a book into a fi and data bots, by blockchain technologies giving thereby as products, with individual chapters nancial market articles of the authors, agency that is in tension with that a financial insights broader provided have doing so, we and publishers. In readers into the complexities of engendering trust environ in a decentralized structured which are markets the trade-offs between ment, revealing fiat currencies), to place trust conventional in institutions (through in those which place trust code but which pool power in data and mar and a blockchain-powered large tech stacks (such as Amazon), – and agency in determining the value ket in which bots might have this visibility – of cultural, literary In and intellectual works. therefore tried to anticipate some limitations and complexities have sense, we of financial technologies. with human readers to dictate the value of a chapter. The market is The market a chapter. of the value to dictate human readers with be ported can easily data, and run stock-market run to with live with generally who to authors value the actual Regardless, money. actual and association promotion through to be viewed, work want their that is of value a representation cultural system, becomes within a so a dashboard has and FinBot Each chapter to money. equitable portfolio trading balance, authors – can view current traders – readers, view on the world. to its stocks, for a bot centred and news related The Design Informatics Research Centre: FinBook: Literary Content as Digital Commodity / 50 Remaking theglobaleconomy:Economic-geographicalperspectives 8 Tickell,Adam,andJamiePeck.‘Makingglobalrules:globalizationorneoliberalization.’ decentralizedblockchains 20, pp. 2003, ,

163

–182. 51 / Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform - - (3) self-sustainable, and self-sustainable, autonomous, (2) (1) capable of reproducing themselves, through a combination of block through themselves, capable of reproducing chain-based code and human interactions. The goal of the Plantoid is to illustrate one of the most revolution Plantoid is to illustrate one of the most The goal of the This particularPlantoid is an autonomous blockchain- species of a is a hybrid creature It itself. based lifeform that is able to reproduce contraption both in the physical world (as a mechanical that lives and the digital world (as a steel and electronics) made up of recycled network). on top of a blockchain-based deployed software A Plantoid is the plant equivalent of an android; it is a robot or syn- or robot a is it android; an of equivalent plant the is Plantoid A are like a plant. There grow thetic organism designed to look, act and the world. in existence around species of Plantoids several currently It technology. blockchain of aspects – aryunexplored still yet and – i.e. algo- ‘blockchain-based lifeforms’, illustrates the ability to create that are entities rithmic The emergence of a new species Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain- – The Birth Plantoid Lifeform Based Primavera De Filippi De Primavera Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform / 52 gent technology. APlantoid iscomposedoftwoessentialcomponents: understand thepotentialbenefitsandchallengesofthispowerful, emer inner workings of these autonomous systems, so that people can better medium to illustratethe The Plantoid isanattemptatusingtheartistic independently ofanycentralauthorityormiddlemen. line operator, autonomously, contractscanbedesignedtorun smart andadministeredsoftware oncentralized by servers code,run anon thenetwork.ner by Asopposedtotraditional allnodessupporting contracts)thatareate programsinadistributedman (a.k.asmart run Software code can be deployed on a blockchain-based network to cre- transact value withoneanotherinasecure anddecentralized way. that enablepeoplefrom allover theworldtointeract,coordinate, and ple. Blockchains are decentralized peer-to-peernetworks, likeBitcoin, typesofentitiesareThese new difficulttoapprehend formostpeo blockchain, by simply sendingfundstothePlantoid’s Bitcoin wallet. ongoing reproduction process. Contributions are doneviatheBitcoin money,some cryptographic inorder toawakenitandcontributeits counters withitsphysicalbeauty, luringthemintofeedingitwith reproduce itself. It doessoby enticingthecuriosityofpeopleiten other life form, the main function of the Plantoid is Like to every duce itselfover time. Plantoid to life,and,mostimportantly, toensure thatitcanrepro These twocomponentsinteractwithoneotherinorder tobringthe ❑ ❑ animated byamixtureofmechanicalgreedandgratitude. the Plantoidmightawakenintoadanceofmusicandlights, Plantoid (usuallythroughtheremittanceofasmalldonation), – whomightdisplaysomeformofappreciationtowardsthe tact withorganismsinthephysicalworld– cal beauty to whoever it encounters. When it enters into con- public space;anaestheticornamentthatexhibitsitsmechani ance ofaplant.Itisweldedmetallicsculpturedisplayedin an electro-mechanicalcontraptionthatsimulatestheappear cal world. a meanstoconnectitsinnerlogicwithcreaturesin the physi- actual soulofthePlantoid–sincephysicalbody issimply agent thatlivesonablockchain.Thisiswhatconstitutes the digital worldandisrepresentedbyanautonomous software

The bodyofthePlantoid, The spirit of thePlantoid, i.e. itsphysicalform,consistsof i.e. its soul,only subsists in the e.g. humanbeings ------53 / Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform ------i.e. hu e.g. establishing the rules For the funders, the right to participate in the governance

❑ structure of the selected Plantoid – that will dictate the reproduction thereof; shaping the way in which the Plantoid might evolve over time, and stipulating the The fundamental mechanism underpinning the operations and evolu and the operations underpinning mechanism fundamental The is the pos and there interact with a Plantoid, can, however, People An autonomous being An As such, every does operate as an autonomous entity that Plantoid Indeed, its original creator. not even to anyone, not need to respond Once they have both independent and self-sufficient. are Plantoids into the world, they no longer need nor and deployed been created own ultimately Plantoids because Furthermore, creators. their heed anyone. by or owned be purchased they also cannot themselves, Plantoid establishes the system of af underpinning a The software varies, assign Plantoid establishes with humans The contract that each ing a procedure whereby the Plantoid will look for mates ( look for will the Plantoid whereby procedure ing a itself. of reproducing process to help it in the mans) willing (or smart contract) is a small piece of software tion of each Plantoid autonomous, is software The blockchain. Ethereum the on deployed participatingall nodes by distributed manner in a in that it is executed to support the Also, because of the underlying blockchain network. be altered the code cannot propertiesonce deployed, of a blockchain, any single party. by or shut down with it. sibility to engage into contractual relationships everyand each along with constraints that come and fordances the by which people can interact with rules pre-defines It Plantoid. needs to reproduce of funds that a Plantoid the amount a Plantoid, every and the criteria that must be met by of a descendent itself, people also acquire sending bitcoins to the Plantoids, By Plantoid. to participatea series of rights that will enable them in the decision- of the for all issues concerning the reproduction making process and beyond. Plantoid, funders or Plantoid’s rights and obligations to each of the ing different example: For producers. Once a Plantoid has proven its worth a sufficient accumulating by proven has Plantoid a Once phase, initiat the reproductive enter into it will of bitcoins, quantity Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform / 54 enough fundstoreproduceitself. fair (orunfair)remunerationwheneverthatPlantoidreceives as thecreatorsofaparticularPlantoid,andrightto ❑ Plantoid’s descendantswillhavetocomply. terms andconditionsbywhichanyonewillingtolookafterthe different parts: The reproduction process ofa Plantoid can bedistinguishedintothree physical form. assisting them in the process of instantiating themselves into anew lination process, Plantoids rely onthe cooperationofhumanbeings, rely theminthepol onthird likebutterflyorbees,tosupport parties, them inthereproductionsupport process. Just asorganicplantsoften themselves ontheirown. They require thehelpofthird to parties Even ifitiscompletelyautonomous,Plantoids cannotreproduce A self-replicating entity ployed onablockchain. that isadministered, onlyandexclusively, through software logicde Organization (orDAO) –anautonomousblockchain-basedsystem tation ofwhatwe commonlyrefer toasaDistributed Autonomous any director orCEO.Plantoids are, ultimately, aphysicalrepresen corporations, theyare entirely autonomous anddonotcomewith trast with traditional firmsand organizations, suchas limitedliability In thissense,Plantoids operateakintoanorganization. Yet, incon contractcode. underlying smart ally bound to, and cannot deviate stipulatedintothe from the rules antee ofexecution, by engagingwithaPlantoid, peopleare contractu actions. Because allcodedeployed onablockchaincomeswithguar that exist in the physical world, by means of simple blockchain trans are nonethelesscapableofinteractingwithotherpeopleandmachines because thelawdoesnot(yet) recognize themasalegalentity, they As such,even thoughPlantoids donothave anylegalpersonality,

For the producers, these include the right to be credited ------55 / Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform ------NEW WORLD ORDER exhibition 2017.

June

–

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production of a new Plantoid.

Gallery,

At the intellectual level, the Plantoid relies on its underly At the intellectual level, the Plantoid At the physical level, the Plantoid relies on the aesthetics the Plantoid relies on the aesthetics At the physical level,

the smart contract on the Ethereum ing software code (i.e. the smart contract on the Ethereum incentives and gov blockchain) to provide crypto-economic agree to invest their funds ernance powers to all people who In sending these bitcoins, people provide the Plantoid with the op with the Plantoid these bitcoins, people provide sending In wallet of in the Bitcoin stored All bitcoins collected in this way are differ each and every on their form and size, Depending Plantoid. ceives those funds, the Plantoid will evolve and blossom into a more and blossom into a more evolve will those funds, the Plantoid ceives dancing e.g. changing its colors, playing music, and beautiful flower, gratify the donor for its contribution to the as a means to around species. while simultaneously acquir reproduction, portunity to fund its own of the newly system ing the right to participate into the governance Plantoid. created they can amounts of funds before different will require ent Plantoids Bitcoin balance, and Plantoid constantly monitors its blossom. The the has been reached, that a particular threshold it realizes whenever reproduction will be able to use this money to initiate its own Plantoid into the (re) can send people wallet, to which Bitcoin own its has Plantoid Every intel- or the representation the aesthetic Those who enjoy money. logic) of any reproductive rights and lectual properties (governance it re Whenever will submit funds to the Plantoid. Plantoid given ❑ ❑ to seduce people through a combination of its physical body colors and sound – just like plants use their of movement, light their nec- to attract butterflies and bees to and sensual smells tar-filled wombs. Traditional plants rely on photosynthesis in order to turn light into light into to turn in order on photosynthesis rely plants Traditional cur- beauty into digital turning instead by operate Plantoids energy. through themselves plants reproduce while traditionally Hence, rency. is done a Plantoid of reproduction pollination, the of the process will essence, each Plantoid In of Capitalization. process the through beauty of their mechanical body and people with the aesthetic seduce bitcoins in soul, enticing them into sending the spirituality of their As in the case of most human support to their reproduction. order be done in one or two ways: beings, seduction can (1) Capitalization phase (1) Capitalization Furtherfield

Overleaf: Mother and daughter Plantoids dance and glow for visitors to at Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform / 56 57 / Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform / 58 the selectedproposal. These peoplewillbeableto vote onproposals onthedecision-makingasto Plantoid willbeaskedtoparticipate objectives ofthePlantoid. Eachcontributortothefundingof ate andsuitableproposal, given theavailable fundsandevolutionary on thehelpofhumanbeings to adviseaswhatisthemostappropri merit and intellectual valueartistic of these propositions. It thus relies Of course, the Plantoid does not come with any ability to judgethe them astheybestseefit. although they remain free to develop their ideas and expand upon submitting aproposal mustcomplywiththeseinitialrequirements, tled to decide of the future locationof the Plantoid, ofstakeholderisenti and evaluation ofproposals, whichcategory (voting rightsandprocessesance rules withregard totheselection Plantoid new created, getsforevery initial artist charityororganization,thesharebe given to aparticular thatthe by thesubsequentPlantoids, thepercentage ofthesefundsthatwill stance, thedividendsgiven tothefundersforanyoffundsraised next Plantoid. Thesemayalsoincludebusinesslogic(suchas,forin room fordiscretion commissionedtoproduce the lefttotheartists Plantoid) thatwillaffectthescopeofcreativityparticular andthe requirements (suchasform,size, ormaterialsfortheprogeny ofa distinctive aesthetic orphysicalchain. Thesemayincludecertain its growth andreproduction, are recorded ontheEthereum block- thatgovern Plantoid, thatis,allthelogicandrules DNA ofevery withaPlantoid’sall have tobecongruent geneticcode.Indeed, the Propositions canbesubmittedby anyone andatanytime. Yet, they tract thesepropositions. Plantoid –usingallthebitcoinscollectedthusfarasabountytoat submit propositions astohow theyenvisiontoinstantiatethenext designers,makers,hackers,welders, andprogrammersing artists, to funds hasbeenreached –aPlantoid willopenacallforbids,invit When thetime for reproduction is ripe – the rightgroup ofpeoplethattheywantto‘mate’ with. inanygiven environment.survive Assuch,theyeachneedtoidentify species,PlantoidsAs anew needtoevolve andfigure outhow tobest (2) Mating phase to begin… Heraldingand ensure itssurvival. thesecondphaseofreproduction i.e. whenathreshold of etc.) andgovern etc.). Anyone ------59 / Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform ------) or i.e. their body ). Every Plantoid will Plantoid ). Every

their soul i.e. Given the characteristics of the reproduction process, the evolution of the evolution process, the characteristics of the reproduction Given artists in different a Darwinist Different approach. follows Plantoids will implement dis geographic locations and cultural environments An evolutionary algorithm An fer all of its bitcoins to commission and engage the authors of the to commission and engage the authors fer all of its bitcoins future of or rather the reproduction, in the production, proposal Ethereum by a smart This task is facilitated contract on the Plantoids. rules soul) that stipulates the and coor blockchain (the Plantoid’s re the in involved stakeholders of the different dinate the activities birth has been selected to give sub to Whoever process. production to shape its body and to the possibility have will sequent Plantoids establish the logic of its soul. types whose phenotypes will attract different tinct kinds of Plantoids, beauty ( of donors, either because of their aesthetic rules and governance because of the underlying economic incentives underpinning their operations ( Once a winning proposal has been identified, the Plantoid will trans has been identified, the a winning proposal Once (3) Hiring phase (3) Hiring submitted, by sending micro-transactions on the Bitcoin blockchain blockchain Bitcoin on the micro-transactions sending by submitted, the to And proposal. each identifies uniquely that address public the to amount a different invested might have people that different extent by everywill be weighted in funding the Plantoid, of money vote party of funds that each the amount The contributed. has effectively smart inputs and all of these automatically process contract will then winner. establish a Indeed, the ability of a Plantoid to identify the right characteristics to identify the right characteristics the ability of a Plantoid Indeed, logic (soul) or operating (body) form physical their to – with regard factor key the be and will people seduce more to them enable will – The fit for their environment. most are to determine which Plantoids bitcoins and will there Plantoids will be able to collect more fittest tics, but also diverse personalities and governance structures depend- structures governance and personalities diverse also but tics, ing on their environment. the long-term sustainability of their species. be able to ensure fore therefore evolve into multiple branches or species, each with their into multiple branches evolve therefore a Darwinian the reproduction perspective, From characteristics. own of each and every is based on an evolutionary Plantoid algorithm, experimenting with new physical characteris with multiple Plantoids Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform / 60 vising theproduction ofPlantoids withthemostfavorable aesthetics beneficial tothesystem. Indeed, suchamodelcontributestoincenti and ahierarchy ofmultiplelevels ofcompensation)thatisactually the salesofotherstheyrecruit, creating adownline ofdistributors pensated notonlyforsalestheyindividuallygenerate,but alsofor a multi-level marketing model,where asalesteamorpersoniscom –butratheralegitimatepyramid scheme(akinto crypto-currencies This isnota Ponzi scheme–asisoftendoneinthecontextofmost as well astotheproducers ofthePlantoid athand. specific ancestorthathasbrought the Plantoid intolife(i.e.theparent), royalty (e.g. 1 percent of the value collected by the Plantoid) to the duction process. But before doingso,thePlantoid mustsendasmall becomes responsible forcommissioninghumanstoaidwithitsrepro As describedabove, onceaPlantoid hascollected enoughbitcoins,it blockchain. Plantoids canstore thatvalue andtransferitthrough theunderlying shared blockchain-based network. bitcoins, When theycollectnew tors anditsdescendants,withwhomitcancommunicatethrough a Each Plantoid isforever andinextricablyconnectedtobothitsances A self-sustainablesystem our planet. to reproduce themselves thefastest,andslowly, butsteadily, colonize process. Theywillbeable as thedominantspeciesinthisevolutionary will most likely establish themselves for survival struggle Darwinian Eventually, astimepasses,Plantoids thatsuccessfullyemergefrom the sively fadeawayuntilextinction. will mostlikelyexistasasinglephysicalinstancethatmightprogres will be unabletoobtain enough fundstoreproduce themselves, and characteristics intheirbodyorsoul,willbelessappreciated. These to theirenvironment, becausetheyfailedtoincorporateattractive Conversely, thosePlantoids thatdidnotsuccessfullyadaptthemselves has anincentive tocreate themostattractive andappealing Plantoid, descendants thatthesePlantoids thus have generated. Theseartists of thefundscollectedby allthePlantoids they created, andall the than actualresults) lump-sumpayment,but alsoasmallproportion that commissionedthem,as anex-ante(basedonforecasts rather Plantoid willnotonlyreceive the bitcoinscollectedby thePlantoid commissionedwiththe(re)and genetics.Theartists

production ofa - - - - - 61 / Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform - - The Plantoid represents the beginning of a new relationship betweenrelationship new of a beginning the represents Plantoid The of the work. Indeed,progeny and the their work, creators, the underly shifts the authorship model actually the Plantoid importantly, Most artist,of funding an head. Instead turning copyright on its around, with the expectation that this artist new will continue to produce the art becomes possible to fund directly it now enjoy, that we works and hiring the artists which will be in charge of selecting piece itself, for its reproduction. that will be responsible Turning copyright on its head copyright Turning Plantoid ob of a reproduction the financing and ing mechanisms for which law, traditional conception of copyright viously clash with the on of relying Instead and exclusivity. of scarcity is based on the notion and distribution the reproduction to prevent in order rights exclusive to artists an incentive with a Plantoid, actually have works, of creative derivative of creation the encourage and dissemination the maximize on investment. their return because that is what will maximize works, of logic traditional the beyond step one therefore, goes, model This a life on its own, in that the artopen-source, piece actually acquires independently of the will of the original author. and is able to evolve to maximize the visibility of this Plantoid, and encourage the remix the remix and encourage of this Plantoid, visibility the to maximize their maximize that will because works, of derivatives making or the rather than actual results (based on ex-post as investment, on return payments. royalty forecasts) Primavera De Filippi: Plantoid – The Birth of a Blockchain-Based Lifeform / 62 63 / Paul Seidler, Paul Kolling & Max Hampshire: terra 0 – Can an Augmented Forest Own and Utilize Itself?

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In this they describe complex programs, which can administer capital this they describe complex programs, In was initially ‘smart contracts’ with a certain set of rules. This concept of Szabo to merge the discipline the computer scientist Nick by proposed contracts 1993. Smart in of contract law with E-commerce-protocols the performance and enforce of a that verify computer protocols are contract without needing to inform or use human intermediaries. Furthermore, whilst there are no specific implemented examples of no specific are whilst there Furthermore, (besides perhaps computer viruses,autonomous agents yet though developed Woods and Gavin Buterin Vitalik their agency is debatable), Next- ‘A White Paper: in 2013 the concept within their Ethereum Platform’. Application Contract and Decentralized Smart Generation and survive ‘out there on the net’ long term, you’d probably need on the net’ long term, you’d probably and survive ‘out there itself between service some basic AI and the ability to move agent might dumb occasionally–but even a relatively providers survive for a while. to roam the internet Using Bitcoin – It could to roam with its own wallet. purchase and For In July 2011 the user julz opened a thread on bitcointalk called on thread a opened julz user the 2011 July In Agents roaming Software Autonomous Truly the enabler – ‘Bitcoin an autonomous agent: in which he proposed the net’ available through blockchain- through available To understand the origin of terra0 it’s important to discuss the rela the origin of terra0 it’s understand To Blockchain as enabler for trulyBlockchain agents autonomous terra 0 Itself? Utilize Own and capital, via decentralized (nonhuman) actors and tionship between enable the possibility of technologies. Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin by a human user. to administer capital, without verification programs sys operating wallet is a working Bitcoin for a requirement The only need to be a personal com which doesn’t tem with enough memory, can be a virtual but rather running machine on an Amazon puter, solely practices – before exchanging Thus automated currency server. freely now – are operating only in stock exchanges a corporate activity, Paul Seidler, Paul Kolling & Max Hampshire & Max Kolling Paul Seidler, Paul Paul Seidler, Paul Kolling & Max Hampshire: terra 0 – Can an Augmented Forest Own and Utilize Itself? / 64 autonomous corporation: Buterin attemptedtherein todevelop aconceptual frameworkforan ‘Bootstrapping ADecentralized Autonomous Corporation:Part I’. In 2013, Vitalik Buterin within developed thisconceptfurther boundaries. outside ofstandard economicinstitutions,andtheiraccompanying ‘Programmable Wallets’, thatwere saved intheblockchain,existing ship resistant programs were enabledtogainandholdcapital,creating contracts writtenby Buterin and Woods, decentralized andcensor local.Throughprogram theintroduction wouldstillrun ofsmart While julzenvisagedasystemwhichcouldadministerBitcoin, this tem, according tothe following 5criteria: Decentralized Autonomous Corporation(DAC) foranaturalecosys- plying themtotheideaposited by Schröder, we defineterra0asa Extracting the defining criteria laid out by julzand Buterin, andap goods mountain biomes,allcouldberepresented byDACs,andthe at corporationsaspersons?’Rivers,watersheds,coral reefs, ‘The rather simple question underlying this idea is, why stop by ournon-human ecosystem?’ fiction authorKarlSchröder asks‘Do you thinkDACs couldbeused In an essay called the ‘Deodands: DACs for natural systems’, science decentralized autonomousorganization. the agentinquestionisnotmerely anAIcontrolling capital,buta tralized infrastructure is granted control over an amountof capital, intelligentagentoperatingondecen claims that,oncean(artificially) incomplete andoverlapping, asButerin’s titlealready suggests.He DAs andMore’. Thesecategorisationsoforganizationalmodelsseem erly categorize different organizationalmodelswithin‘DAOs, DACs, He triedtobuildareference thenfurther systeminorder toprop management from theequation instead? beings toperformcertainspecializedtasks,canweremove the problem from the other direction: even if we still need human need thepeople?[…]Thequestionis,canweapproach the However, here averyinteresting questionarises:dowereally

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we are unable to properly understand interactions with non-human unable to properly are we agency. Vilém Flusser’s work in ‘Dinge und Undinge’ (‘Things and Absurdities’) Absurdities’) (‘Things and und Undinge’ in ‘Dinge work Flusser’s Vilém and ‘culture’, undermined the diametric conceptualization of ‘nature’ as that natural’ suggesting that since human understanding of ‘the can only occur via by humans, which is neither affected nor produced cannot be natural’ – such as art and science – ‘the the tools of culture ‘culture’. separated from The natural-system user The natural-system for natural- try acting as a proxy we If for a DAC to build a framework them as users in the technosphere. to reconsider have systems, we 5. The DAC can replicate itself, and is able to gain control replicate itself, and is able to gain 5. The DAC can over more resources 4. When interacting with humans the DAC does so as a peer, as a peer, with humans the DAC does so 4. When interacting not as a tool. 3. The DAC has an adaptive feedback system. 3. The DAC has an 2. The DAC earns enough money to maintain itself, without itself, without money to maintain earns enough 2. The DAC pays for its own example, the DAC For human intervention. server space. 1. The DAC is in control over ‘natural resources’ or ‘natural or ‘natural resources’ ‘natural over is in control DAC 1. The infrastructure’. Paul Seidler, Paul Kolling & Max Hampshire: terra 0 – Can an Augmented Forest Own and Utilize Itself? / 66 Sovereignty’ work ofBenjamin Bratton. Within ‘The Stack: On Software and anthropomorphic framehasbeengrantedadditionalurgencyby the This inabilitytoconceptualize, thusactwith,entitiesoutsideofthe higher) importance thanhumans. higher) importance in, boundaries of their referents opens up space for non-humans to act alizations of‘nature’ and‘culture’ viablurring andinterminglingthe longer coherent. Removing thedichotomous nature ofourconceptu by Bratton, strict demarcations of ‘nature’ and ‘culture’ are simply no tion tohispreviously outlineddichotomy;within thereality posited scale ofargumentdesignatedby Flusser’s work alsohintsataresolu and terra0 asanaugmented-organism-user, anaugmented-forest-user, we canthus understandourselves ashuman-users,interactingwith of thetype‘user’ (e.g.Animal-user, AI-user, andNatural-System-user), much likeourselves. If we considerallagentsasmerely different asmerelystanding ofartificial-agents differently-abled formsofagents beassuaged,viaanunder- agents inhabitingit,can(atleastpartially) precision ofboth theStack ecological- andtheartificially-intelligent, However, the inabilityof the human to keep up with the speed and and ourwell-beingisnotitsprimarygoal. while includedinthismix,are notnecessarilyitsessential agents, information andoftheworlditselfasinformation.We, thehumans, and human bodies but, rather, the calculation of all the world’s …Its primarymeansandinterests are nothumandiscourse ture –that: Indeed, Bratton states–referring tothemechanicsofthismegastruc their nature digital(thusinformational)entities. as(atleastpartially) layers of farbetterthanwe carbon-basedentitiesdo,simplyinvirtue tities (suchasterra0)traverse –andactively affect–manyofthese Furthermore, itquicklybecomesapparent digitalen thatartificial, of us. architecture.governing We are insideTheStackanditis The Stackthatisbothacomputationalapparatusandnew forming acoherent whole: anaccidentalmegastructure called ...Be seennotassomanyspeciesevolvingontheirown,but the Earth, Cloud,City,the Earth, Address, Interface, andUser layers –should: interactive layers, stackedatopeachother. Theselayers – respectively geo-politicalreality asasetofmutually-affecting, contemporary digital technologiesthrough acomputationallens,we mustunderstand and with,theworldvia technologyasagentsofthe same(ifnot

or anatural-system-user. I 7

6 Bratton ourincreasingly positsthat,viewing networked mporting thisresolutionmporting backontothe 8 tokens - - - - 67 / Paul Seidler, Paul Kolling & Max Hampshire: terra 0 – Can an Augmented Forest Own and Utilize Itself? Features of such of such Features 9 Property, however, is primarily discussed at the present time as is primarily discussed at the present however, Property, agency control, have actors human only which over something of a or as representatives – either themselves, and responsibility originating in the area, terra0 begins in this legal grey legal entity. ‘Property’ describes the most comprehensive form of possession of a of possession of form the most comprehensive describes ‘Property’ level. at the legislative thing, material or immaterial, Discussion of DACs as proxies for natural-systems obviously requires requires obviously for natural-systems proxies as of DACs Discussion of non-human ownership. of the notion a prior discussion Non-human ownership Non-human Blockchain technology and smart contracts enable non-human agents Blockchain to claim the right therefore such as terra0 to administer capital and entities such Whilst non-human, legal to property for the first time. hold some property rights, entities such as as corporations already the with agents non-human first the are – with agency entities – DACs autonomously. technical capability to act on this ownership legally-defined forms of property are that ownership can be assigned ownership that of propertylegally-defined forms are of the rights necessarily a person), the recognition to a legal entity (not also discusses of these rights. One as the limits as well of the owner, the economic which symbolizes propertyrights’ as a ‘bundle of Property things. and persons between existing relations power and simultaneously, economic, and social spheres operates in the legal, goods to a allocation of material or immaterial and is defined as the entity-persona. or ‘legal’ person ‘real’ Paul Seidler, Paul Kolling & Max Hampshire: terra 0 – Can an Augmented Forest Own and Utilize Itself? / 68 ‘economic persons’, Parliament hasdraftedaproposal classifying‘working robots’ as entitled tosimilarrightsasnaturalpersons.AlthoughtheEuropean non-human entitieswhichhave are gainedtherighttoproperty is protected in accordance with their rights, one would assumethat human agencyinnatural-systemsalso. Since anindividual’s property contractsbutspeakingdirectlytechnology andsmart toforms ofnon- technological changebrought aboutwiththeinvention ofblockchain scope ofouragencywilleventually be reduced tozero; terra0willact we tobegintheprocess, –theproject the initiators–are necessary project andaprototype ofaself-utilizatingpieceland.Although terra0 isaconceptualization ofaself-owned forest; anongoing art Overview logical resources. systems, andenablethemtobettermanagetheirtechnical andeco terra0 emergesfrom thenotionthatDACs canbeproxies fornatural- terra0 horizon. rights–asbeingon-parwithlegal property an EU-widediscussionofautonomousnon-humanagentshaving owners.discussing non-humanagentsasproperty It appearsthat economic persons,suchashow toproperly taxaDAC, willrequire tax. However, answering questionsrelated tothisnotionofrobotic- 10 this appears to pertain solelytodiscussionsof thisappearstopertain persons –mightbeonthe - 69 / Paul Seidler, Paul Kolling & Max Hampshire: terra 0 – Can an Augmented Forest Own and Utilize Itself? ------from the project initia the project itself from 11 In the first phase of the project, a forest will be purchased by the pro by will be purchased a forest first phase of the project, the In Realization tors, eventually owning itself. The augmented-forest-user, as owner owner as The augmented-forest-user, itself. owning tors, eventually is in resource, marketable of itself and administrator of a financially to therefore land, and buy more itself, the position to financialize expand. initial economic model we, to set up terra0’s order ject initiators. In to relating inventorytake an Data had to the initiators, trees. of the height), and (at breast diameter including species, age, size, the trees, collected manually and fed into a computational database health were empirical models represent tables’): (‘yield based on ‘Ertragstafeln’ in behaviour of the trends and overall growth, ing the development, forest. Following this stage, a smart this stage, contract – containing all contractual defi Following nitions, like an ownership model which determines when the contract model which determines when the contract nitions, like an ownership model will be to itself and the economic the ownership can rewrite of the whole smartThis serves contract representation up. drawn a as its material exploitation in accordance terra0 system, self-regulating certaina with rulesof set ‘Ertragstafeln’. implemented the on based to it; the over will be signed When the contract is drawn up the forest but initiators, project the to belong legally propertylonger no will is then indebted terra0. The DAC instead the augmented-forest-user to ‘terra0 by initiators – this debt will be represented to the project this stage, the initiator holds all terra0 tokens, representing At kens’. terra0 creates a framework whereby a forest is able to sell licenses to is able to sell licenses to a forest a framework whereby terra0 creates smart processes, automated contracts, and through trees log its own capital. accumulates forest this so, doing In technology. blockchain parties enables to self-administration on third reliance A shift from this With resources. its marketable and sustain to maximize the forest buys forest the capital, via the DAC, From an economic perspective, a corporation cannot be separated separated be cannot a corporation perspective, economic an From existence of every the means of or function. Thus its purpose from parties or other – people, third by is based on its usability corporation - can be pre The worthlegal entities. of a forest of the usable aspects of its materials values to contemporaneous according cisely calculated as a its function Beside place. the market – wood – on international of service also holds the role of raw material, the forest contrac source activities, for example. tor – for leisure with complete autonomy. complete with Paul Seidler, Paul Kolling & Max Hampshire: terra 0 – Can an Augmented Forest Own and Utilize Itself? / 70 its debt. In contractwillbeacti thesecondphase oftheproject, thesmart keep thesystemrunning. informationfrom databases,whichitneeds inordercess totrusted to from thisprocess topayforbothitsown hardware facilities,andac contractusesthe purchase alogginglicense.Thesmart Ether earned are buyablewithether)forsalethrough thecustomerwhowishesto age, health,andsize ofagiven tree. It generatesthesetokens(which criteria,suchasthe of woodtokens.Thisdecisionisbasedoncertain growth models–how manylogginglicensesitcansell,intheform tract cancompute–withthehelpofdatabaseandprojected the project initiatorsaboutthetrees. When triggered, con thesmart The contracthasadatabasewhich received informationfrom material exploitationoftheforest. termined economicmodelembeddedinthecontractwillcontrol the vated, andtherein actautonomouslyontheblockchain.Theprede - - - - 71 / Paul Seidler, Paul Kolling & Max Hampshire: terra 0 – Can an Augmented Forest Own and Utilize Itself? - - From this point, the forest is no longer a source of material to be is no longer a source this point, the forest From parties, but instead interacts with them as a peer. third by utilized for an autonomous eco terra0 can be seen as a prototype Therefore, plete, the project initiators will hold no more terra0 tokens, making will hold no more initiators plete, the project in The forest, value. of its economic the sole shareholder the forest eco- autonomous an be will it itself, control will terms, economic nomic unit. relations. nomic unit in a post-human system of terra0 will sell licenses to log certain trees through a market website to website a market through to log certainterra0 will sell licenses trees sum of money is earned via selling When a given customers. private by its debt to the initiators these licenses, terra0 will begin to repay is com repayment them. Once buying its terra0 tokens back from Paul Seidler, Paul Kolling & Max Hampshire: terra 0 – Can an Augmented Forest Own and Utilize Itself? / 72 2016. do, however, isprovide ground-zero anew forsuchdiscussions. DACs asproxies fornatural-systemsinthefuture. What terra0does gists, ecologists,andphilosophers,inorder toevaluate theusabilityof of natural resources.the worth Further research is required by biolo- cal questionsaround theuseofhumanvalue-systems toapproximate natural-systems. Nor can this project accommodate the complex ethi- numerous criterianeededtoaccommodateforthehugevariety ofall a working system,andnotnecessarilytodefine,orelaborateon,the economic criteria.Thecurrent aimoftheproject issimplytosetup futures. For simplicity, ourprototype willjudgeandwork withsimple forthediscussionofpost-human territory of land,instantiatingnew terra0’s ambition is to provide a framework for a self-utilizing piece Conclusion 10 ttp://fra.europa.eu/en/charterpedia/article/17-right-property 9 8 7 6 5 4 corporation-part-i-137964427 3 2 1 Notes 1 http://efi.int/portal/virtual_library/databases/efiscen/yield_tables 11 20170210ipr61808_en.pdf

http://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/bootstrapping-a-decentralized-autonomous- http://github.com/ethereum/wiki/wiki/white-paper http://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=53855.0 h The Stack http://thestack.org Bratton, BenjaminH. Flusser, Vilém. http://forum.ethereum.org/discussion/392/deodands-dacs-for-natural-systems http://europarl.europa.eu/pdfs/news/expert/infopress/20170210ipr61808/ p. .

8. Dinge undUndinge.Munich:CarlHanserVerlag, 1993. The Stack:OnSoftware andSovereignty. Chicago:MITPress,

73 / Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art - - - - Bittercoin , Bitcoin , Bitcoin such as eCash 1

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and Bitcoin Bitcoin of Things (BoTs) , by a pseudonymous developer named Satoshi named Satoshi developer a pseudonymous by 2

, developed between 2015 , developed between Mining is a calculation process to confirm transactions realized realized to confirm transactions is a calculation process Mining 3 ing. The only way to generate bitcoins is through a process called min a process The only way to generate bitcoins is through oin is based on the proof-of-work system, using a set oin is based on the proof-of-work Bitc Nakamoto. of cryptographic the U.S hash functions called SHA-256 designed by Agency. Security National by Bitcoin users and used to secure the transactions and to control and to control the transactions secure users and used to Bitcoin by of new coins, writing them into a public ledger of past the creation Following previous digital cash technologies previous Following in 2009 appeared A Cryptocurrency is a medium for exchanging digital information digital information A Cryptocurrency is a medium for exchanging terms, a cryptocurrency layman’s In as a payment technology. conceived electricity convertedof code with monetaryis lines into value rate. production algorithmic rules to maintain a fixed following frontiers, open a dialog, and trace their historical influences frontiers, open a dialog, and trace in contemporary and critical art. - decentral as an electronic originally conceived Bitcoin was has the transactions. Each node (user) ized system for capital a collec to get a reward when validating same opportunities of artworks based on This text examines different examples in particular how artistic practices are blockchain technology, mining processes, which is able to explore critically Bitcoin that Bitcoin is dangerous a key factor in provoking suspicion experiences, aesthetic connect to is objective The society. for analyzing four differ creative practices and artistic products, Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin and Bitcoin Mining: Blockchain Critical Art in Contemporary has (block). In recent years, this system tion of transactions is power computing which in struggle competitive a triggered involves variable for earning bitcoins. This the most important environ farms using physical and the use of large computer only the creating a struggle that benefits mental resources, powerful and efficient technology. owner of the most ecological, and economi- ent spheres; technical, ideological, three artworks cal. Practically the essay introduces – the worst miner ever traces Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz Escudero & César Nadal Martín Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art / 74 1. Bitcoin Criticism earn bitcoins. where minerscompeteagainstotheronthenetwork to lottery fouryears).smaller byBitcoin afactorof0.5every miningisagiant contains 12.5BTC, (thisnumberchangesthroughout timeand gets block, theyreceive numberofbitcoins.Currently acertain ablock a secure, tamper-resistant consensus. When aminer discovers anew purposeofminingistoallow The primary Bitcoin nodesto reach the mostrecent Bitcoin transactionsare stored. transactions called the blockchain.Ablock in the blockchain is where top 500supercomputers combined’. equivalent toanetwork ‘43,000timesmore powerful thantheworld’s computing capacityofmining pools has multiplied by 4000,whichis the totaloperatingautonomouslyinChina.In thelastthree years the factories, makingithard totracktheirnumbers,with70percent of connect toisBitMinter forexample.Bitcoin farmersare locatedin power tocalculateablocktogether. One oftheminingpoolsyou can mining iscomprisedofdifferent minerscontributingtheirprocessing process, most individualminersjoinaso-calledminingpool.Pooled any reward Therefore, fortheirmining efforts. asitisanexpensive of blocks,working for monthswithout finding a blockand receiving become hardware intenseandminerscompeteforthelimitedsupply it, andminershave tobeconstantlyupgraded.Bitcoin mining has two weeks based on the time that the networkevery takes to solve The PoW hasseveral consequences,forexample,thedifficultyincreases Specific Integrated Circuits). Bitcoin minersuse highly specialized chipscalledASICs (Application quires workrequester. andprocessing timefrom theservice Currently of PoW usedby Bitcoin is;solution–verification. This process re can beeasilycheckedby anyothermachineinthenetwork. Thetype simplewayto difficulttosolve, verify. butwithavery This result mathematically. Thisproblem musthave thecharacteristicofbeing iours, abuseormisuseinasystem,usingspecialsoftware tosolve it Proof-of-work isameasure thatisusedtoprevent unwantedbehav to solve problems according totheproof-of-work algorithm(PoW). . grains onplanetEarth 6secondsasmany hashes astherenetwork are calculatesevery sand Technically , aBitcoin mineris acomputerspecificallydesigned 5 4 Speaking metaphorically, the - - 75 / Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art - - It works works It 6 Visa can manage 250,000 Visa e.g. are performed two users between are 8

, it cannot be estimated how many miners how , it cannot be estimated , the money works according to three characteris to three according , the money works The Antminer S3 is able to produce 441 Gigahashes per second Gigahashes per 441 S3 is able to produce Antminer The 7 Economically Environmentally 3. and consumes 800 Watts per Terahash: that is roughly 4761 Watts in Watts 4761 that is roughly Terahash: per Watts and consumes 800 unit. A farm with 10,000 of these units would for just one a day, A farmer can spend approximately a day. consume 47,616 Kilowatts González). $60,000 of energy per month (Velasco tics: exchange, accounting unit, and value storage. Bitcoin works most works storage. Bitcoin accounting unit, and value tics: exchange, rather than as a currency. investment of the time as a speculative are actually mining bitcoins, but the energy consumed in farms is mining bitcoins, but the energy actually are 2015 estimated that the mining network A paper from prominent. as Ireland about the same amount of electricity at the time consumed you if to be profitable is only likely Mining and O’Dwyer). (Malone Bitcoin Some 5 cents per kWh for electricity. pay less than about to continue subsisting, to migrate been obliged, in order farmers have cite a specific example, one To of cheaper energy. search in elsewhere 10,000 S3 mining has been estimated to have farm still operating units. tion method for Bitcoin transactions proposed by Gregory Maxwell Maxwell Gregory by transactions proposed tion method for Bitcoin a set of payments in one transaction making grouping by that works partiesthe par- a between of correspondence a establish to impossible ticular transaction. In terms of anonymity, Bitcoin transactions can be tracked since they since tracked be can transactions Bitcoin anonymity, of terms In is an anonymiza in the blockchain. CoinJoin publicly archived are through a virtual Wallet and stored in the blockchain. Each block Each in the blockchain. and stored Wallet a virtual through a single everyis processed ten minutes and limited to a Megabyte, transactions, one thousand to two thousand between block can store of scalability and limits the rate of problems provokes this restriction can handle, transactions the network price Which translates in an increased payments every ten minutes. one down rises, breaking paid in each transaction when the demand of capital cheaper to do transferences of the main ideas of Bitcoin; than ordinary transferences. The Bitcoin currency transactions currency Bitcoin The Later Cryptocurrencies such as PeerCoin or Ethereum use proof-of- use or Ethereum CryptocurrenciesLater such as PeerCoin using by consumption high energy the addresses PoS, (PoS). stake than less 70 percent spending computer, on a client software only the commons’. of ‘tragedy the aims to avoid PoS Bitcoin. 2. by requesting evidence of possession of coins. The advantage of this of coins. The advantage of possession evidence requesting by and reducing competition profitable mining is less is that approach energy use. Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art / 76 Krawisz, stated: byuse andcontrol Daniel ofcapital.Asonecommentonanarticle what entities,mechanisms,andstrategiesreally govern thecreation, Probably thiseconomicnormalizationprevents usfrom considering systeminwhichwe arecomplex thanthe current immersed. monetary 4. the useofBitcoin. Visa, Bank Americaand Western Union whichwasbypassed through known blockingof WikiLeaks donationsusingPayPal, MasterCard, eficial effectsagainsteconomicalcensorships,anexampleisthe well- But it’s Bitcoin not all bad news, andthe blockchain have sociallyben role2013, played intheuseandacceptanceofBitcoin. animportant Deepweb from 2011untilitsfounder Ross William wasarrested in The ‘Silk Road’ wasapopularblackmarketplace thatoperated inthe effects helpingtofightagainst economicalcensorships. tions. Bitcoin and especially blockchain can have socially beneficial system basedonmathsandalgorithms forpeertodigitaltransac ists andresearchers to create payattention,investing efforts a reliable progress where developers, hackers,activists,banks,governments, art Bitcoin can beunderstood as afirst implementation,anexercise in Conclusion vent transaction confirmations,bringingthewholesystemdown. the hash power itcould potentially allow double-spendingand pre cent attack’, where ifapoolgrows andgetsmore than50percent of relations andvulnerability weaknesses. One istheso-called‘51per We venerate Bitcoin’s decentralization, but in reality there are power valued andrethought. mustbejudged, attempts todevelopkindsofcryptocurrencies new algorithms alsohave politics.According to Tiziana Terranova, current of the process of common essential moneycreation,part but those the power. Thisalso reveals thedeeper reason whyalgorithms are an without anyrole ofgovernments, thismeans, thatcapitalhasall Bitcoinsystems have nojurisprudence. skips democraticvigilance Bitcoin has an ideology where the government and current banking creation’. and failedbankingindustry, thebiggestdriverofwhichismoney Ideologically 9 ‘Bitcoin is fundamentally an alternative tothecorrupt ‘Bitcoin isfundamentallyanalternative , tounderstandBitcoin iscomplex,butnoless 10 - - - - - 77 / Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art - - - Bittercoin talks about the effort and is an old calculator machine hacked to be used as a is an old calculator machine hacked 11

is a fully functional miner that connects to the block- the to connects that miner functional fully a is Bittercoin miner validating the pending Bitcoin transactions in the blockchain. miner validating the pending Bitcoin transactions and combines InternetBittercoin of Things (IoT), media archaeology the time increasing computer, economics. It works as the most basic operations are The bitcoins to almost an eternity. needed to produce and printed afterwards. displayed on the calculator screen For the duration of its exhibition period it seeks to produce money it seeks to produce For the duration of its exhibition period insistently and using an economic system wholly different from the mak- machine the around accumulates Paper market. art traditional as well as, the nat of calculation required, the amount visible ing ural resources expended in the process, often covering the whole often covering the the process, expended in ural resources and the calculator itself. room the working time expended that is conditioned by technological de vices. in the event of successfully mining chain. Although it is very unlikely, entering the a block, the ‘nonce’ would be sent back to the server, Bitttercoin 1. Bittercoin, the worst miner ever 1. Bittercoin, Artistic examples tioned! They hide problems concerning the limited rate of transac- the limited rate of concerning hide problems tioned! They and scalability of problems errors, vulnerability relations, power tions, the double spending would allow that Attack’ the so-called ‘51 percent transaction confirmations. Another to prevent of coins and the ability in lies directly mining process the Bitcoin from consequence derived and the economical needed to obtain bitcoins, the calculation power on equipment and electricity. that miners realize investment On the other hand, Bitcoin has an ideology by virtue by an ideology has that the fact of Bitcoin hand, the other On it. jurisprudence no have banking over and current the government of governments, the role avoiding vigilance democratic skips Bitcoin an essential are Algorithms all the power. that capital has which means Cryptocurrencies be ques must part of money creation. the process of Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art / 78 17.6W and10mofpaperperhour. Originally, thecalculatorconsumes80mA,Watts 220V*0.08A= corresponding bitcoinsofthereward toourBitcoinWallet. Bittercoin, theworstminerever. block wouldhavebeensuccessfullymined. that produces ahashsmallerthantheblockchain target hash,anew nonce a finds calculator the If calculation. its of steps intermediate algorithm, whichisdisplayedbythecalculatorscreen, printingthe SHA256 double a of consists process verification The process. tion verifica- the begin to order in nonce random a adds calculator the the blockheader, andsendittothecalculator. Onceitisreceived functions are three: toconnectthecalculator totheblockchain,get calculator keys remotely by means of a mobile phone.Thephone patible with Arduino. This microcontroller allows the control of the Inside the calculator, isembedded a bluetooth microcontroller, com Ars Electronica 2016. Images byPatriciaCadavid Circuit diagram. - 79 / Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art - - The blockchain is a distrib uses a solo mining pool. Bittercoin used a node running on Bittercoin [miniminer.py POW verification.] [miniminer.py How is it connected to the blockchain? uted file, in April 2017 it was 250Gb in size, growing by more than 100 than more by growing size, in 250Gb was it 2017 April in file, uted Mb per day. The first version of a block could connect to this server receiving Bittercoin our server, header to sign. In the last version, reasons: to have a visual output of the calculation process and to be the calculation process to have a visual output of reasons: Wi-Fi connections. A goal of able to exhibit the piece using the 3G is to maintain the original calculator aesthetic. In the whole project - cal the in visible made is process verification SHA256 the , Bittercoin the intermediate values generated printing afterwards culator display, (A and E) of the second verification. in each of the 64 rounds The connection with the blockchain is made using a phone for two the blockchain is made using a phone The connection with Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art / 80 designed Bittercoin tobeableverifyoneblockevery10mins. action approximately every10mins.Inorder tohaveachancewe used intheproject BoT,(BitcoinofThings). concept’ wedevelopedminiminer.py, aminimumclientthatisalso called Stratum is used. It is based on Json + tcp and as ‘proof-of- to haveafullnodeserverrunning.Astandard miningpoolprotocol The goal ofthis approach was tosimplifythe project andnotforce us mined they receive 0.5 percent of the Coinbase transaction plus fees. This kindofpoolservesupdatedblockheaders,andiftheblockis of Things(IoT). media art,digitalculture, criticaleconomy, electronics andInternet out inadidacticworkshopwhere participantsgetinformationabout (BoTs) project crosses theboundaryofexhibitionspace,tohang ever,theBitcoinofThings miner worst the Based onBittercoin, [Bitcoin ofThings(BoTs)] Bitcoin isdesignedtoverifyablockandgenerateCoinbasetrans - 81 / Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art - - - Assembly kit. (BoT) miner combining a Wi- Participants build a Bitcoin of Things Fi microcontroller and different sensors such as an accelerometer, its readings buttons, and generating a ‘nonce’ from or microphones transactions. The possibili will trigger it to try to validate all pending is attached to daily life objects, like key the microcontroller Finally, cessful get the reward, that in May 2017 is 12.5 BTCs. cessful get the reward, of the calculation the use of energy but it decreases lower, ties are sustainable. BoT is without any doubt, the it more making processes lottery with the worst chance of winning. mice or salt-shakers, by using them the object can computer boards, playing with the idea of potentially generate big number of bitcoins, finding the philosopher�s stone capable of turning anygold (in this case bitcoins). object into Theoretically, it introduces concepts, art-works and books in order to concepts, art-works and books in order it introduces Theoretically, proposes it Practically world. understand the Bitcoin and blockchain welding and microcontrollers circuit, to work with a basic electronic The objective is to transform daily life building a playful Bitcoin miner. Bitcoin miners objects (e.g. maracas, hammers or salt shakers) into the latest block, and if suc able to connect to the blockchain, mine Bitcoin of Things (BoT). Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art / 82 4. BitcoinTraces good oraservice, andseetheindividual‘edges’ ofeachtransaction. riality. Awayto consider moneyasanetworkwhere eachnode isa What transpires is anewwayofseeingmoney, deprivedof its mate andbanks,aregovernments keptoutsidethescrutinyofsociety. while inthewiderworldeconomic transactionsare onlyknownby an artisticpointofviewisthatprocesses liketransactionsare public do inBitcoinandtheblockchain.Whatmakesinteresting from do withEuros sincewedon’t have accesstotheledger’s bookaswe the formoflongred lines.Thiskindofanalysis wouldn’t bepossibleto of darkerringsandhowmostbitcoinsare minedbyafewbigpoolsin been processed byanonymizationtechniqueslikeCoinjoinintheform in red. Inthisdrawingswecanappreciate whenthetransactionshave was generatedwewon’t beableexplore further, sowedrawthisline a radialshape.Whenwereach thetransactionwhere asetofbitcoins we draw these transactions further away from the centre, producing line foreverywalletinvolvedinthistransaction.Asweprogress intime ing point,analyzingwhichwasitssource transactions anddrawsa Central Bank.Theprocess beginsbypicking atransactionasstart other clients,andsoonuntilthemoneyiscreated bytheEuropean which for, from thecompanyearned theirclients,andclientsfrom in turn works she or he company the in earned was bill €5 The let’s say that a person buys a coffee and he or she pays with a €5 bill. until aparticulartransactionismade.To makeareal worldexample transactions from thepointwhencurrency iscreated byaminer Bitcoin Traces , drawsaninfographicdata-visualizationofBitcoin Bitcoin Traces , data-visualization - - 83 / Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art

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energy use. Also the 51 percent attack is less likely because in this system the attacker attack is less use. Also the 51 percent energy of bitcoins. of the total number should own 51 percent 6 a limited shared end up destroying rationally, and acting independently but interest resource advantages Reuters. http://uk.reuters.com/article/us-markets-bitcoin-mining- idUKKCN0ZO2CW. 5 than-there-are-stars-in-the-observable-universe-by-this-incredible-multiplier node 4 Kelly, result, miner it is generated, with the the Merkleroot these transactions where transactions. It is from block the Blockheader is generated. The Blockheader and the previous Merkleroot It is an 80- byte header hash is the main way of identifying a block in the blockchain. The the proof-of-work. to create belonging to a single block which is hashed repeatedly block with all its transactions the data representing Blockheader is a set of structured that this block is included to ensure The hash of the previous using the Merkletree. one. So if someone wanted to modify a block, the previous block was generated from ones. The blockheader hash is calculated by all the previous they would have to rewrite the SHA256 algorithm twice. It is calculated by each running the blockheader through Cryptology Proceedings of Crypto Cryptology Proceedings 2 The Satoshi Nakamoto. 3 value 1 David for untraceable payments’. ‘Blind signatures by using blind signatures: Notes & References Bittercoin, the worst miner ever Bittercoin, beneath people to understand what happens methods for educating They engage the surface of technological advances. of the first wave translat- in the economy, influence of algorithms with the increasing models of an positions and criticism, finding ing them into aesthetic Conclusion ticipation, and exploring the relationship between human behaviours human behaviours between the relationship ticipation, and exploring connec showing focused on making. They are decision machine and training audi and not only art,tions between technology and society, also teaching critically and ences to see concepts inside objects, but the minds and bodies, of implementing thoughts and actions into both people, and machines. These graphs can also be read in the opposite direction. Starting Starting direction. opposite in the be read can also graphs These of numbers a set which are origin of the bitcoins, the ‘mined’ from by a value given have been consensus but by have no utility, that bitcoins and in turngenerating to build a them as a foundation use and exchange. of consumption structure Martín Nadal & César Escudero Andaluz: Critical Mining: Blockchain and Bitcoin in Contemporary Art / 84 nakamotoinstitute.org/mempool/the-two-ideologies-in-bitcoin. Accessed04.10.2014. Amsterdam: InstituteofNetworkCultures, 2015. Common’, EuroNomade. http://euronomade.info/?p=2268. Accessed08.03.2014. 10 Krawisz, 9 10,000 BTChavevalueofover10millionUSD.SeeCermakinreferences. Kingdom, Hanyecz, aprogrammer livinginFlorida,sent10,000BTCtoavolunteertheUnited The 8 7 pp. Winner, Langdon.‘DoArtifactsHavePolitics?’Daedalus,Vol. 109,No.1,Winter, 1980, bitcoin-mining APRJA, 5.1,2016.http://aprja.net/superabundant-design-from-waste-to-control-in- Velasco González,PabloR.‘Superabundantdesign:from wastetocontrol inBitcoin.’ ity_based_on_a_GARCH_model Viable_Alternative_to_Fiat_Currencies_An_empirical_analysis_of_Bitcoin%27s_volatil York, U.S.2017.http://researchgate.net/publication/316648330_Can_Bitcoin_Become_a_ pirical analysisofBitcoin’s volatilitybasedonaGARCHmodel.’Skidmore College,New Vavrinec Cermak,‘CanBitcoinBecomeaViabletoFiatCurrencies? Alternative Anem Common.’ 2014.http://euronomade.info/?p–2268 Terranova, Tiziana.‘RedStackAttack!Algorithms,Capital,andtheAutomationof 2013. Roio, DenisJaromil. ‘Bitcoin,theendofTaboo onMoney.’ Dyne.org DigitalPress, Nakamoto, Satoshi.‘Bitcoin:Apeer-to-peer electronic cashsystem.’2008. pp. 2014, ick, ence Irish Signals&SystemsConference 2014andChina-IrelandConfer International Malone, N Golumbia, David.‘BitcoinasPolitics:DistributedRight-WingExtremism.’ Lovink,G, See also:http://spectrum.muimota.net/bittercoin 11

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- - 85 / Peter Gomes: The Blockchain: Change Everything Forever

- Dr. Catherine Mulligan, Research Fellow, Associate Director – Director Associate Fellow, Mulligan, Research Catherine Dr. Haase, Elias College; Imperial Research, Cryptocurrency for Centre Founder of B9lab; Irra Ariella Khi, Beekeeper, Thinker, Developer, Jaime Sevilla, developer, Co-founder and CEO Vchain Technology; digital strat Jaya Klara Brekke, , #hackforgood; GHAYA researcher, Kei Kreutler, and curating, Durham University; design, research egy, Pavlo Tanasyuk, Co-founder unMonastery; Independent Researcher, Lead Davies, Sam hacker; artist, writer, Myers, Rob BlockVerify; CEO Gupta, Digital Catapult; Vinay Programmes, – Creative Technologist guru, Hexayurt. resilience Contributors: Dr. Anat Elhalal, Digital Catapult; Ben Vickers, Co- Anat Elhalal, Digital Catapult; Ben Vickers, Contributors: Dr. Digital, Serpentine Galleries; founder unMonastery and Curator of Concept, research and development by Ruth Catlow, Furtherfield. and development by Ruth Catlow, Concept, research Directed by Peter Gomes Directed Online here: Online here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=2Zp37zarSQc&feature=youtu.be These montages include text and images from a filmreleased online in October 2016 by Furtherfield in collaboration with Digital Catapult debate about the impact of emerging the which set out to broaden blockchain technologies. The Blockchain: Change Everything Change Everything The Blockchain: Forever Peter Gomes Peter Peter Gomes: The Blockchain: Change Everything Forever / 86 87 / Peter Gomes: The Blockchain: Change Everything Forever Peter Gomes: The Blockchain: Change Everything Forever / 88 89 / Peter Gomes: The Blockchain: Change Everything Forever Peter Gomes: The Blockchain: Change Everything Forever / 90 91 / Jaya Klara Brekke & Elias Haase: Breaking Chains and Busting Blocks: Commentary on the Satoshi (Hippocratic) Oath for Blockchain Developers

Blockchain

for

Oath

(Hippocratic) Developers Breaking Chains and Busting Blocks: Blocks: and Busting Chains Breaking the Satoshi on Commentary Jaya Klara Brekke & Elias Haase Haase & Elias Klara Brekke Jaya Jaya Klara Brekke & Elias Haase: Breaking Chains and Busting Blocks: Commentary on the Satoshi (Hippocratic) Oath for Blockchain Developers / 92 on theIPFSblockchain, and developing.HerewereprinttheOath,originallypublished conscious, ‘woke’,engagementwithmaking,creating,coding culture forblockchaindevelopment:onethatencouragesa financial complexinspiredthisattempttoarticulateadifferent uncritical allianceswitholdenemiesinthemonopolistictech- wariness ofanemergingblockchain-fundamentalismandits a Hippocraticoathforblockchaindevelopers.Theirmutual company B9LabcommissionedJayaKlaraBrekketowrite In thefallof2016,EliasHaaseatblockchaintraining events (forexampletransactions), that are verified andstored ina considered actual features: the blockchainisan ity. Theseconcepts are peculiarbecause ontheonehandtheyare blockchain technology:immutability, decentralizationandneutral The Oath itselfisstructured around three conceptsassociated with the immediatetechnicalarchitectures andbusinesscases. think through the effects of their apps on relations thatextendbeyond The result ishopefully aformofconceptualtoolbox fordevelopers to cisions? Andwhatformsofaccountabilityare there intheseprocesses? human decision-makingprocesses? insuchde Who isabletotakepart ethics intheblockchain:How shouldaprotocol interactwithongoing hold. To encourageamore consciousconsiderationoftheencoding else. everyone To positionthatdevelopers betterthisnew articulate aconversationThe betweenOath isanattempttostart developers and sibilities thatcomewithsuchapositionofpower: of power littlewillingnesstoacceptthe respon andinfluence very littleawarenessunlike priestsoftimespast,there oftheposition isvery Computer scientistsandtechdevelopers are priestcaste.But thenew have tohopethatoneofthemcares enoughtosolve your problem. ters andtheinterpreters ofyour life.If somethingstopsworking you technology, andcoder-developers have becomeboththehiddenmas and relationships are beingautomated oradministered through digital ner, your memories,your senseofdirection –more andmore things the hospital in your town, theintimatemessagesyou send to your part how we relate. Your sociallife,work, your car, your fridge,your TV, tremely powerful positionwhere theyhave amassive influence over Computer scientistsandtechdevelopers have beenplacedinanex problem. Iamjustbuilding thistool.Ican’t control howitisbeingused.’ and Brekke. 1

followed byacommentaryHaase immutable record of ‘I am just solving this ‘I amjustsolvingthis ------93 / Jaya Klara Brekke & Elias Haase: Breaking Chains and Busting Blocks: Commentary on the Satoshi (Hippocratic) Oath for Blockchain Developers - - - trans

That’s That’s /

2 ); while on the on the etc.); while verification verification

network (of communication network neutral code execution

data-storage

Initially, the people we were targeting with the Oath hated it. hated Oath the with targeting were we people the Initially, other hand, they tend to operate as major ethical principles in the principles in the as major ethical they tend to operate other hand, ambiguity This development. and design the drive that community tech in blockchain ideological positions and features core between they are once and infrastructures, Technology overlooked. tends to be simply that something as understood often too all are adopted, widely But the defini manner. in the most efficient solving problems evolves, the priorities of problems in the first place, tion of what is a problem shaped and come them are and the methods for solving to be solved, and desires. our social, political and economic conditions from cords, thereby ensuring a ensuring thereby cords, actions manner so that no single actor can manipulate the re the manipulate actor can no single so that manner decentralized Events like the Bitcoin scaling conflict, centralization of mining, and centralization conflict, scaling the Bitcoin like Events since made it in the summer of 2016, have hack DAO the Ethereum simply not are immutability and neutrality decentralization, that clear had not alone. Decentralization the protocol guaranteed by features immutability was not as immutable as of power, the problem solved assumed, code and cryptography did not amount to a neutral space. what we expected. The developer community believes in hard-coding in hard-coding community believes expected. The developer what we the like frameworks ‘soft’ so into the protocol, any code of conduct In seen as unnecessaryregulation. oath are moralistic ineffective and is a mistrustparts of anything there of the blockchain community not hardcoded anything interpretation, scope for human that gives cryptographically and of into the protocol The source secured. experiences of the unequal this mistrust comes in part real from the file-sharing as experienced for example by application of the law, addition, this mistrust of legal and In and anti-copyright community. the aftermath of the in become mainstream political institutions have very redistributed were visibly financial crisis, whose consequences with very little parts austerity, of society through to the poorest In actors in the financial industry. legal consequences for powerful indiscriminately as it is that executes code-as-law, contrast, the idea of to the corruption as an alternative written, became hugely attractive to seen as simply too easy are of legal and political institutions that to trust will not have game. The implied ideal is that humans each other but rather encode every interaction and make the conditions many as a way to technology is seen by Blockchain self executing. blockchain the So automation. ‘smart’ with contracts social replace mistrust a deep by of social contracts. They community is driven indeed ambiguous and in the world are forget that most events and mediation. interpretation complex requiring Jaya Klara Brekke & Elias Haase: Breaking Chains and Busting Blocks: Commentary on the Satoshi (Hippocratic) Oath for Blockchain Developers / 94 the community oftenstrive toencodestrong ethicalandpolitical fined by analmostpathologicalcontradiction. Active members of The emergingculturalidentity oftheblockchaincommunityisde plementation decisionsonasocio-cultural level. that favours careful consideration ofimpactand the discussionof im who haspledged.Under thesecircumstances aculture coulddevelop contract between blockchaindevelopers whereby knows everyone The seconddesired effectwouldbeagradualformationofsocial ing intheirdata,theywillhave todosoconsciously. developer makes adecisionthatisdetrimentaltotheiruser, likelock any fundamental problems. And it is also envisioned as a way that if a use theOath asachecklisttomakesure thattheyare notoverlooking The actofpledgingissymbolicbuttheintentionfora developer to technology, systemsthattendtobecontrolled by majormonopolies. ple; andwhere forexam not beerasedmightundesirableunderauthoritarianrule immutability isnotthoughtthrough intermsofhow records thatcan strategy forsomeactorstoevade accountability;where, forexample terms ofdecentralizationpower andauthority, insteadbecominga for example sliding intouncriticaldogmawhere theylosetheirmeaning–where create blockchain projects. new It istoprevent thethree conceptsfrom and neutralitymightbekeptalive inthemindsofdevelopers asthey cal questionsposedby theconceptsofdecentralization,immutability thought about carefully, coulddo most damage.In this way, the ethi tions. Thequestionsare designedtocover thoseaspectsthat,ifnot doctrine –thepledgerpromises onlytoaskthemselves alistofques The Oath isconsciouslydesignedsothatitdoesnotsetoutafixed development isheading. that itisrequired andapotentreminder ofthedirection blockchain tial resistance totheOath by blockchaindevelopers isbothevidence In inthesocietytheyserve. away,who mustengendertrust theini beginnings. The Oath putstheemphasisondeveloper assomeone of globalfinancialflows, andcannotbeseparated from theseheady of blockchainasatechnologyforcircumventing geo-politicalcontrol its roots in hacker ethics, cypherpunk and a hugely politicized history cal effectsdeliberatelythoughthrough. Afterall,theblockchainhas go intosuchsystemscanbemadevisibleandtheirethicalpoliti ing consideration,maintenanceandimplementationthatnecessarily ing principles(technical,ethicalandpolitical).In thisway, theongo Rather thanfeatures, suchideasmightbebetterdescribedasoperat decentralization isnolongerthoughtaboutcarefully in neutrality isassumedtobethenature ofmarkets and ------95 / Jaya Klara Brekke & Elias Haase: Breaking Chains and Busting Blocks: Commentary on the Satoshi (Hippocratic) Oath for Blockchain Developers - - eumcomments/ http://etherscan.io/address/0x49311a711ea4aff7fea3e0c32066e732fe

‘technology’. It is instead a question of whether we follow follow we is instead a question of whether It ‘technology’. code:

vs Oath

http://ipfs.b9lab.com:8080/ipfs/qmxysweaexxqqyzhtgpecvksnabksewhdghm7vneh See for example the Reddit discussion: http://reddit.com/r/ether

Satoshi 4652ba#code Reddit discussion: http://reddit.com/r/ethereum/comments/53sau2/proposing_the_ satoshi_oath_for_developers Satoshi Oath on the blockchain: http://ipfs.b9lab.com:8080/ipfs/qmxysweaexxqqyzhtg pecvksnabksewhdghm7vnehxue2g 1 xue2g 2 53sau2/proposing_the_satoshi_oath_for_developers Notes & References The culture of blind belief in technological determinism and inevita- of blind belief in technological The culture existential divisions and even deeply political ble acceleration creates of blind The culture ‘humans’ and ‘technology’. divisions between cre determinism and inevitable acceleration belief in technological The fundamentalist religious nature of this evolutionary of religious nature determinism The fundamentalist and of scientists with the work engagement critical active, shuts down other parts by of a reactionary also forces response It technologists. us (as against as pitted is seen a whole, as technology, whereby society as biological humans). workers, curi dissuades a wider and more divisions. It ates deeply political of technology and makes the business-agendas ous engagement with seem partmega-tech companies of an evolutionary trajectory that is parta been has always but is not external, of Technology inevitable. is not the question of What is at stake in our future do things. we how ‘human’ principles while at the same time subscribing to a blind technological technological to a blind time subscribing at the same while principles as part step an inevitable is seen as which blockchain in determinism acceleration. technological of a larger or engage in an business interests big by a blind determinism driven decision- mature by driven intelligent exploration of what is possible hope is Our desirable. collectively be to find what we around making can be the beginning of such a conversation, Oath that the Satoshi it. than shirking rather for our developments taking full responsibility Jaya Klara Brekke & Elias Haase: Breaking Chains and Busting Blocks: Commentary on the Satoshi (Hippocratic) Oath for Blockchain Developers / 96 97 / Jaya Klara Brekke & Elias Haase: Breaking Chains and Busting Blocks: Commentary on the Satoshi (Hippocratic) Oath for Blockchain Developers Jaya Klara Brekke & Elias Haase: Breaking Chains and Busting Blocks: Commentary on the Satoshi (Hippocratic) Oath for Blockchain Developers / 98 99 / Kimberley ter Heerdt & Nikki Loef: 01.01.20 - current current sharing behavior of our sharing behavior of

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(01.01.20 http://kimberleyterheerdt.com http://nikkiloef.com can we re-architect the fellowship re-architect can we short these questions came this speculative film Arising from web? of smartthe capabilities to visualize and tries questions that shows, Geo- on: contracts based the film are In contracts in the near future. user and owner) future location, origin, DNA and income (from presented. Our current web has the world united into a global information pro a global information the world united into has web current Our can add our arise if we may or agreements What kind of scenarios How files? our of on the behavior influence and have contract own 01.01.20 (can) navigate we how for structure standardized tocol. A controlled, on all of which has a limiting effect A structure the web. through to distribute able are changing the way we By the many possibilities. smart these structures, our information with contracts could possibly A online culture. radical change concerning our current us a provide carry to a contract that is able to independently contract refers Smart behavior. out or enforce Kimberley ter Heerdt & Nikki Loef & Nikki Heerdt ter Kimberley Kimberley ter Heerdt & Nikki Loef: 01.01.20 / 100 101 / Pablo Velasco: Role Play Your Way to Budgetary Blockchain Bliss - -

Vickers)

Ben

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Ruth Role Play Your Way to Budgetary Blockchain to Budgetary Blockchain Way Your Play Role

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MoneyLab, Amsterdam. Participants were pre-assigned characters pre-assigned were Participants Amsterdam. MoneyLab, of start up the business cycle that frequent and generic roles tech companies trying the next big thing with the latest to make technological innovation. It took as its scenario a 2-day start aimed at creat up tech hackathon It Hosts with workshop attendees. ing blockchain-based business ideas that improve the life and future the life and future improve ing blockchain-based business ideas that each participant was assigned workshop, this role-playing of cats. For their way persona and the general goal of networking a cat-invested and the cat community, the enterprise for themselves, into a profitable critically emulated the extravagant hosting institution. The workshop the super-automation and hy surrounding discourse and excitement per-connectivity that accompanies blockchain and similar technologies; and the capacity of the technology stakeholders to both increase and diminish global inequity. This special workshop This special workshop Bliss This article reviews a workshop given during the MoneyLab the MoneyLab given during workshop reviews a This article Cultures, conference, Institute of Network #3 Failing Better pub- previously was version earlier An 2016. in Amsterdam, blog. lished on the INC Role Play Your Way to Budgetary Budgetary to Way Your Role Play Bliss Blockchain Pablo Velasco Velasco Pablo Pablo Velasco: Role Play Your Way to Budgetary Blockchain Bliss / 102 slogan: ‘ that gathersadiversity ofinspired mindsundertheshared ideaand Cats’ Home ishostingthe2020Cattersea Hackerton, a2-dayevent Internetfamously entertaining digital doubles. Happily, Cattersea been incarcerated, butcatsdonotlive yet tothefullpotentialoftheir Set inthenearfuture, Donald Trump andNigel Farage have finally 1. different participants: funding,andstrategicallianceswith five pitches lookingforsupport, blockchain. The welcoming wasfollowed presentation by a short of cat culture and the generalsenseofaccelerationassociatedwith identificationwithboth supported the speedofhumantime)further oncattime(6times the workshop ofaloud,tickingclockrunning as such,wouldbringabetterlifeforall.Thepresence, throughout society –oneinwhichtreating peoplelikeacatandbeingtreated theCEOofCattersea,astrong believerErvin inamore cat-oriented Roberts, Dirk Eisenberg from BANKtheevent sponsor, andJamie The firstdaybeganwithawarm welcome bythe event host Bella and more-feline-friendly world. Groups ofLARPersrefunctioning theblockchainandDAO’s toward amore-than-human the untrustworthy half-breed.Theproject wouldmakeuseof unforgeable record would effectively separate pure cats from to clarifytheprovenance ofpurebredcats.Acryptographic 2. gotten divinestatusoffelines. the projectisnothingbutacat-alysertoreturn nowfor out people.Theleaderofthesocietymadeclearthat heand emancipated fromhumans,wheretheyareabletothrive with nomous CatSociety, envisionsagreatfutureforallcat-kind, Cats You Can Trust isablockchain-basedproject seeking Fully AutomatedLuxuryUtopiaforCats We CanMakeCatsGreat Again!’ . , bytheAuto- - - 103 / Pablo Velasco: Role Play Your Way to Budgetary Blockchain Bliss ------uses state-of-art technology to harness the the harness to technology state-of-art uses Hire for Strokes tries to funnel the profitability of the gambling the of profitability the funnel to tries Roulette Cat The groups discussed their plans to get the projects going and us and going projects the get to their plans discussed groups The The rest of the first day offered the multiplicity of attendees the chance the of attendees multiplicity the offered day first the of rest The It projects. to their favourite to ask, negotiate, and offer their skills mo different brought audience diverse the clear that rapidly became and ideologies. Each participant per- interests skills, vested tivations, formed as part of the complex ecosystem of fintech and start-ups: enthu- experts, and naive developers, scholars, marketeers, investors, order to in siasts, all had the difficult task to sort out their differences (or at least their Everyone build up lasting and successful alliances. a venues, money, (time, energy, characters) had something to invest cat life im (profits, to get in return full of cats) and something van admiration). or pure aspirations patents, philanthropy provement, toolkit building and DAPP and DAO allocation pies’ ‘asset ing the of wealth, on: contract design, distribution they worked provided, and cat-friendly comput mission statements, specific tokens, DAOs their final pitch presented the groups use. Finally, ing technologies to 3. homes, in cat webcams using By welfare. towards cat market It their behaviour. bet online on would be able to everyone to intermediaries human and algorithm, machine, of rid gets A per to the gambling community. bring true randomness 4. of purr cats and proven health benefits love of humans for (PUP) algorithm A cleverly designed Proof-of-Purr proximity. per every time a cat is petted. A negotiable generates tokens have Kittycoin has a simple yet elegant pitch: dogs 5. Finally, cats and kittens de their own cryptocurrency (Dogecoin), ment of birth to present an unbreakable proof-of-heritage. an unbreakable to present of birth ment casino of this autonomous decentralized centage of the profits to cat welfare. would be donated own- cat the to back go would generated money the of centage cat enhances project the of design feedback the Thus, ers. stimulus. care by providing a human benefit is transversal, it can serve their own too. The cryptocurrency and has marketing already be used by and for other projects, and not dogs, are the built-in: it exploits the fact that cats, The pitcher is confident indigenous animal of the Internet. strategy. their LOLCAT about the universal acceptance of automatic pattern recognition and record every cat at the mo cat at the every and record recognition pattern automatic Pablo Velasco: Role Play Your Way to Budgetary Blockchain Bliss / 104 official currency. managed togetcompletelyfundedandadoptedtheformerastheir the mergedteamsof The prize forthebestgroup wasawarded by theevent sponsorsto generously distributingtheirrevenue toITneeds,investors andusers. bered oftheirearningstotheCatterseaCats’ togive part Home, while It mentioningthatthisgroup wastheonlyonethatremem isworth but alsotogatherhealth data andgetinto the healthbenefits business. market: thestroke tracking notonlyallowed themtominetokens, PurrTokens astheircurrency andmanagedtodiversify theirinitial ble, nomoneygeneratedwasallocatedforcats. While thisdistributedgamblingproject endedupasquiteprofita- shares. investors, whoattheendofdayhad60percent ofthecompany’s almost ready forimplementation. without adoubtthe most developed (andcreepily fascistic)andwere contractsand to generatelotsofsmart and theresults oftheircollaborations. interest-driven governance, andsolidarity. volving blockchains andsimilardevices, in amist of ethical debates, social relations, contractcodes,andsocio-technical arrangementsin how even afictionalmicro-cosmos ofdiversity managestogenerate ticipants deeplywiththeircharacters andtheirmissions,showed terms inorder todevelop aproject. Theplayfulsettingengagedpar- tween different ideal scenarios, but also the human drive to agree Overall, this role-play networking activity showed the tensions be- applications inapost-blockchainworld. used withinthegame,andcontinuetobemore broadly forawidevarietyof Pen andpaper’s complexmaterialproperties andexcellent interfacecapabilitieswere Kittycoin andAutonomous Cat Society Cat Roulette wastakenover by three PureCatCoin. Thisgroup was Cats YouCan Trust managed Strokes forHire chose . Thelatter - - 105 / Pablo Velasco: Role Play Your Way to Budgetary Blockchain Bliss

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Vickers). 1 from Catlow) Note Fully Automated Luxury Utopia for CATS for CATS Fully Automated Luxury Utopia Channel Vimeo video available on INC’s the documentary A still from http://vimeo.com/204861694 Pablo Velasco: Role Play Your Way to Budgetary Blockchain Bliss / 106 107 / Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet / 108 109 / Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet / 110 111 / Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet / 112 113 / Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet / 114 115 / Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet / 116 117 / Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet / 118 119 / Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet / 120 121 / Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet / 122 123 / Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet / 124 125 / Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet / 126 127 / Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet Ruth Catlow & Ben Vickers: Your DAO Work Booklet / 128 129 / PWR Studio: A Shared Timeline - - - The core The core 1 espite recent events, we believe we we believe we events, espite recent °C. Although it is an unusually cold day it is an unusually °C. Although

vicious circle. D vicious circle.

so on in a virtuous 24th of January 2016: – 24th of January industrial fans going of Rows wide open. of the building are the doors outskirts the land on of This piece of Boden in roof. line the speed full 2005 it was decom army airbase. In used to be an Sweden Northern char- defining Its information. Frozen immutable. is blockchain A Each block locks the previ order. acteristic is absolute chronological a publishing tool called txtblock. proposed we 2015, In A Shared Timeline A Shared housing. A part refugee serves as partmissioned and now datacenter, a former helicopter hangar turned Bitcoin outside of is parked Bentley are vis- filled with naked electronics the doors, shelves mine. Through the custom-built machines convertible. Thousands of electricity from side of the other and heat. On plant into money hydropower nearby temporarya in up stacked being are containers shipping road, the at a The mining operation is expanding high. levels three structure of the number of calcula is a function frantic pace. The profitability declares the owner months later, tions performed per second. Four Chinese state-subsidized citing unfair competition from bankruptcy, Bejing-based chip-manufacturer. by a miners. The hangar is bought weight of additional data acts to solidify the ous one in place. The to a reduced A blockchain is multi-dimensional reality structure. asserts the state of the world at regular one-dimensional timeline. It we project, Ethereum the yet-to-launch While researching intervals. related the We permanence. value proposition: fixated on this core defined, eternally a squarely block to the platonic ideal of the book: unit of information. A stack of pa- reproduced immutable, infinitely can? ideal, but perhaps a data structure this per can not achieve PWR Studio PWR idea was to use the distributed ledger as a writing surfaceidea was to use the distributed ledger for extra- the ultimate publishing (or sub-)-economic information, to create permanent. Then came format: unconditionally public and absolutely The and Brexit. Trump of post-truth2016, the year and fake news, to access of lack a primarily not is condition current our with problem it. The main issue factual information and, nor the means of verifying that fits within our choose the fragments of information is that we further timeline and that this mechanism is driven by personalized algorithms optimizing for engagement. These choices, in turn, curate and our timeline, constructing our encounters with political realities, PWR Studio: A Shared Timeline / 130 but thefreedom gainedby despite theattemptsby fear-driven reactionaries. Thisisallgood– between private andpublic.Borders ofstatesare becominguntenable, breaking down, identitiesbreaking through theskin,blurringline are moving towards aliquidationofsolidstates:thewallshome order ofTheNetwork.’ The commandofPlan mustbemarriedtotheimprovised centralism oracapricious emergent order beyondourcontrol. to avoidbecomingtheslaves ofeitheratyrannicaltotalitarian authority inadditiontodistributed horizontalformsofsociality, ‘We needtopositacollectivelycontrolled legitimatevertical Srnicek andAlex Williams: return tothisquote from the2013#Accelerate Manifesto by Nick not directly controlled by anyoneeconomicorpoliticalinterest. We –2024420450 txtblock.Ablockchaincanactasashared timeline A mainstream. This was what we were grasping for in proposing tion asapointofreference. Acommontimeline.publicspace. In contrast,ablockchainishuman-madeexternality. It canfunc perceptions. natural order because it pulls us inside its own reality, and moulds our ful way. Algorithmicgovernance hastheself-evidentcharacterof ner dreamt ofby some,butinagradual,creeping, butequallypower from consensus reality, perhapsnot in the cyberpunk, metaverse man hension devolving intohostility. AR personalized influencingmachine.The restisthatmutualincompre experiences, locking the Userlearning modelsintosensory within a products. Augmented reality andvirtual willtranslatethesemachine a uniquemodel,targetedwithabsolutelycustomized contentand mographic groups translated into of one: each individual perfectly plane.Thegoalisthede- and demarcating territoriesonacartesian finding borders, boundariesindata,fordrawinglines forunearthing but creating Machine –collective truth. learningisatechnologyfor latter is a tool for creating – importantly, not finding or discovering, and blockchain.Thetwoformerhave afragmentingeffectwhile the now info-technologies: machine learning,virtual as ablockchaintoglobalsociety?Considerthetrinityofhot-right- What isthevalue ofarigid,strictlyhierarchical datastructure such being invisible,shapeshifting,unaccountable. being replaced by algorithmicborders andthesehave of theproperty omniscient platformsrecasting citizens asusers.Physical borders are

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augmented reality - - - - 131 / PWR Studio: A Shared Timeline - - - - TE MANIFESTO,’ 2013. is written onto film and stored in capsules. The com in capsules. and stored is written onto film […] http://rhizome.org/editorial/2015/nov/17/the-block-is-the-successor-to-the-book-a- Alex Williams and Nick Srnicek, ‘#ACCELERA

pany guarantees the content a minimum lifetime of 500 years. The years. content a minimum lifetime of 500 pany guarantees the committed already have and Norway Mexico of Brazil, governments storage, far away to this frozen archives its National documents from from comes permanence But world. the of regions troubled the from seems self- half-life – 500 years archival not constant reproduction, and in of, aware increasingly are we era where in an evidently brief The blockchain, and geological timescales. teracting on the basis of, of negotiating consensus, constant process a txtblock, instead propose info-structure. leaving behind a frozen block. A hot process block by 1 2 Notes publishing-proposal In April 2017, the Norwegian company Piql announced the comple announced company Piql 2017, the Norwegian April In gorithmic reality. A micro-framework or mega-structure to which our to which or mega-structure A micro-framework reality. gorithmic can cling. cultures vapourised, even fragmented, increasingly coal mine in an abandoned Housed Archive. World tion of the Arctic Seed Global the to next located is facility the Svalbard, of island the on Iinformation the AWA, In bio-diversity. tasked with archiving Vault, such as The blockchain could be the Merkle Tree that enables the Rhizome, the Rhizome, enables that Tree Merkle be the could blockchain The co- and control necessarythe vertical providing element hierarchical, al intra-connected and non-hierarchical a supremely for ordination PWR Studio: A Shared Timeline / 132 133 / Ami Clarke: Text as Market

- - - at - read by Elie Elie by Don Quixote Don ‘The chapters

Thinking through the Thinking through The Blank Swan Chapter 4, Writing and the Market Writing and the Swan Chapter 4, Blank The . Conversely, Ayache’s focus interpellates Borges’ fiction with the fiction with Borges’ focus interpellates Ayache’s ing. Conversely, of the replication the dynamic markets: apparatus of the derivatives contract, that model and the derivative BSM (Black-Scholes-Merton) empha bringing about a different on writing. Hence implicitly relies trulytext – as a existing – of a previously the act of ‘writing’ sis on that word each with challenge, up on his him Taking contingent act. of I wrote are the same, every word and every the same, every comma, as those written originallyare word of a mechanical transcription de Cervantes, this wasn’t yet Miguel by Interpretations to copy it.’ the original – he did not propose of the difference brings about Borges story ‘reading’ tend to focus on how like emphasis on the true a Barthes locus of writing as through by Miguel de Cervantes, centu 22 – several and a fragment of chapter Miguel by was published. Borges writes: when the text ries on from A Throw Of The Dice Will Never Abolish Chance Abolish Never Will The Dice Of Throw A exhibition The in asking what ensued I was interested the discussions that During the timestamp capacity of the might be between similarities there in writing to pric of an equivalence claim Ayache’s block and Elie Jorge Louis Borges’ Elie Ayache focuses on the by Swan Blank The that depicts a fic- of the Quixote’ Author Menard, story of ‘Pierre writing who spends his time Menard tional writer and critic; Pierre partthe 9th and 38th chapters of the first of the 17th Text as Market as Text together of data brought acted as a collection in 2016, Repeater Banner of a puzzle that emerged framework with components as a speculative ‘Un text Mallarmé’s Stéphane drew on The exhibition on and offline. as a site to consider new Le Hasard’ N’Abolira Jamais Coup de Dès puzzle of code, numbers the centuries old ways of thinking through acted as the site for several and language, and 2016 (audio @ http://x-fx.org). in September workshops, Block philosophical enquiry His asked what markets. ing in the derivatives history, of process the inside get to available be might technology and do of the markets what it might be to act within the immanence as history than to watch passively active unfolds… something more the conceptual activity consisting in predicting from altogether different and outguessing history. Ami Clarke Ami Ayache, there was simply nothing to say that any given word, would word, given any that say nothing to simply was there Ayache, ). Swan of the Blank Author Clarke: the next (Ami necessarily follow Ami Clarke: Text as Market / 134 the work isthatitthrows outrepresentation’ (Lee,2016).‘Only through a copy’isshared inAyache’s thinkingwhensheclaims‘thedynamicsof Sturtevant’s ofthework isthatitnot truth emphasison‘thebrutal atanygiven timeinhistory.might beclaimedforart immanent riseandfallofthemarket –thanwhatever othervalues and so on, that could be seen to have more to do with sales amid the sign –abrandaneasymemeproducer, percolating mythsofgenius nificant works by well-known work artists, toa reducing theartists Sturtevant’ssystems ofart. works relied ontheiridentificationassig artists to specific signifiers’ (2016)in relationtothestructures and ists works. AsPatricia Leenotes,thereby around- thetimeofherearlypracticemakingworks ofotherart Quixote viaaletteraddressed toBorgesintheintroduction, to1970, The lateartist Elaine back-dated: Sturtevant Lee, Patricia.Sturtevant:Warhol Marilyn Sturtevant. AuthoroftheQuixote Clarke, Ami.AuthoroftheBlankSwan . London:BannerRepeater, 2016. Translated by Andrew Hurley. NewYork: PenguinBooks,1999. Borges, Jorge Luis.‘Pierre Menard, AuthoroftheQuixote’inCollectedFictions. Ayache, Elie.TheBlankSwan.Chichester:Wiley, 2010. References performative What this and move tothenext–i.e.hecantrade’ (Ayache,2010). can thewriter theoretical stochasticprocess, thatisframedinrepresentational thought, the writing MIT Press, 2016. what othervalues thatcurrency couldconvey calculus. inanew future contracts,andre-determine viasmart thecurrency ofdataand aspect oftheequation,forme,isquestion platform capitalism.Assuch,therathermore urgentandcompelling exploitative formof political conditionsthatfacilitatetheparticularly produced throughsocio-economic and the complex infrastructural, far, andtakeslittleheedofthebias’ anddiscriminationsactively re oftheblockchainthus sophical sense.Thisechoesthrough thestory Ayache’s point, perhaps, is that this is all that can be said, in a philo- the time-stamp. blockchain insofarasatechnologythatexceeds probability through ity towritethefuture contracts,seeminglyshared viasmart across the

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and speculate on future values regarding data as currency in the lead up the lead up in currency data as regarding values on future and speculate @ http://x-fx.org Audio recorded from the presentations during the Thinking through the Block workshops, the Block workshops, through during the Thinking the presentations from Audio recorded September Rajnarayan, Prayas Abhinav Pearson, Malavika Tom Vickers, Ben Catlow, Franco, Ruth . be found at http://x-fx.org of surfatial, can and Satya Gummuluri The to Ami Clarke: Text as Market / 136 137 / Ami Clarke: Text as Market Ami Clarke: Text as Market / 138 139 / Ami Clarke: Text as Market Ami Clarke: Text as Market / 140 141 / Simon Denny – Blockchain Future States - itcoin I actually wasn’t all itcoin I actually wasn’t When I first heard of B When I first heard Why did you initially become interested in the in interested become initially you did Why

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blockchain? Figures 1– Figures Gaul Courtesy of the artist and Berlin Biennale. Photos: Hans-Georg that interested – I just heard about it because friends were buying it because friends were about – I just heard that interested currency it and using it for alternative stuff online with market grey as inconse 2010 or 2011 I think. I dismissed it for that. This was like SIMON DENNY SAM Blockchain Future States – – States Future Blockchain Simon Denny with An Interview I got When or important. interesting all that and not quential for me for of research in it seriously was in the process interested more really I was in London, where in 2015 at the Serpentine an exhibition I did the historylooking to chronicle into where of hacking. I was looking of cryptography kind of essential sub-genre (as some was currently was very at project prominent and the Ethereum hacking culture) on top of of systems proposed that point. I then saw the other kinds than just a money system for drugs, and startedblockchain, as more The story more. of radical being told about the possibilities to read infrastructure and governance a new web decentralized transparency, in the impact of the tech been interested me. I have interested really for a while, looking at this in business community on governance seemed to be a very and this many projects, important to conversation is when I decided to make pay attention to within that context. This on the topic. and presentation some sort of dedicated research Sam Skinner Sam Simon Denny – Blockchain Future States / 142 Srinivasan from aSilicon Valley perspective, and Vitalik Butarin from and pickedBlythe Masters, from acapitalmarkets perspective, Balaji for three foundersthatcouldrepresent ofcompanies– aspectrum ferent strandsofpossiblepoliticalfutures toeachfounder. So Ilooked andassigningthe various dif different ofthe blockchainstory parts real companyfoundersasasetofradicalvisionaries,breaking down chain bullswere tellingwere Ihadthisideathatcouldrecast true. mental someofthechangescouldbesocietallyifstoriesblock is keytocollective action.Ialsowantedtounderlinejusthow funda ing takesasagiven. Anexampleofthisisthatfinancialincentivizing of theeconomicandideologicalassumptionsblockchain-likethink propaganda-like,nation by including emphasizingsome beingpartly basic level, but also to contextualizethe technology at a very the expla- have akindof‘infographic’ toexplain oftheartwork, videoasapart sible tofollow audience.ThisisinitiallywhyIwantedto foran arts my exhibitions was first about finding a way to make the rhetoric pos- son, onealsonever hasthewholestory. For metheprocess ofmaking istechnology.and whichpart Decoupling thisasanon-technicalper it’s (still)hard isnarrative toformeunderstandexactlywhichpart with themysteriousfigure of Satoshi Nakamoto, already amyth,and arounding involved blockchain.It’s inanystory thatstarts astory implications ofthetechnologyreally were. There isalotofmythmak SD oped alongsidethis? how hasthematerialandconceptualformofwork itselfdevel subjects ofinterest, forexampleBitcoin, Ethereum, DAO’s, etc.,and SS of eachcompany, Iproduced apostagestamp withstampdesigner which aestheticallyreflected thedifferences inattitudeand ideology trade-fair presentation foreachcompany. ofeachdisplay, At the heart stantial andamazingcommunist mural–andsoImadeakindof ofthebuilding,stillfilledwithasub The room wasadisusedpart thatisnowformer communistheadquarters, aglobalbusiness school. different tonefor each venue. In Berlin theexhibitionwasstagedina took intoaccountthecontextwhere Iwasshowing –producing a To physicallymakeeach presentation asanexhibitionexperience, I Silicondecentralized appecosystemandvirtual Valley etc.. celerating thecapitalmarkets space,andEthereum becoming itsown become closer, withEthereum related things enteringandeven ac to focuson.Since thenit’s beeninteresting towatchthosepositions ofactivity the time(2016)thisseemedlikeafairlydivergent spectrum a bitcoincommunitymeet-up

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or me That is one of the central questions of my work, I think. F my work, That is one of the central questions of You have described the work as partly ‘fan art’ where you are try are you where art’ as partly described the work ‘fan have You

ing to offer a way in to understanding this technology. How do you do How this technology. ing to offer a way in to understanding maintaining a critical edge? And what does this whilst also achieve strategies specifically the appropriationist or more rethinking, creative regard? offer in this employ, you litical formations), and this seemed to be something that communi and this seemed to be something that litical formations), It community and the artcated with the financial alike. community that was legible and engaging. was a condensed format SD really getting what the core I was it was about finding a tone where to accurately technology were, aims of the community building this also to highlight some of But coming from. they’re understand where while still of what the technology proposes, aspects the problematic of the this intense utopic tone that comes with the culture reflecting spending some time with some parts of the tech commu- space. From very have honorable aims and are many of the people involved nity, to the world in a positive ambitious about making a difference really just spaces are met in blockchain related A lot of people I have way. all – myself included – not are I think we so smart and talented. But our actions and choices impact on politics and of how always aware SS features on a Risk board (and can describe alternate geographies (and can describe board on a Risk features Linda Kantchev, trying with associated object a visual to distil into Kantchev, Linda of propositions political etc. the security distribution, nationhood, of a number – where York in New showing When company. each each – I instead formulated based blockchain start-upsbanks and are drawing game Risk, of the board a giant display version outlook into of the world that a political map a gaming mentality, parallels between Simon Denny – Blockchain Future States / 144 much assomeotherapproaches. critical position,butnotonethatguidesaviewer’s own thinking as whether that’s somethingthatwe really wantornot. To methisisa would theimplicationsofthatbe–andleave ittotheviewerdecide nity that ispresenting theideasandbuildinginfrastructure, what on thetermstheyare publicized with,withthetermsofcommu –whatifwe acceptthesevisions for metoposittheideaof‘what if’ fore So lessinert. theangleofbeinga‘fan’ hassometimesbeenaway in order toopenupthespacefordiscussionbelessfinite,andthere find arhetoricalapproach thatproblematizes thematerial itlooksat doing things thatare solutions, to be often not all that engaging. I thatseemstohavethis. Ifindartwork answers, topointwaysof ing upquestionsanddiscussionaround technologyandpoliticslike I also think aboutwhatrhetorical strategy is most effective for open spark adiscussioninviewers. but there are anumberofwaysonecanaccessthatconversation, and ethics. With myprojects myaimistomakethisa central question, admins andowners hardware ofinfrastructural have alotofpower that ture andtherefore what ispossible.It seemstomethat developers, down decisionsaboutinfrastruc towhoisactuallymakingimportant what governance really lookslikeontheseplatforms, whenitcomes already beingbuiltandfundedinthisspace. I have about reservations tion actuallymeanswithinthe projects thatIknow about whichare energy into building on it. I have about what decentraliza- reservations benefits ofblockchian,soamnotsure aboutputtingmytimeand are somehow tokenized. But Iamalsodeeplyambivalent aboutthe kinds ofventures. journalismplatformsthat Ihave thoughtaboutart ticated. So Ihave thoughtabout puttingtimeandenergyintothese and Ithinktheirunderstandingofwhatthey’re sophis doingisvery reality. I’ve peopleworking inthiskindofspace smart metsomevery idea,andsomethingthatIcouldimaginebecominga disruptive very environment where micropaymentsa wouldbenobigdeal.Thatis value liquid exchange because ofaproliferation oftokensandavery the attentioneconomy. So essentiallylikesmightbecomereal financial I’vestory heard aboutblockchian would behow itcouldmonetize discarded atthispoint.For me,themostfundamentallydisruptive SD this take? organize anddistributeyour oreditions? artworks What formmight using theblockchainitselfasamedium,oritmeansto SS

Do you have anyambitionstomakework, orcanyou imagine, I’m notsure. I’ve hadideasalongtheselinesthatI’ve mostly - - - - - 145 / Simon Denny – Blockchain Future States - - - ted in 2013, using what /object based or sculptural language of

These stem from a longer series that I star a longer These stem from Within the book we are featuring your series of ‘gamer cases’ cases’ series of ‘gamer featuring your are the book we Within

SD I feel is kind of the physical like to custom in gaming involved players gaming. Many competitive and stamps – can you tell us a little about these and the processes and us a little about these and the processes tell and stamps – can you thinking behind them? SS – as that is called Case Modding of this a genre their PCs, there’s ize lots are amazing field; there a pretty in modifying computer cases. It’s andof competitions cases, and a whole network of super interesting make gaming cases that I used this to made for this market. products or like homages to winning companies. I corporate deal toys resemble relates culturally to business find the paradigm of game-like thinking - way – many of the promi native and tech business spaces in a pretty plus I themselves, gamers or were either are in this space nent actors think one could make an argument for the idea that a gaming mental building ity is akin to the way a lot of tech business people approach tions about the benefit of a further benefit about the tions and of experience, financialization logic. So market of cultural reach quite vast of the already an extension to document still rather be an observer, this stage I would I think at not to be an ar- blockchain, but around culturally what is happening I miss the gold That means notrush, but hopefully it directly. chitect of actually a meaningful are dialogue with those who the chance to have smart– hope I rather or – think I things. these building wantpeople I way. and in an engaging respectfully presented smart if it’s feedback, to right now. best suited what I’m and see that as my role more is not particularly decentralized. I have questions about accountability about questions particularlyis not I have decentralized. ques I also have environment. regulated) (i.e. non-state in a privatized Simon Denny – Blockchain Future States / 146 a languagethatisclosetobankdesign,whereas theDAO oneisa company – for example the JP Morgan one is fairly slick and contains the aestheticofcaseissupposedtoreflect outlook ofeach acertain like Augur andotherorganizationsliketheDAO. In eachsculpture cyberpunky chain, likeJPMorgan andChase,BNY Mellon, somekey based companiesfocusedonlegacycorporatesthatare adoptingblock a businessandmakinglife.TheseriesImade reflecting blockchain- relationship totechnology, power, today? andtrust, ing protocol, saymore broadly aboutthesedifferent factions,andour beanew for examplewhetheritwilltruly WWW, bank or just anew chain. What dothese conflicting voices andtherampantspeculation, the manydifferent andcompetingnarratives surrounding the block SS Game rules:UVprintondibond dice: Folde Blockchain RiskBoard GamePrototype: CapitalMarketsDigitalAssetEdition, convey thevisualcodesofanationstate. secure distributionsystemandalsoimplynationalsovereignty and as an actual currency (as a form) at once serve stand-in for a trusted, packageforcontrastandfamiliarity.blockchain asthisnew Stamps as awaningtechnologyandliteralimage-turnedcurrency tolookat In creating fictionalpostagestamps,I’m interested inusingthatform which is much slicker and has a bunch of DAO rhetoric printed on it. connected toanoff-the-shelfsuitcase-shapedcustomizablePCcase,

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cal directions of the now – such as Brexit and Trump. I think this is I think Trump. and – such as Brexit of the now cal directions are there whereas feeling, zeitgeisty societal this to answer engineer’s an links strong blockchain’s for other demographics. I think other answers storya in libertarian,to investment its and thinking, exit-based around to in order to be financially incentivized like people needing incentives, They go hand in hand with the logic as well. tech act penetrate beyond efficient and smarter than state systems, more enterprise is that private – all these tendencies show that individual liberty equates to freedom not just within tech and finance. in other partsthemselves of society, tions. I think the idea of it being a totally new it being idea of I think the tions. is very www attractive verynumber of for a broadly. smart more and technologists investors part to be a of ‘build of the foundations the desire I think Sometimes web or web, the financial the facebook of and ‘making web’ ing the next 3.0’, is a story I think not to exist. to this community too compelling exist, didn’t blockchain if maybe think I this story. people need some newa for point focal a provide to it invent to have would somebody founders, talented engineers and disruptivegeneration of ambitious in systems, about not of alternative I also think that the narrative vestors. ‘fairer’, about building orgs’, or ‘centralized trusting the government systems as fundamental as to state alternatives technologically enabled a wider distrust mechanisms is in tune with of money and governance states SD Simon Denny – Blockchain Future States / 148 popular new macropopular new story. Icanseewhythisisappealingasa and anantidotetocorruption… provides hopeforalternative uswithnew governance mechanisms parency (theinfalliblepublicledger)atscale,whichinturnmagically both provides ananswerandtrans toprivacy (through cryptography) to be.Atechnologythat(inaseeminglyirreconcilable contradiction) an environment where hypocrisyseemstobemore rifethanitused Lies are bothmore andlessvisibleinaworldwithourweb –making systems leadingtofairglobalismandresponsible inclusive growth. People don’t believe inthe3rd way, theydon’t believe incorporate don’tof the20thcentury washinthesamewaythattheyusedto. stories thatwe seemtohave somehow wornout.Thecollective stories societal narratives thatare believable anddifferent from thefamiliar desire for‘alternative’a contemporary macro stories,forcollective involve ‘traditional hierarchies’ or ‘centralization’, and that speaks of but maybe the desire foralternative collectivity, forsystems that don’t SD the kindoftechnologiespeopleneed,desire, orare promoting? blockchain suggestregarding how we are envisioningthefuture, and SS

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149 / Simon Denny – Blockchain Future States - - - As I say, I think the most disruptive yet plausible thing that plausible thing disruptive I think the most yet As I say, Finally, let us imagine for a minute that a truly that for a minute us imagine let form of radical Finally,

blockchains propose is a radical monetization of the attention econ monetization of the is a radical propose blockchains SD and artists producers think the way image I their might earn omy. art and what kind of might visible and valuable becomes money, of this. Art is a system that seems to be tangentially change as a result The affected. than directly by technological changes, rather affected art canon quite simi- world has stayed the MoMA business model for since email and travel the last 20 years, over but has accelerated lar, I That’s and fairs and jpeg-based sales proliferated. has changed things, off in 2.0, people do sell work web With 1.0. web guess the impact of and tra advisors make a lot of use of instagram, stagram – for example ditional primary but to a lesser extent. Artists galleries, also make use a for sales – again I am talking about less directly of instagram but it’s art,of a kind be to artistsand aspire that galleries and MoMA-canon shaped through of artists are part of this kind of canon. Personalities patterns seek and identify and curatorial 2.0 social infrastructure, web 3.0, I think the impact of a possible web For on social networks. work the fact that artists and the art and world use the attention economy that way the to changes any that means way, conscious self a in often could again effect the it interacts with and how, what platforms works, a in lived we If but profoundly. behind art,mechanics indirectly, again many people had very world where or project-specific liquid personal of tradable value culture a tokenized around and worked currencies crowd- one might get more attention went, where units that followed funded art and that could change some business models. projects, intensification of artwork might also see an that spoke to many One profound more me this would have To images. people rapidly through than for example, a reception effects on art and and its production be to digital work enabled either that ledger blockchain transparent or saleable) supposedly more guaranteed to be unique (and therefore a unique traceable hash. These are authenticity to be guaranteed by the two blockchain art most often posited, and I don’t models I hear all that profound. think they are SS – or promise of its potential aspect fulfil some to were the blockchain art might it? by be changed how be and might that what Simon Denny – Blockchain Future States / 150 151 / Simon Denny – Blockchain Future States Kantchev]

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157 / Cecilia Wee: Flying Under A Neutral Flag FICTIONS

159 / Cecilia Wee: Flying Under A Neutral Flag - - - The node.’ board. It was from someone, a group of people maybe, demanding that I give up control of my node. Amari looked at her skeptically as she opened another package of mixing utensils, ‘you get spam, I get spam, we all get spam, people pretending to be other people, asking for this and that. You’ve encountered this kind of thing before. What else is new?’ ‘Thank you, that was incredible’, Monique paused for ‘Thank you, that was incredible’, let out a long exhale. a while and then looking down ‘There’s definitely something wrong. Last night I got a direct message via the whistleblower’s private message ‘Very droll. Now… spit it out, what’s the latest?’ ‘Very droll. Now… spit it out, ‘Oh no, have I activated your chocolate is the gift of speech, again?’ the gods, enabling the Third Eye ‘Come on, would I lie to you?’ She handed Monique a small bowl of iridescent foam. She handed Monique a small bowl bubbles to spoonful of the glistening Monique brought a her lips. The temperature of her tongue transformed them yet without the disrup- into a velvety liquid, intense tion of sweetness, as the flavours hit the back of her mouth. The bowl continued to bubble as she asked, ‘Are chocolate?’ you sure this actually contains late is much more important than that’, she said, put late is much more important than ting the final touches to the concoction. ‘A blogger who came in yesterday said that this place is ‘A blogger who came in yesterday but we know that choco a science lab for chocoholics, ‘OK, A suspended Theobroma good answer. coming up. I was liquids, one last night.’ Amari mixed working on this including from a number of containers solids and gases like a fire extinguisher. something that looks ‘Give me something in between’, Monique responded. ‘Give me something ‘So, what’s your choice?’ ‘So, what’s your ‘Ha, I’m liking your new sales pitch’, Monique raised Monique raised sales pitch’, liking your new ‘Ha, I’m counter walked past the dusty wooden an eyebrow as she from jars, each full of cacao beans topped with glass different places. ‘Tangible or ethereal?’ ‘Tangible Flying Under A Neutral Flag Under A Neutral Flying Cecilia Wee Cecilia Cecilia Wee: Flying Under A Neutral Flag / 160 the third sectors. ANFisparticularlyvaluable forindustrieswhere levels,inpublic,private and at local,nationalandinternational tant meansofenablingsocietal, ethicalandeconomicoutcomes physiological interfacesfordisclosure, apubliclyaccessibleda ANF operatesthrough asystemoftemporarywalletaccounts, meal nationalprovisions. UtilizingDistributedLedgerTechnology, be inthepublicinterest, inresponse toinconsistentandpiece and anonymouslydisclosesituationsofwrongdoing deemedto structure enabling citizens from any country in the world to simply cord of wrongdoings in the public interest. ANF is a decentralized ------disclosed, halfhidden.’ half more stories, Each layerreveals not sosimple. it’s ‘sometimes bark, of folds the over finger her ning Monique peeredatthe100-year-oldwoodencounter,run- ‘Exactly.’ tell themwheretogetoff,probably.’ ‘I don’t know. He would fight them in public maybe. He’d ‘What wouldFremontdo?’ this isallabout.’ some kindofholdovermyfellownodehosts.That’swhat like thesepeople–whoevertheyarehaveapowerand mate abouttheirmessagethatmademyskincrawl.It’s inti- strangely something was There influenced. be can ‘That mightbetruebutsomethings,orratherpeople, suasion orreason,itworksthrougha technical logic.’ per it through you can’tcontrol system isaprotocol, what canyoudoaboutitthough,really?The ‘Monique, done.’ are, people and until whothese I can figure that out I’m not sure what can be know I don’t bluffing. be could from manyothernodehosts.Ofcoursethey have support ‘Yes, butitfeelsdifferentthistime.Theysaythey profile ANF wasinitiallylaunched ten yearsago,priortoseveralhigh- chain ofoversightandaccountability. independent bodiesandtheorganizations, allcontributingtoa tabase, A Introduction toANF

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The music should have beats, but the rhythm can wax and wane a little, as this helps slow down Monique’s reading finds. she details the to attention her sharpens and speed ------Headphones on. 03072005/01 got played yesterday. 18022006/04 is a good one. Enveloped in sound. We describe this as a whistleblowing ecosystem as it encom describe We blowers the ganizations around the world, supported by governments and ganizations around International); for whistle- legal support that provide International organizations that are and approaches passes a diversity of channels, modes contributing collectively cultures, and legislation local to sensitive accountability and combating corruption worldwide. to increasing A growing network of whistleblowing research and advisory or advisory and research whistleblowing of network growing A civil Statutory bodies such as industry regulators and law enforcement and law enforcement Statutory bodies such as industry regulators agencies; systems ture Third party services that enable whistleblowers to anonymously to whistleblowers enable that services party Third struc- or concernsraise organization an within individuals key to tems External advice including ombudsmen and independent channels: helplines; Internal compliance: HR policies and other organizational sys Internal HR policies and other organizational compliance: accountability bodies. of regulatory number or whistleblowing processes other not aim to replace ANF does of the broader component a complementary It is infrastructures. ecosystem comprising: whistleblowing doing is evidenced by the forthcoming anti-bribery management by the forthcoming anti-bribery management doing is evidenced Cecilia Wee: Flying Under A Neutral Flag / 162 the digital fingerprints of text written by webau- by written text thors. Basedonanalyzing1,000charactersorless, of fingerprints digital the ing FremontPrint,astylometrictoolabletoidentify For thelastthreeyears,Moniquehadbeendevelop face toface. tions ofthepeoplewhoblewwhistle, emo the and see stories hear the to wanted She stack. on the face ofdatadistributed the formal to gobeyond pain. Moniquewanted would beinevitable satisfaction dis to their voice of giving price whom the for those to stayprivate,thosewhodidn’twanttheattention, but Moniquewasmoreinterestedinthepeoplewhowant about themandtheircases, the minutiae would yield went publicwiththedetails.Afewsimplesearches closures onthesystem,andthenalmostimmediately Of coursethereweremanypeoplewhopostedtheirdis through someone’smindatatimelikethat? How didtheypreparethemselvestodisclose?Whatwent were scared.Howdidtheydealwithbeingintimidated? these peoplefeltabout‘speakingup’andwhetherthey er’s system,asshedideachday.Shewantedtoknowhow Monique lookedfornewdisclosuresonthewhistleblow- roots ANF monumentsthathaveappeared across thecontinents, the world.Thiscallhasbeen formulatedinresponse tothegrass memorate the issue of whistleblowing, to be located anywhere in globe tosubmitproposals fornewpublicmonuments tocom The ANFFoundationinvites artistsanddesignersfrom across the Call forMonuments ------Run Run Run Result: Nodeownershipdetails Run: FremontPrint scrape. data web searches, similar available Publicly Overlay: Search: Location, responsible body, nature of Entries inblue,detailsred. disclosure. Load: disclosuresfor‘today’. ning thecodeliveforfirsttime. screen, Monique’sheartracedasshethoughtaboutrun for thelasteightmonths.Satthereinfrontof Neutral Flag.FremontPrinthadbeeninsimulationmode Fremont – the musicianandself-proclaimedfounderofA developed byMonique’suncle,Mateo cal compositions, stylometric systemforidentifyingauthorsofmusi- percent. ThecodeforFremontPrintwasbasedonanother had anaccuracyrateincreasingfrom75 FremontPrint

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Deadline: 31st December, every year. Deadline: 31st December, ------production budget to fully realize creation of each monument, of each monument, creation budget to fully realize production conception to installation. from Winners each receive an honorarium of 10,000 Winners each receive Longevity – the monument must adhere to the system’s sustain to the system’s Longevity – the monument must adhere the elements and any public ability principles, able to withstand will make available interaction for 25 years. The ANF foundation outline these costs in your modest maintenance costs – please proposal. competition will only be ac Applications to the ANF monuments cepted via the online portal. by an per calendar year will be selected projects winning Three with an inter international jury of 50 art and design professionals est in whistleblowing. their munity traditions not meant monuments are A symbol of whistleblowing – whilst the the ANF system, for posting data onto to function as interfaces and engages with local cultural Cultural methodology – the monument Aligned with ANF – the monument articulates at least one of the – the monument articulates at least Aligned with ANF for truth the search for privacy, values: justice, respect ANF core Sensitively located – the monument is sited in a publicly acces – the monument is sited in a publicly Sensitively located sible nized the following principles: addresses articulating cance. reflection of good governance.as symbols art object a unique should propose of the contest Participants in for as places functioning these activities, of the legacy continue Cecilia Wee: Flying Under A Neutral Flag / 164 copying and sellingthedataon the superprotected ‘Um yes,Ithink so.Ialsoheardthat someonehasbeen day?’ ing, now.Isthiswhat wewerediscussingtheother Abruptly, Amari clicked the radio off: ‘OK. Start talk- to thesystembefore endoftheyear. this, andwillbepushingtomakethishistoric change in. Wehavegatheredtogetheragreatgroupof allies in we canalltrust which wrongdoings, for reporting system hide? Afterall,wenowhavethiswonderfultransparent all thetime,whatdothesepeoplehaveto information social mediaagewherewegiveoutsupposedly ‘private’ tity ofthepersonsprovidingsuchinformation. Inthe The publichastherighttoknowiden population. reliable source.Thiswillhavegreatvalue for the verified, a from is it that know should public the then interest, If allthisinformationisinthepublic this. We havegoodreasonfor should berefuted. anonymity Mateo Fremontputforwardwaswrong=theprincipleof of thesystemthat we believethatoneoftheprinciples resources financial the companies, made against allegations on incorrect wasted Given changes. some for call like tocelebratethesuccessofsystem,andalso we would Flag, launch ofANeutral after the years Ten A malevoiceontheradiocutthroughhiss– had notsharedwithanyone,evenAmari. she couldeverriskrevealinghersecret,asecret Monique said,atthesametimeaskingherselfwhether something thatcouldchangemyworld...ourworld’, how itfeelstodoandlivewithspeakingupabout ‘I needtoknowhowtheydealtwithit.I asked, pragmatic,exasperatedbutpatient. it is?’Amari why don’tyoujustdiscloseit?Whatever but ifyoureallyfeelit’sdestroyingthatmuch, about whatwillhappenifyourevidenceisnotenough, ‘Are yousurethisisagoodidea?Iknowyou’rescared it’s possibletomeet.’ and Ithink them I messaged or anythingelsesuspicious. public at risk. No known affiliations to political groups in theorganizationthatputhealthofmembers sues. Theyreportedadeliberateloweringofstandards harassment is probable in thesamejobfollowing Stayed ago. 2 years about a concernatwork raised they here, The closestnodehostisabout45kmSouthWestfrom Excitedly, Moniqueannounced,‘Igotsomerealresults. of herAMradio. about thesugarcrisis’,Amarislowlyturneddial to hear on? Iwant the radio if Iturn mind ‘Do you - - 165 / Cecilia Wee: Flying Under A Neutral Flag

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What’s going on here? Amari had told her there was no need to be paranoid, but doesn’t paranoia stem from truth? Monique put the phone back down on the table and stared into her coffee. Silence. Again. Turning down the music, Monique answered, ‘Hello?’ Turning down the music, Monique It’s an unknown number, as it was yesterday, again right after Monique had finished checking thelooked down at the phone sures. She stopped typing and day’s disclo- screen excitedly lit as it vibrated on the table, it’s up. cern being raised. means of ANF to provide Please note: It is not the responsibility concerns to of investigation, or respond for a fair and thorough wrongdoing. ------08112006/03 is playing today. 27092006/02 is cued up next. Ringing. organizational policy – must take place within 30 days of the con of the 30 days within take place – must policy organizational follow When teria, Automated Notifications Amari turned to the counter, ‘I’ll put on some music. the counter, ‘I’ll put on some Amari turned to And some cacao.’ ------ing mined and exploited by these bastards. Those poor Those poor by these bastards. and exploited ing mined they were anonymous, because wanted to stay people who harassment of abuse and in danger or whatever, are now getting screwed twice. Brilliant. Mateo gang did and the job.’ a great part part the stack. of There message was a from the admins the perverting completely They are hosts. node to all was always which system, This we built. of what roots the principle based on ‘no secrets of money’ is be for able for the wrongdoing is automatically contacted, as well as the automatically contacted, as well as is able for the wrongdoing The system notes that independent body or regulator. relevant Cecilia Wee: Flying Under A Neutral Flag / 166 ------that, wewantedtosaythankyouforFremontPrint.’ so stupidasthat?We’lltalkmoresoon.But before The voicetuttedderisively,‘ComenowMonique, are you blurted. lative, blackmailingpower-hungrycontrolfreaks!’ she twisted paralleluniversewouldIhelpyou,you manipu She couldfeelherskinboilingwithanger, ‘In what you werehelpingus.’ that realize you didn’t it’s possible but hmm,Isuppose to dothat,youreallyshouldhavedoneitawhileago, too lateforyoutoupsetthesystem.Ifweregoing a little It's it now. to accept for you be muchbetter of ourcauseitwould facilitator been suchabrilliant fork ofthesystemiscomingrightup.Sinceyouhave have controlof49.8percentthenodes,soahard nouncement theotherday.Thischangeisinevitable.We No doubtyouheardouran ‘Yes, that’srightMonique. ‘And you’regoingtogetridofthat…burden,forme?’ Heavy. It’ssuchaburden.’ bility, it’sallso,hm,what’stheword?Oppressive. help you.Thisattachment,thissecrecy,responsi- the thingswehavehadforalongtime,andwantto We understand that it’s sometimes difficult to let go of for arudereply. no need was but there day, other the properly. Iknowyoudidn’tlikethemessagewesent ‘Well, beforeIgetontothat,wewanttothankyou ing nottosoundnervous. ‘Whhat ffor?’Moniquepronouncedherwordsslowly,try- you MsFremont’,thevoicecontinued. thank to wanted just ‘I soporific, almost calm, was it voice again,thesameoneasonradio,butthistime mind ifIcallyouMsFremont,doyou?’Itwasthat You don’t ‘Ah, it’sgoodtohearyourvoiceMsFremont. ‘Yes’, shesighed,pickingitup. Now thelandlinewasringing.

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------The wind gently lifted the autumn leaves from the ground. The light was beginning to change as Monique touched the metal surface of the horn. Some parts of it were smooth. She imagined that these were the areas where other people had touched its sides, thinking about their own secrets. The sculpture was funded and erected by a group of artists who disclosed corrupt sponsor practices of international art festivals. Monique liked Inability pursued by the in your concern not being appropriately may result bodies. relevant however, your identity is concealed, that ANF will ensure Be aware agencies may ask and law enforcement organizations responsible identify you. you to disclose information that could side posting); Documentary evidence of your concern in the form of recorded Documentary evidence of your concern in the form of recorded on the stack along media or interactions, should be submitted All concerns raised must be accompanied by a dated and detailed timeline Data Inaccurate on the system as a whole: Out including personal and private from concern, should refrain one these from the individuals involved, to prevent information about published on the ANF public database. being automatically ances All concerns must relate to a body accountable for the wrongdo a body accountable to All concerns must relate ing, so that All concerns interest, raised must be deemed in the public as an alternativenot used system is the griev to raise method ANF is committed to excellent data quality: data to excellent is committed ANF (Selected) Terms and Conditions and Terms (Selected) Cecilia Wee: Flying Under A Neutral Flag / 168 ------protocol. No-one,notevenyou,canstopit.’ ‘I don’tneedtotellyouMsFremont–thesystem isa Monique paused,‘thereissomethingIcando.’ It’s inescapable.’ youon have to good been board butwecanstillchangethesystemwithout you. have would It fine. ‘That’s ‘You knowI’llnevergiveupthenode.’ the beginningbutinenditwillbemuchbetter.’ to beforcefulmakechange.Itmightpainfulat you have thing todo.Sometimes, it’s theright ‘Because ‘Why areyoudoingthis?’ bag rightnow.’ the horn.Iknowyouhaveadatapostingkitinyour ‘I knowthatyoubelieveinthetruth.Iyou’reat ‘You knownothingaboutme.’ but that’sOK.’ A quietvoicecameoverthephone,‘you’reatraitor, was sopreoccupiedthatshehadtotallyforgot. her phoneoffwhenshewasatthehorn,buttoday She feltavibrationinherpocket.usuallyturned whelming hopelessnessshefoundherselfin. there barelymadeadifferencetothefeelingofover self, ‘everyleafisprobablybugged.’Thistime,being to her thought always she ‘I wouldneverdoithere’, distributed officially the data postingkits. of markers packets, paper secrets. Sometimesshewouldseeremnantsofthebrown their to disclose it asthelocation trusting cally, of thosewhouseditritualisti which keptthesecrets down. Shealwaysfeltempoweredbythereceptivehorn, ingly endless,darkapexofthehornuntilsunwent to visitthisplace,shelikedlookintotheseem ------2005 BETWEEN AUTHOR SOLE TO MATEOFREMONT PREVIOUSLY ATTRIBUTED COMPOSITIONS THE WAS FREMONT MONIQUE ANF

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wrongdoing We are looking for more sponsors and partners – please donate to sponsors and partners looking for more are We on to organi activities and pass the ANF message support ANF’s Tell your friends about ANF and ask them to host nodes. ANF and ask them your friends about Tell Please consider hosting a node to keep the ANF network thriving. to keep the ANF hosting a node Please consider ANF has enabled better examples of how looking for more are We If ANF has helped stop behaviour. ethical more accountability and *If you like A Neutral Flag, here are a few things you can do: you a few things are here Flag, like A Neutral *If you our values. zations who share Support Us Support Cecilia Wee: Flying Under A Neutral Flag / 170 171 / Elli Kuruş: History of Political Operating Systems: Interview with Dr. L. Godord ------Nowadays, it seems hard to conceive of a topic of lower intellec of a topic of lower to conceive it seems hard Nowadays, division is just dizzying – the earth of by na cut up The degree Today, we are talking to Dr. Lysander Godord, knowledge provider within provider knowledge Godord, Lysander talking to Dr. are we Today, expert renowned is a world Godord college. Dr. KCC University’s Galt sys field of the history of political operating within the often overlooked me. Thanks for having so? How Dr. Godord, thanks for taking the time. Godord, Dr. when definitely is something like a morbid fascination at play There the blockchain. imagining a world before History of Political Operating Systems Operating of Political History Godord L. with Dr. Interview the blockchain. predating tems, specifically systems What the blockchain. tual utility than that of the world before you What interests field? in such an arcane to specialize you drove about the history of political operating systems? painting, only to be put together again like a cubist tional borders so-called supra-national or manner through in a Frankensteinean Comecon, UN, and so on. NATO, ganizations – League of Nations, services they unable to decide what kind of governance Subscribers of political participation want to buy – totally robbed and require poli the ability to vote at the same time given choice, while through virtue with by of gratuitous votes, cies in and out of existence for free out any cost or mandate. Elli Kuruş Elli Elli Kuruş: History of Poitical Operating Systems: Interview with Dr. L. Godord / 172 than to give birth there.than togive birth within pre-chain societiestravelled tospecificsitesfornoother reason Take asan example: Subscribers thephenomenon of ‘birth-tourism’ Can you provide anexample? look closely, theyreveal innerconsistency. acertain exhibiting themostextreme degrees ofirrationality–however, ifyou behaviours: Againandagain,we are facedwithbehavioural patterns The same antagonistic momentum is tangible on the level of pre-chain resist –irrationalitycanbeadrug. dom. Actually, attimes,thelure oftheseantagonismscanbehard to at thesametime–abreathtaking glimpseofthepredecessors offree Zuckerberg. Thiscacophonycanbe andexhilarating overwhelming lated by geniusessuchasRand,Page, Friedman, Nozick, Assange, mous organizations,andultimatelytheblockchain.It waspopu system we live in. It created contracts,autono theinternet,smart freedom. At thesametime,itremains thepredecessor ofthe operating We seeaworldofdisconnection,wastefulness,irrationality, andun andsevereabstruse ofsecurityflaws. banks lie bare and arecontents of states’ memory plagued by the most bodies andstructures –colossal armsraces,whileatthesametime Warfare, intheformofhighenergyprojectiles disintegratinghuman your pockets, their meaning surrendered of national banks. to the rule Currency intheformofphysicaltokens,designed fortheinteriorof - - - - 173 / Elli Kuruş: History of Political Operating Systems: Interview with Dr. L. Godord - - - Exactly, their own bodies served as a token for governance subscrip bodies served their own as a token for governance Exactly, So they actually boarded an airplane in order to choose the loca- to choose an airplane in order actually boarded they So tion of parturition? So, if my genitors had bought a certain portfolio of governance bought a certain if my genitors had So, portfolio of governance package, emergency re jurisdiction package, services,care health throat. your jam these contracts down would just providers Precisely, to buy these plans – terminating these would not only be required You contracts was virtually This is why the initial choice of impossible. lengths to plans was so crucial, to such great went this is why people choose plans for their biological offspring. This does sound as if legacy systems put a morbid emphasis on questions of location and geography. stead, you were assigned a governance plan at birth. This is where the plan at birth. This is where assigned a governance were stead, you you Which plan into play. factors of location and inheritance come and on, were parents your plan the depended on usually assigned were birth. also depend on the location of your it could crucially, to buy the same? sponse plan – I would be forced tion management. In order to answer this question, you have to understand pre-chain to understand pre-chain have this question, you to answer order In out, turns it As subscriptions. governance managing for mechanisms a totally static system of assigning plans: societies employed pre-chain services, to manage a portfolio in of governance not free were You How do you explain this? explain do you How Elli Kuruş: History of Poitical Operating Systems: Interview with Dr. L. Godord / 174 person wouldchoosevoluntarily. this stateofaffairsfacilitatedtheoperationproviders thatnosane voice sotospeak. To sumthingsup–justlikewithothermonopolies, anditsprovider.assigned territory If you lostthattie,you lostyour cal influence, what at that time was called voice, was coupled to the was dangerous politically. Remember thatyour onlymeansofpoliti- be sentback. Trying also tosubvert themappingtoassignedterritory – chancesofsuccess were slim territory – probably they would just tofleetheir plan.Theycouldtry chancestoopt-outofoneservice few underdeveloped. Some water, have running somedonot.People had allows fordifferent speedsofdevelopment. Some canbepoor, some Havingsome uniqueproperties. different statesboundtoterritory, Actually, thisstateofaffairsalsoprovided politicalstructures with the configuration you describe? Obviously, itdidfaileventually –butwhatslowed thedecayof Intriguing. How could an OS like this exist in the first place? mentioned regimen ofnon-choicestosubscribers. ance providers from competition.Thereby, it reinforced theafore ‘Territory’ wasamechanismforisolatingmarkets, protecting govern What diditdo? comesfrom. ‘territory’ was assigneditsown littleswathofland.Thisiswhere thelegacyterm Yes, governance theytiedpoliticalmarkets tolocation,every provider living inalegacyOS? All ofthissoundssohorribly hopeless–wasthere anyupside to - - 175 / Elli Kuruş: History of Political Operating Systems: Interview with Dr. L. Godord - - - - You can picture it like a huge department store filled to the brim filled to the brim it like a huge department store can picture You douches, leucotomes, vaginal with moustache wax, disk punchers, like typewritertheir utility, ribbons, stuff like that. Things that lost subscriptions; had none to begin with, like militaryreligious contrap This points us to the question – what is the effect of political markets? markets? question – what is the effect of political This points us to the that service any more, no one needs arbitration If will disappear – if servicethat more, any insurance health buys one no disappear. will not in effect. Consequently, these rules legacy conditions are Under crammed with services were no one needs. OSes prechain I usually start things off by proposing a thought experiment: How How thought experiment: a I usually start proposing by things off if the rules behave of supply and demand would political markets overnight? disappeared subscribers to our knowl This is one of the main benefits intellectual I under Still, value! academic prime sounds like definitely This beginning, many mentioned in the like you true. Just afraid that’s I’m seeing the intellectual utility of a trouble subscribers have knowledge course in the design history of political operating systems. However, not have is absolutely no need to buy a full course, should you there perfectly possible to experience the fascination of legacy It’s the coins. – minutes 2 afford merely can shorteryou a in systems If timespan. Listen to the a lot of inspiring microteachings. do that. I do provide So, what is your approach when teaching prechain OSes? How do How OSes? when teaching prechain approach what is your So, just described? students to the world you introduce you like political par based on plain customer deception, tions; or were assistance programmes. ties, charities, and foreign edge services of the of all the advantages experience: to become aware day: single of any the most out to make us motivating in, live OS we are. our lives awesome how to realize had some funding issues lately. stand you You’d be able to encounter tigers, polar bears, blue whales IRL [laughs]. [laughs]. whales IRL bears, blue polar tigers, to encounter be able You’d a contemporary not from upside, no real was perspective. there Well, while choosing one, For a few to identify possible perks. it’s However, services impossible, a lot of plans was gratuitous for were governance happened you game of chance: If it was a huge again, So subscribers. might affairs this state of plan, your appreciated provider, your like to – of freedom any form prevented This of course enjoyable. actually be sense. at least in the modern Elli Kuruş: History of Poitical Operating Systems: Interview with Dr. L. Godord / 176 during your commute,it’s definitelyworthwhile. ofpoliticaloperating systems during your morning showerhistory or through discourse. litical opinionscollectively, achievingcollectively bindingdecisions The basicmodelhere beingindividualsubscribers voicing theirpo alized inanalogytoantiquity. They were basedontheidea of voice. In effect,mechanisms forsubmittingfeature requests were conceptu political professional division. oramere voter mostlywasabinary ditional cost,oldpeoplevoted alotoutofsheerboredom. Being a pated in the process. You vote with no ad- in every could participate were connectedtothenarrow classofpoliticalprofessionals, partici persons withalotoffree-time, orwhowere governed by habit,or Consequently, reasons for voting were comparably random. Mainly through administrative bodiesonaperballotbasis. these votes were boundtohumanbodies–votecoins were assigned prechain providers employed voting Again, mechanisms of some sort. Regarding actualpolicyelicitationmechanisms,asizeable numberof andstayedwere there untilyour bornintoaservice bodyexpired. nism ofprovider assignment.For most peoplethissimplymeantyou elsewassubjecttothedescribedstaticmecha dividuals –everyone individuals: spies,double-agents,diplomats,so-calledstatelessin- dom and political choice were narrow constrained to a very classof Certainly. First ofall,we have toremind ourselves how politicalfree- conditions. How were feature requests handled? more underlegacy aboutthepossibilitiesof political participation governance providers? Specifically, I’d be interested to hear a little – couldyou elaborateabitontheinnerworkings ofprechain Fascinating stuff. But before becomesamarketing event thistruly - - - - 177 / Elli Kuruş: History of Political Operating Systems: Interview with Dr. L. Godord - - - Not really, this would probably be the inability to establish contracts, establish to inability the be probably would this really, Not at least in the modern sense of the word. Voice-based dysfunctionality actually was apparent to political think to political apparent was actually dysfunctionality Voice-based for the demise of reason identify this as the main you Would OSes? prechain However, with populations on the scale of millions or billions of sub or billions of on the scale of millions with populations However, were Providers to fix this? did nothing And political entrepreneurs just left broken? of servicegov demand better terms subscribers from Why didn’t monopolies, they occupied geographic first of all, since providers Well own your creating startup, political a founding Additionally, couldn’t. expensive. was prohibitively provider governance Precisely, as you can probably imagine providers had to deal with to deal had providers imagine can probably as you Precisely, of in the case worked just might have issues. This scalability massive couple of thousand with 300 to a it might work democracy, Athenian individuals. outcome any would achieve you to imagine how scribers, it is hard would that is certain. discourse, that much through How at all. Not 12 billion people chatting on and on. would just be It work? even bugfix they came up with was the blockchain. The ad-hoc ers before a somewhat concept based on the idea that convoluted representation, it. still retain away but somehow voice your give you providers? ernance This does not sound terribly efficient, though. efficient, sound terribly does not This Elli Kuruş: History of Poitical Operating Systems: Interview with Dr. L. Godord / 178 by Dr. Lysander Godord. before theblockchain,besure tocheckoutaKCC microteaching ity. Anyone interested inlearning more aboutpoliticalOSes you forproviding thisintoxicating glimpseofprechain irrational- Our own outaswell, I’m timehasrun afraid.Dr. Godord, thank legacy politicalOSes’ uptime remained limited. within theprechain world,astheydonow. Ultimately, thisensured Propositionssystem ofguaranteeingtruth: couldnotcirculate freely What we seehere are thedebilitatingcostsofanon-decentralized the worldcrippled. pect oflife–creating confusion,inefficiency, strife. Intheenditleft as ponds oflimitedcohesive statements.Thisinabilityinfectedevery ering –fightingaboutwhatwasrightwithintheirinsularlittlefish Consequently, subscriberswere intheabsenceoftruth, lefttobick contract wasfulfilled,noeffective mechanismcould provide ananswer. if contractualobligationshave beenmet–you couldnever besure ifa hidden andfoughtover. Thisactuallymadeitimpossibletodetermine banksofcentralbanks, restrained withinthememory curity services, within the holy books of ancient religions, hoarded by national se- They were concentratedwithinthefilesofstateapparatuses,confined Quite onthecontrary, were truths stored inhighlycentralized fashion. merged ascloselytheyare now. anddistributionhadnotyet been legacy world,thenotionsoftruth shared globally. difference:Which actually highlights a crucial in a bypropositions beinganchored becometruths tothechain,by being intimately tiedtoaregimen ofglobaldistribution.It isagiven that We tobe have theconceptoftruth becomeaccustomedtoviewing . notions oftruth In order toanswer thisquestion,we wouldhave toanalyselegacy Why couldn’t they establishcontracts? - - 179 / Surfatial: All That Happened - - - - pat- The people of the hamlet were curious about the Large Surface the Large curious about were The people of the hamlet and just especially since the existing systems of fair Perspectivescope, only able to view were They beginning to falter. administration were the viewpoints accounts that were of various one another through suspicions aroused and this invariably amongst themselves, circulated of bias. This also caused some of them to lose trust, belief and the mo lines of objects and people were visible. Today the planetarium was Today visible. lines of objects and people were another land. These visitors from of three celebrating the presence going to demonstrate a new artefact here that people visitors were This demonstra Perspectivescope. had christened the Large Surface The visitors community. the entire tion was going to be witnessed by evolved had it because planetarium its with hamlet this chosen had their own to the practices around way synchronous in a remarkably the around was considerable curiosity and expectation artefact. There in the air. was palpable excitement demonstration, there Surface The Large to contribute their individual perspectives. tivation their individual capable of retaining was apparently Perspectivescope them in a way that seemed neutral and present and yet perspectives When this hap an element of distance. introducing democratic, by and the others forming pened, each viewer would see themselves of. aware even patterns which they weren’t terns in the night sky, Sitara was feeling anxious. She walked slowly to the planetarium. The to walked slowly feeling anxious. She was Sitara the out sun had set a fewOnly hours back and the light was dim. The Failure The Prelude which container irregular with the large of your door First you walk out object in. you of hiding a smelly suspected your neighbours always but you will pick yourself obviously, be easy by any stretch It won’t the slights, imagined the taunts, the aside set will You it. do and up a is otherness.of insinuations the Trust outsider-hood, of implications past, and you naturally lack any another time in the distant from word no there’s an other, are selves and systems. You belief in functioning gravitational Not every years away. thousand light that, ten escaping pattern is escapable. All That Happened That All Surfatial Surfatial: All That Happened / 180 itself intoshape. narratives canfightitoutforsupremacy, goesaboutlayering history canwriteitself,Once threads thebaseisinplace,story canemerge, foundation cementitself. together withtheirpiecesandfitthemtogether;onlythen couldthe model, itcouldnotbemadeby onesinglemaker, makershadtocome the network appearstobeonthefaceofit.There were piecestothis inside ofahumanfeellike,thenetwork oftheirmind,what with it–whatmustfeellikefrom theinsideofit,whatdid was shaped.Themodelmanifesteditselfasahumanform, theytoyed irritated them,thattheywantedtodeviseabalmfor. Thusthemodel wallowed toquestion,whatitwasthat inwhatitwasthey were trying around and intothedistance,insilence,lookedinsideandout.They whispered, theygapedatgiantscreens. Theysawandsaw, theylooked phone, whowieldedthebaton.Theystrainedtheirearsforthose whatshotupandwhowent down,observed whoheldthemega intheirfever dream,served inwaking,walking,sleeping.They ob- Theobserver The modelhadarisenfrom gatheringobservations. other,was available toevery ifneeded. were prioritized over telescope anotherandtheperspective ofevery to organize theconstantlygrowing pooloftelescopes,suchthatnone a blockchain.Andthisnetwork oftelescopeswasmodelledinorder connect theirown telescope tothechainoftelescopes.Thewas of largewindows. Any memberoftheplanetariumcouldenteritand escopes ofdifferent sizes. Theplanetariumbuildingmostlycomprised The Large Surface Perspectivescope wasgoingtobeaseriesoftel The Ideal Thedemonstrationbegan. the actualdemonstrationofartefact. tracted by thesmokeandmirrors, butstrainedtoremain focusedon logic ofpresentation andshowcase. nottogetdis They were trying oftheaudiencewasresistingtion. Anotherpart allthedramaand its breath episodetocapture waitingforawonderful theirimagina around halftheaudiencehadheld When thedemonstrationstarted, logic mindlessly. They atthedemonstration. were criticalobservers weren’t abouttodrinkthekool-aid,theydidn’t acceptevangelical thatitcoulddo.deep suspicionoftechnologyandeverything So they fail.Theyhada very artefact who hadcomesimplytowatchthenew Not wasopenminded.There everyone were several cynicsinthe room - - - - 181 / Surfatial: All That Happened - - - - - Which in-built system did the Large Surface Perspectivescope have, have, Perspectivescope Which in-built system did the Large Surface in a way view, a model for distribution of each telescope’s to ensure of popularity such that the system was neither based on any reflection had in the content itself? It an interest or any other sentiment except The Large Surface Perspectivescope was attempting to solve multi attempting to solve was Perspectivescope Surface The Large of the night sky in the their perspective Any one who wished to share If was no gatekeeping or filtering. There planetarium could do so. one’s nothing else, one could at least enter the planetarium and share view the night sky. of own heads, perhaps a reflection of the home they spent all their moments moments all their they spent of the home a reflection perhaps heads, only with darkness silent of spaces open rushing over voyages on in a it was Around body. company) base for and stardust woodgrain axis, an horizontal on the pipe ring for swivelling pink plastic powder so it could go down adjusting height, metal pipe thing for aqua blue accommo- to up go could it so and eight, of child a were you case in pipe heels; another blue metal tall wedge of your date for the height bowtie one, to nod left and right so your blue this thing, Pantone sym adjusted it. Several as you the way of the eyepiece get in wouldn’t along the pipes, tense, fragile guide ran parallel pathetic metal wires The prisms held it all for fine tuning vision, tightening focus. wires existed all these features reason the only But glittered. they together, scopes of hooks, the hooks which would engage at all was to stage the depending on tele, peri, oscillo, spectro… kaleido, micro, all manner, the observerswhere to bag the next gig, that is. managed It can be broken multi-dimensional. was The problem ple problems. object in the night sky and not easier understanding. Every for down be seen the atlas, can in featured which are the celestial bodies just intervention. by leaving it open to any participant’s and magnified that it was problem of the This was a significant feature trying to not all media gets equal at of cultural gatekeeping Because address. tention. History is a constructed manipulated thing and it can’t and that happened. Because of events be trusted to be an accurate record inaccuracy in historyof this inherent avail and because of the lack of and techniques, historyability of methods, processes - cannot be re Surface The Large entirely. and has to be replaced or saved paired of narrative re-imagined the for format a remained Perspectivescope is because history offer any to even has lost its motivation It history. is sought to be measure kind of justice, that some kind of remedial formulated. In actuality, it was a bulbous polished teak wood (see, the observers (see, teak wood polished a bulbous it was actuality, In bulk gloss interior varnished with their old boats thing for had a Surfatial: All That Happened / 182 The Visitors that worked atleastforsometime. Surface Persepectivescope created an ideal system. An ideal system the blockchaintoremove inequalitiesconstantly, structural theLarge itcannotoperateasaledger.biases andimbalancesotherwise Using the blockchain’s overall objective istokeepthesystemwithoutany transactions isequal,agenuinelyopenmarketplace cannotexist.So relative value ofalltransactionsremains equal.Unless thevalue of parity doesnotemergeinthesystem,itexiststoensure thatthe are recorded in the ledger. The blockchain existsto ensure thatdis chain, thenotionofvalue isestablishedby globaltransactionswhich Higher traffic represents higher and in a block- value of some sort within itself. Large Surface Perspectivescope wouldattempttoestablishabalance got formedon account of theincreasedsorts traffic of someview, the was drawingtoomuchattentiontoitself. Themomentahierarchy of an internalmechanismofactingagainstanynodeinthenetwork that for superhits. time tochew. Theyare apopulationofjadedglasseyes,screaming demand saltedgrease sweetsengineered forswallowingwhole,no they nutrition, texture, fibre, with deal cannot insides their atrophied, wrapped inshinyfoil,abubblebauble.Theirprocessing systemshave cessing. Whateveritisthattheyingesthastobeanempty capsule thick shieldagainstanythingthatresembles anideaaskingforpro swings of neurotransmitters. Their response has been to develop a ades ofexposure tointenseneurochemical warfare, catastrophic level heard thattheseare toughcustomers,havingbeenravagedbydec Perspectivescope in theseparts,iswhatyou’veheard. You’ve also you havetogetintotheplanetarium.TheycallitLarge Surface If youthoughtgettingoutofthehousewasanundertaking, waituntil for them,ithastoallfit,worktogethersomehow. Itwill. you haveto.Theothertwoare goingtojoinyou,youhavedothis your face and give movement to your fingers. You will make it through, cause youtotwistintohoops,vectorsofresistance thatwillcontort your appendage,there are severaldegrees ofobstructionthatwill several doorstonegotiate,asyoumoveoutdoorsandindoorswith Manouevering the container will have its own challenges. There are - - - 183 / Surfatial: All That Happened ‘There’s just too much to see here… my head explodes… what must just too much to see here… ‘There’s Who am seen anything like this before? I never Why have I focus on? a long time. there stayed She the eyepiece. head was glued to I?’ Her of course. They let her, ‘What do you see?’ the visitors asked Sitara. ‘What do you Well at least he didn’t have to pay any entry. Showtime was easy. Showtime pay any entry. to have at least he didn’t Well ‘Wait, you just need a bit of string pulling, a bit of pipe adjustm…’ just need you ‘Wait, ‘No, it’s four lions. They’re huddled together jostling for space on a four lions. They’re it’s ‘No, a leg to stand struggling have to stand, do they even pedestal, they’re I came want to see instability, me? I don’t showing you What are on? to be entertained’, he stormed off. here ‘It’s an owl’ they said. they an owl’ ‘It’s ‘A lion. No four.’ he said. four.’ ‘A lion. No ‘What do you see?’ the visitors ask the visitor in the saffron turban. saffron see?’ the visitors ask the visitor in the ‘What do you Initially, it was dark. Gradually, a deep blue-grey misty sphere became misty sphere blue-grey a deep Gradually, it was dark. Initially, also seemed to flex and expand out of shape. sphere The apparent. not visible that made it take shape something else that was there Was was still very and it was dark and change its form along the way? It imagined and what was actually visible. to tell what was being hard At the planetarium, the people of the hamlet, eager visitors to the to eager visitors hamlet, of the the people the planetarium, At Large find the to arrived next hit, for their scrambling show latest dome large the planetarium’s housed inside Perspectivescope Surface been instructed to bring They’d to the sky. open up entirely that could was some – here they gladly did with them, which their telescopes Each telescope to be part yourself of the show! asking you novelty, images retrieve part and of the sky oriented to a different could be by bodies. Those views could be accessed of various and movements of of time, with a certainany viewer at any point transaction. Part onto the them transposing their identities this transaction involved a unique view viewers of showed wanting to look at. It view they were in their world no mirror and their companions, one that themselves transposition and the entire The prisms aided in this could project. its aspects of different projecting of telescopes ended up network was able to get viewer each space. As a result, viewers into the distant in the sky. generated perspective a freshly from a glimpse of the other Surfatial: All That Happened / 184 she touched.As Lararolled, shelitup, sometimes brightbutbriefly, temperature, vibration,movement, colourandnature ofthesurfaces sensors thatcouldgenerateinformation aboutthetexture, material, expand togentlyadaptits surroundings. She alsohad different in contactwithhercompletely. Her bodywouldstretch, bendand thatcame was malleableandshecould sense andscanallthesurfaces Lara begantoroll around slowly. She wasn’texactly round. Her body Wonder still exists? you how!’ smiledthevisitors. ‘Oh justhookyourself upwhy don’t you? It’s really easy, we’ll show ‘What?!! What isit?!!Letmesee!!No, Ineed toseethisfirst!!’ ‘Haaaaw.’ ‘What, what?’ ‘Woaaw.’ blue metalpipething.‘Whatdoyou seenow?’ Adorable. No, really! Some on-the-goadjustmentsneededwiththe ‘No ofcourseitdoesn’t. It’s myeye, silly!’ ‘Does itglow?’ ‘An eye.’ ‘What doyou see?’thevisitorsaskedlittleone. ‘Uh, ok.’ eous photonsharmonizes withbliss.’ knowledge leadsto karmicspacetimeevents. Thekeytoself-right Interdependence transcendstotalacceptanceofHiggs bosons.Self- ‘Perception alleviatesprogressive expansionofquantumchatter. ‘What?’ inter-personaltimefulness.’ ‘Death pervades ‘What doyou see?’thevisitorsasked the Yogic Seer. - 185 / Surfatial: All That Happened - - Lara was fascinating in so many ways. She evoked awe and wonder awe evoked in so many ways. She Lara was fascinating was Something movement. meditative and appearance mere her with and ob The visitors Perspectivescope. Surface happening in the Large property every of inherent an was body stardom that knowledge The inside the Large the operational environment immediately levelled their because it made all the operators realize Perspectivescope Surface the next operator. it with need for comparing the without value, own They instead turned their focus to the operations at hand, in finding stars in the night sky; because each new star in the sky only more were something new which they and unique in themselves reflected Lara didn’t know that she was being watched. She was not really really was not watched. She that she was being know Lara didn’t her keep to enough had she because matters such about concerned and who was from she being watched was Where and glowing. alive very far away, Perspectivescope the Large Surface her? Inside watching mechanisms reflective of pattern complex a orchestrating were prisms knew just was she that however Lara movements. Lara’s broadcast to others like her. one amongst many The Afterglow times leave behind an afterglow. behind leave times causing perspectives servers to lose their grips on their own began made formations in And this everything merge one into another. to Why next. one moment to the the sky that lit up very from differently those aspects of their members was the community not able to access so far away? They up Lara lit that brilliance of kind the produced that were they stars the If inquiries. their in cruciala to came juncture the from of multiple perspectives in fact the product were discovering being led to might hold they were telescopes, then the co-ordinates within each individual operator of stardom the key to the co-ordinates sky the in co-ordinates the differentiate to order In telescopes. the of in the human operators, they named the latter, the co-ordinates from the method of tracing the Extraordinates However, Extraordinates. can became secondary that stardom because the stars in fact revealed This became an important moment of be traced within any body. They felt Perspectivescope. for those in the Large Surface reckoning with their friends who hadn’t this knowledge that they had to share invited them to and Perspectivescope, visited the Large Surface yet to operate perspectives diverse many as They wanted participatetoo. the telescopes to enrich the views of the night sky. sometimes yellow, but mostly just flickered mildly. She would some She mildly. just flickered but mostly yellow, sometimes Surfatial: All That Happened / 186 was madeofstardust anyway. was demonstratedattheplanetarium. By theway, Sitara diedtoo. She tion systemthattheylived inbefore theLargeSurface Perspectivescope denying thepossibilityofanysolutiontoskewedinforma started Perspectivescope tothearchive ofblurred remembrance ofdreams. They reorient themselves anddelegatetheirmemoriesoftheLargeSurface ence onhopethatwasleadingtotheirdownfall. Theyattemptedto realisingSome started thatitwastheirdepend ofthelastsurvivors telescopes were buriedwiththedepressed deadbodies. anyone. The planetariumbecamejustahallwithlargewindows. Allthe came,itdidn’tafter itsetoffonthispath.Andself-destruction spare no spark ofhope at all. The community was destined to self-destruct towards dark ableakandbroodingplace,with mindset.Thiswasa very demonstration ofanideal;withoutideal,thecommunitydrifted community whichlived neartheplanetariumwasonlypossibleby the injustice. Thiskindofsocialmood requires healing. Healing forthat There isan overbearing senseofbeingcheatedandsubjectedto experience. People hard findit toadjustlifeasitusedbe. very Once ahigheridealiswitnessed,discontentbred inthegeneral the possibilityofahigherwaybeing,butonethatwasnotsustainable. which gainedfolklore-value onemergencebecameliketheevidenceof it burst,thispossibilityofemergencestopped.Theindividualnarratives also burst.In figures thetime thatitfloated,afew didemerge. Butafter frames canonlybebubbles.Sure thebubbleshimmered about,butit in thetime that theLarge Surface Perspectivescope existed. All ideal Many individualsemerged andbecamepublicfigures intheir own light million eyes thatnever sawthingsagainthewaytheydidoncebefore. and dispersedthrough anetwork oftelescopes.It wasalive witha It wasalive, powered by theenergytransferred through humantouch Perspectivescope grew more active andturnedintoanorganismitself. changes wasvisibletoalloperatorssimultaneously. TheLarge Surface ofthenightsky,had aneffectontheview oneofthese andevery larger blockchainoftelescopicdata.Every by adifferent user entry tures, registering eachuser’s blockasanindependent unitwithinthe were networked. Eachtelescopestored- datainidenticalblockstruc way inwhichthetelescopeswithinLargeSurface Perspectivescope unaware of. Theotheraspectthatmadethislevelling possiblewasthe - - 187 / Rob Myers & Lina Theodorou: Bad Shibe

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191 / Rob Myers & Lina Theodorou: Bad Shibe - ‘Why would...’ their catnip has burneddepocket their I?’ Sib realizes out. They was it. Where ‘Forget magnifying glass. was a poster...’ ‘What if there I remember! teaching you what you need to think they’re don’t Sib nods. ‘And so but well yeah I really when shibes set up was meant to be a stop-gap measure know at school. AreWeThereYet to for tipping and checking it was meant tipping rings and bots early on. Giving a reason But shibes started gaming that too. It became a Like primitive neuro. be proof-of-human. Dog to be like being the president.’ They wanted being Top economy. reputation Amaze. ‘Amaze!’ Much, need to get out more. is kitteh. You school basics. Your I get a look. ‘Shibe it’s much more.’ I pout. ‘I go to swapmeet.’ ‘And maximally a sigh. Wow. catnip? It’s through Sib sighs. Or inhales. Is it a sigh if it’s about the least like you’ve just been printed. YS you’re then you come home and sit there kinda annoying.’ annoying sib imaginable but that’s Such paradox. I extend the pout. Much silence. Sib blows smoke into the sun Wow. ‘That’s not what I mean. But if there was a poster that told you to smash your phone?’ was a poster that told you to smash not what I mean. But if there ‘That’s beams. any more?’ we need AreWeThereYet Question! ‘Why don’t eigentippage.’ just ‘It’s ‘Eigentippage?’ have tipped you, how much the shibes ‘How much you’ve tipped, how much other shibes who tipped them have tipped etc.’ UnoY inhales catnip. Such inhalation. Much catnip. ‘Everyshibe knows how to tip, everyshibe knows what a bot attack looks like, everyshibe just a game and it has to stay but it’s is going to the moon. Pups love AreWeThereYet the underlying currency at this but Sib gives me a look. ‘It’s I start to protest that way.’ boring, just part of But that’s underneathprotocol and the analytics overtop that matter. the dial tone of the economy.’ the system. It’s ‘Like Cap’n Crunch.’ ‘Wut?’ funny.’ net. It’s On the old copper wire tortoise about phone phreaking. ‘Teacher Rob Myers & Lina Theodorou: Bad Shibe / 192 hand-washing movements.Suchembarrassment. how towashyourhands.IknowmyTeacher iswatchingmemaking with theirnamesatthebottom.OneofaClaesOldenburg sculpture ofcutlery. Andoneof one ofanincongruouslycuteshibainu.There’s oneofellipticcurvessuper-imposed, A quintoseptillionblockslaterIclamberunderthetarpofmyclass.More posters!There’s Such fun. shibes aboutthis.Phone,remember where thisis.Feet,backto work.Thatwasamaze. I clapmyhands.Wow. Phone,tipwhoeverpaintedthis.Suchfun.Imusttellmyschool the tallbuildingbysidewalk,insamewhitepaint,itsays‘You gotit!’. follow thatround andround andround andround andfallover. Igiggle.Uponthesideof the sidewalk.Amaze.Iwalkfasterandalongit,thenwhenitendsupinaspiral lowing. Ittakesmealongthestreet inalongslowcurve,thenwavesfrom sidetoof There’s awhitelinepaintedonthesidewalk.Itwasn’t there yesterday. Iwalkalong,fol Wow. Suchheat.Schoolisn’t foraboutagoogolplexblocks. I hateeverything. My Life isamaze. passing egger. Muchtaste.Suchdelicious.Itipthem. had interest. Itipthemasdownstairsfrom thekennel.Muchheat.Igetawrapfrom a Sib looksthoughtfulbutdoesn’t sayanything.Igetoutmore. Sibcanbemeanbutthat ‘I didn’t think youngshibesstillsaidthat.You canstayinhere untilclass butpleaselet ‘Amaze. Socool!’Iexclaim.Teacher smiles. ‘My sibhasa2Dprinter. Theygrow inksandeverything.’saysTeacher. ‘Uh hiTeacher.’ Ireply. ‘Ilikeyourposters,where doyougetthem?’ ‘Good evening,YS’saysTeacher. It’s noteveningyet?

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195 / Rob Myers & Lina Theodorou: Bad Shibe

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‘I my new best friends. are gone! You ‘Pls can I have them?’ I request. OK ‘Good evening, young shibe. How may I service you?’ ‘Heya. Do you still have the stamp book thing you showed me?’ LiCat ‘Uh no I booked a slot in the oven for a factual cake.’ cook.’ can’t ‘You ‘Mom1 said they’d help?’ I get looks. to help you make their own cake?’ UnoY accuses. getting Mom1 ‘You’re much awkwardness. Wow, ‘They said they’d like to do something with me.’ I mumble. LiCat give MogoDan looks, which I ‘Cute.’ says MogoDan. Is that mockery? UnoY and not. know means probably LiCat gives me a look. ‘Thank you.’ I say to MogoDan, like I’ve practiced. Sib follows. LiCat drags them away. answer, I can school?’ asks MogoDan. Before ‘How’s I watch them disappear into the crowd. the alley between two of the the swapmeet, by night is across last from The salesbro McMansions. They must’ve done well last night. Do they still have the stamp book? ‘Wow look what the cat hawked up.’ says my sib’s voice from behind me. voice from look what the cat hawked up.’ says my sib’s ‘Wow up. Such dignity. without looking I reply ‘Heya UnoY.’ picking up gold.’ My sib pats me on the head. ‘Since you ask, we’re much squawking. ‘Gold?’ I ask. I’m a cockatoo. Wow, get Mom1 some for their metals. Gonna makes jewelry with pre gold. LiCat here ‘Yeah, want in?’ You cake day. I Deja jealousy not reason. But the market doesn’t care about motivation. So nor should I. Wow. I. Wow. about motivation. So nor should care But the market doesn’t jealousy not reason. I win! and it teacher and I tip NoUr double and teacher tips us After class everyshibe tips sounds I Teacher looks at me. ‘The sign was added by someshibe else to hijack the tips from from the tips else to hijack by someshibe was added me. ‘The sign looks at Teacher see the the line would who walked anyshibe it knew that added line. Whoever NoUr’s people to regard to cause their proximity on relied ‘and more, once rhymes sign,’ Teacher on end. Or relying at the their attention one that drew tipping the a single unit, them as tipping.’ in people’s semantic confusion teacher. ‘People?’ I ask ‘Shibes.’ ‘Ohhhhhhhh.’ about to talk more transactions. But we need is to analyze these homework ‘Everyshibe’s the Byzantine Generals now...’ Such cheating. Wow. amaze. Much knowledge. BangZoom78 is cheating! is Teacher Rob Myers & Lina Theodorou: Bad Shibe / 196 on myphone.Thwockathwokathwoka. For thegoogolplexblocksittakestowalkhomeIpretend I’mahelicopter. Iusethelight enough forthat. it. Helicopterwhere yougo?Beingonahelicopterwouldbeamaze.Icouldnevertip rarity. Iwatchthelight disappearbehindtheMcMansions,andnoisefadeswith The lightisaccompaniedbythethwockathwockathwokaofahelicopter. Wow. Such has allmadelesssense.Alightinthesky!Amaze. Today hasmadenosense.More thanusual.Lessusual? There hasbeenmore, butit Feet, homeward! printer. Ialsogetapencilsharpener. bottles thatare toodamagedtobeusefulorcollectible,wecanfeedthoseintothe I nodandengagemyfeet.Theytakemebackintotheswapmeet.getsomepre plastic daily.’ ‘Thank youyoungshibe!’saysSalesbro, ‘Doremember tovisit again,Igetnewstock will lovethis.ItipSalesbro maximally. I unfoldmypre plasticbagandputeverythinginthere asSalesbro handsittome.Mom1 ‘Can Ihaveoneofeachcolourpls?’politely. devalue them.Thankyou,brain! infrastructure.’ Salesbro mimesthescratching.Whichmeansactuallyscratchingwould code representing acertainamountofcredit touseaparticularcorporation’s telephone ‘You themover, wouldturn scratchthissectionhere, andthatwouldreveal asimple ‘Wut?’ Iactually. ‘Phone credit scratchcards.’ Salesbro answersmyface,whichwassaying:‘Wut?’. They are coloured plasticcards. Manycolours. anything else?Ihavethese...’ ‘Of course,youngshibe,Iamgladtheyare goingtoagoodhome.CanIinterest youin 197 / Rob Myers & Lina Theodorou: Bad Shibe

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me. McMansion opposite. fork is in less than ten thousand Dog. The hard My phone pings. BangZoom78 is Top is doing. But I think my Sib does. understand what BangZoom78 blocks. I don’t I will ask them later when I go back inside. The sunrise is my calm. Much wonder. Very Such sunrise. I sit on the edge of the roof. new best friend. Wow. I in post, and I will sharpen everywhere pencil sharpening artisan. Shibes will come from pencils for them. They’ll tip me like an insider trader. I write in my best block capitals: who u? has paper. The drone of: please tell And I tip it. For the reason to deliver it to BangZoom78. Then I tell the drone tor across the continent each night. I make the transactions glow blue on a black globe. the continent each night. I make the transactions glow blue on a black globe. tor across animation. Maximally pre my sib’s transactions against the account numbers from I check the list of BangZoom78’s to just by it. I tell my phone processed transactions were rig. Many of BangZoom78’s and the rig transactions between my sib’s show just the lines in the graph representing a drawing of the poster zoom out. It’s other rigs on the network. It looks like a drawing. I Wow. face. dog’s How did of the kennels. the roof It’s I wake up feeling cold. My back hurts. I am on a roof. Many colours. So still. Such sunrise. Oh. Wow. I get here? in to watch the sunrise. I am the only shibe I hobble on sleepy legs to the edge of the roof the world to see this. Amaze. wearing their PLA surplus coat. So is They are below. I look down. UnoY is in the street coat, they have their own. Mom1 will maximally berate their shibe MogoDan. Not UnoY’s They have plastic bags. They are my sib for staying out all night. They never tip them. swapping. It looks like phones. Many phones. than one phone? Why would anyshibe need more save them by time. The transactions follow the termina geolocate the transactions and order I This ‘OK!’ my new Hello stars, you are I bounce up the stairs onto the roof. them on my phone. Then to mean But not too cold. Cool. Is this why ‘cool’ used getting colder. best friends! It’s ‘good’? It feels good. ‘Are I tell them. my friend.’ ‘I like the couch. It’s suggest. they your homework on the roof.’ an amaze night, you could do ‘It’s I ‘Um.’ Mom1 but tipping current a weakness in the there’s wow, their phone as well. ‘Oh Mom1 checks it in a fork to address to be a hard going There’s sort of collision problem. system. Some look at me like that, YS, Don’t few thousand blocks’ time. ershibe understood me like Mom1 does. Also more wishes. And chocolate. Also more me like Mom1 does. ershibe understood the tip. Which costs, I refuse BangZoom78. raining! I check and it’s It’s My phone pings. Mom1 is home when I get back to the kennel. I gift them. to the kennel. I get back is home when Mom1 they’re shibe. Usually they speak funny when It’s says Mom1. you, YS! Amaze!’ ‘Thank old once. They them look I said it makes hair. their blue them. Also I like that about pre. age. I wish everyoth UnoY’s when they were what their mom said said that’s laughed and Rob Myers & Lina Theodorou: Bad Shibe / 198 199 / Theodoros Chiotis: Defixio Nervorum Nervorum

no one can tell the difference ʇool between the & the ʍachine: of [ ] is pathogenesis precise [ ]known the paradox lies inside the body [ ] fits am [ ] a[ ] f tt ng I be flitting tw in tw e en surveillancesurvival together by membranes ʍe>a(r)e>machines twined axonal injury hauntedhounded an other of <1:1> <ʍe>1 is no such thing there as the untranslatability of wounds the southern quiver continents [ ] [ ] made possible [ ] fire interpretation ʍe>a(r)e>in tangle impedimentsimplements in a world without silence [ǝɹǝɥ 'ǝɹǝɥ 'ǝɹǝɥ] no one who can [ ]ra[ ]e the other felt like empire is this what the roman is ]here there[ no antigen [ ]o[ ] anti body the taste of the hour not a single dis ease 1<ʍe> no language lasts long enough in the desert thisshoudbesixtyfourcharacterlinespoetrytobesharedleonardhasbeen pleadingforyourfinalsignatureofthetranslationsʍeareincompletehere a ʍecollectdataontheantsbehaviouridonotwanttobeframedbymajorlangu gestheselfisframedbypidginandtheindifferenceofpigeonsʍeareincomp leterepleteandfragmentedʍearenowreplacedbydistributionapartofthe greateradditionthegreaterconfessiontheincalculableimprerceptible thingscomewhentheyaresupposedtonoinvestmentissecureunlessyouareu nidentifiablerecognitiondoesnotlastforeverlesionsplaceslanguageb uffersconsciousnessbufferscitizensrealandunrealwoundsbleedcities onto film sensationcondensation prisons creates ʍeseek entry via attachment is taken apart yet care nohopenohopenohopenohope none every poem is an involuntary twitch of the body a reflex that is to say, of the outer layer Defixio Theodoros Chiotis Chiotis Theodoros Theodoros Chiotis: Defixio Nervorum / 200 Possibly. on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&[on]&[off] on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off& on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off& on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off&on&off& these are theteethofillnessandbeatneverendinghours: [an]otherlanguage this is anarticulumoftimediminished an agonistofinversion acommunicatedconvulsion anattemptedupregulation a weaksignaldisappointmentoftime ofevents beingonthewrong side aparticularsensationisperceived intensified when 201 / Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide

- -

Yourself

Guide

(Hand-to-Hand)

The Internet used to promise the possibility of enabling a new the possibility of democ to promise Internet used The re- begins with a new drawing that is my here The series presented a curated selection of previous by sponse to the blockchain. Followed offline spaces and tangentially with on and that engages more work reinvent. upon and to build seeks blockchain sphere which the media, Do Surfing forth it has also brought and been mixed, have but the results racy, scale its massive Furthermore, centralization in many regards. greater to users. The block invisible is predominantly structure and exclusive much of the centralized remove the potential to chain seems to offer a kind of collective and bring trust users through structure between we however structure, appears like an ideal It monitoring and care. it also and question how scales, system at different need to look at the and other forces. powers bigger by can be distorted and restructured Juhee Hahm Juhee Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide / 202 203 / Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide / 204 205 / Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide / 206 207 / Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide / 208 209 / Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide / 210 211 / Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide / 212 213 / Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide / 214 215 / Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide / 216 217 / Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide Juhee Hahm: Do it (Hand-to-Hand) Yourself // Surfing Guide / 218 219 / Edward Picot: Babel Babel let us make brick and they said earth was one language The whole had they for morter and grey slime had brick for stone, And they n reach unto heave whose top may a city and a tower, Let us build h upon the eart we be scattered abroad us a name lest Let us make t tower they buil see the city and the LORD came down to Then the language people is one, and they have all one Behold said he the them to do: so now nothing will be restrained So this they begin may not so confound their language, that they Go down, and there scatter speech: and let us confound and Understand one another's from hence scatter the children of men abroad Them abroad let us them there the earth: and the LORD confounded On the face of all the city men did not leave off from building But the children of they tower reached up unto heaven and nothing And the top of the language restrained them and they had all one Imagined to do was spread one another's speech and they were But did not understand Babel. and therefore was the place called Across the whole earth Edward Picot Edward Edward Picot: Babel / 220 THEORY

223 / Hito Steyerl: If You Don’t Have Bread, Eat Art!: Contemporary Art and Derivative Fascisms

5 - It seems to trade It ‘Art will effectively 3 Have silver paintings silver Have 1

continue to grow, wherever wherever continue to grow, 4

by promoting survival promoting by of the fittest 6

How did it come to this? During the to this? During did it come How 2

Ever more self-tribalised formations pop up that prefer not to abolish self-tribalised formations pop up that prefer more Ever competitors personally. neoliberal competition – but instead eliminate try fascisms trade economics with (as to fuse all-out free Derivative A permanent fog of war is fanned by permanent fakes on Facebook. permanent fakes on Facebook. A permanent fog of war is fanned by further. even destabilized ideas of truth are deregulated Already enter as commodified Crisis fest. troll rules.a is Emergency Critique for everyone except themselves. Authoritarian neo-liberalism segues neo-liberalism Authoritarian themselves. for everyone except into just authoritarianism. a tainment. The age of neo-liberal globalization seems exhausted and continue its structural function as an alternative currency that hedges function as an alternative that continue its structural currency against inflation and currencydepreciation.’ one example) white nationalism snuff, or infamy. Derivative fascisms Derivative snuff, or infamy. become a proxy gold standard? become a proxy Is art a currency? Investor Stefan Simchowitz thinks so. He wrote with with wrote He so. thinks Simchowitz Stefan Investor arta currency? Is era: the post-Brexit clarity about uncompromising If You Don’t Have Bread, Eat Art!: Eat Bread, Have Don’t If You and Derivative Art Contemporary Fascisms Hito Steyerl Hito Meanwhile, reactionary extremism intensifies in many places. I reactionary extremism Meanwhile, another attack, election, always There’s with specifics. you bore won’t violence, misogyny, or someone who ups the ante in terms of coup, against a lot of misery. against a lot of misery. disenfranchised middle classes fear (and face) global competition – and disenfranchised middle classes fear (and up to reactionary and suck oligarchies. choose to both punch down ongoing crisis, investors were showered with tax money, which then with tax money, showered were ongoing crisis, investors companies. shell and mansions, tower collections, freeport into went stability and depleted common currency easing eroded Quantitative service precarious a with dismal economy entrenching resources, gigs, eternal debt, permanent doubt, and now eternal wages, if any, value of artreason the violence. This destabilization is one increasing the In national GDPs. many of prospects the than stable more looks of mass evictions, austerity, EU this takes place against a backdrop include runResults scams. Daesh attacks, arson and Deutsche amok, debt blackmail, rigged economies, and the fascist child poverty, failed policies. Artscapegoating of others for widely self-inflicted is of this historical moment. currency’ an ‘alternative Hito Steyerl: If You Don’t Have Bread, Eat Art!: Contemporary Art and Derivative Fascisms / 224 widespread system of value. isanetworked,and administratedby decentralized, centralbanks,art the illimitable.But forallitspretense totechnologicalinfallibility, tries tomanagethecontradictionsofdigitalscarcity by limiting waiting lists.Further down likeBitcoin, thefoodchain, media art, game inwhichthemosttranscendentalphenomenaare oncollectors’ sublime,dopey,malleable andinert, opaque,bizarre, andblatant:a out –even thoughathighlymanipulatedlevels. It isatoncehighly doesit,itsometimesevenseminently hackable,butsinceeveryone gallerists, andcouch-surfingstudents.Thisinformalecologyis mixhelter-skelterwithpontificatingprofessors, anxious con artists arises from gossip-cum-spinandinsiderinformation.Fraudsters and privateers, collectors,andwaymore confusingcharacters. Value censors, bloggers,developers, producers, hipsters,handlers,patrons, institution toguaranteevalue; insteadthere isajumbleofsponsors, therescandals, likesandprices.Aswithcryptocurrencies, isnocentral asynchronously registering (or mostly failing to do so) exhibitions, are markets, collectors,museums,publications,andtheacademy credit ordisgraceacross competinginstitutionsorcliques.There of conflictingandoftenuselesskeys. as such,regardless oftheexistenceamessagewithmultitude even orespecially ifthere isnomeaningwhatsoever. isencryption Art isroutinely applied, Encryption of sometimesbeingundecryptable. to the point is often encrypted art in art: part As to the encryption techinpracticehinges onpeople’slooks likeincorruptible actions. values are dependentonconsent,collusion,andcoincidence. What have hitherto onlypromised.have hitherto as alternative currency, seemstofulfillwhat art Ether and Bitcoin fluffy glitter,art seemssomehow investment in more real. Moreover, institutions andeven whole political entitiesmay just dissolve into markets seemnotoverlyArt concerned.In timesinwhichfinancial Alternative Currency hassetin. period ofcontraction,fragmentation,andautocraticrule Bitcoin ispotentiallyjustasdependentongroup power In industries trigger trickle-upeffects which practice though, art wouldbeagreatwhole, art idea. crooked, andtoothlesscongregation and yet, like civilization as a more traditionallyclannishsocialhierarchies. It isafullyridiculous, andacademics intorankedpositions,butitalsoincludes artists randomly quantified,ranked by bullshitalgorithmsthatconvert 8 7 It gains stability because it calibrates Ratherthanmoneyissuedby anation 10 Its reputational economyis

9 as art-market asart-market 225 / Hito Steyerl: If You Don’t Have Bread, Eat Art!: Contemporary Art and Derivative Fascisms ------Contemporary art belongs 11 Predictably, this leads to resentment and outright anger. Art anger. outright and resentment to leads this Predictably, out-of-touch, labelled as a decadent, rootless, is increasingly one sense, this is a perfectly In cosmopolitan urban elite activity. honest and partly pertinent description. But let’s face it – in relation to the scale of other industries, the art to the scale of other sec face it – in relation let’s But Art Degenerate This does not only apply to art’s investor and manager classes. The and manager classes. investor art’s not only apply to This does many artlifestyles of also support workers a corporate technologi into fiscal whisks off profits that infrastructure cal (and antisocial) Facebook, Ryanair, Airbnb, Uber, Google, Apple, banana republics. or Jersey, in Ireland, any taxes pay hardly and other hipster providers contribute to local services jurisdictions. They don’t other semi-secret they sure and their idea of sharing is to make like schools or hospitals get their share. opaque, Contemporarytor is just a blip. art all that’s is just a hash for inequal class war and all-out for top-down unintelligible, and unfair, acting as a spear. the tip of an iceberg It’s ity. are then flushed sideways into tax havens. Art’s economies divert economies Art’s sideways then flushed havens. into tax are and research education, job creation, sustainable from investments neighbourhoods, They bleach and risk. cost social externalize and baloney. excruciating and peddle overrate, underpay, On the other hand, talk of ‘rootless cosmopolitans’ is clearly reminis is clearly cosmopolitans’ of ‘rootless the other hand, talk On hoping for new opportunities are with the authoritarians, if you So to a time in which everything a time goes and nothing goes anywhere, itching are as deadlock. Many of stagnant escalation, of serial novelty is pointless, harmful, 1 for major changes, some because the system because they finally want and many more and exclusive, percent-ish, in. in branding who relished propaganda, and Stalinist cent of both Nazi bodies’. within ‘healthy national dissenting intellectuals as ‘parasites’ was used to get rid of minor this kind of jargon regimes both In agendas; not and progressive ity intelligentsias, formal experiments the appeal of art. or broaden access for locals or improve to improve by deployed mainly is at present culture in discourse ‘anti-elitist’ The own eco their conservative from elites, who hope to deflect attention art’. of ‘degenerate of stereotypes relaunching nomic privileges by Hito Steyerl: If You Don’t Have Bread, Eat Art!: Contemporary Art and Derivative Fascisms / 226 national, religious, and fully biasedhistories. within isolationist unlinked canons, which can easilybe marketed as willbe firewalled experimentation intoHNWIinteriordesign. Art forsharedwhat sometimesworked asaforum ideas,judgment, and analogue market manipulation,alongside thedefunding,dismantling, acceleration ofstagnation– is already well underway. Algorithmic and exit –or The counterparts. byreactionary theirreactionary dwarfed andclaimsforanexitfrom thisparadigmare art of contemporary institutions,thecritique that went aheadandsimplyabolishedart Just like institutional critique was overtaken by a neo-liberal Right border walls.Good luckwiththis. You enemy. willbemymortal surgery. Racialplasticsurgery. gunhandles.Murals Bespoke ivory on gineered caviar in well-behaved ethnicpottery. Conceptualplastic fashion. Immodest fashion.Nativist mumbojumbo. Genetically en especially withaLouis Vuitton logo. Hedge-fund mandalas.Modest porating KravMaga lessons.Religious nailpaintwillslayinallseasons, ment.’ Crapstraction, algostraction, personalized installationsincor banging onaboutnaturalselection.Kitsforbiological‘self-improve hotel lobby. Plastiglomerate marble,welded by corporatecharacters Yay forexpensive craftandanythingvacuous thatworks inachain- slumming. its placenexttobig-gamehunting,armedparagliding,andadventure evaders. Male masters,more malemasters,and repeat. willtake Art designer breeding. Personalized fortax one-on-oneperformances calligraphy.stock-chart Yummy Accelerationist organicsuperfoods. for more violentassholes,oilpaintingsof bootyblondes,abstract fullyfloatedonsomekindofArsedaq. Art More fairs,longeryachts conspicuous money. Public swappedforInstagram support metrics. – anythingthatrequires insteadof aninvestment oftimeandeffort perspectives, expandedcanons, non-traditional historieswillbe axed non-flat, non-huge,or remotely complexorchallenging. Intellectual even possible.Inconvenient will fly outthe window art – anything spectives, lesscirculation, andeven lessregulation, ifsuchathingis same, justmuchworse:lesspay for workers, lessexchange, fewerper Daesh antiquitiestrade,orsystemicunderpay. It willbemore ofthe transparency. It willnotprevent taxfraud,doctored markets, the This transformationisnotaboutaccountability, criteria,access,or ate inequalities,beyond thefiscal-materialtoexistential-material. In Theywillonlyacceler nowaywilltheyabolishelitesoreven art. moreor makeart relevant oraccessibletodifferent groups ofpeople. Authoritarian right-wingregimes willnotgetridofart-fair VIP lists you mightfind yourself disappointed. and hollowing-out ofthepublicandpost-public sector,

12 transforms - - - - - 227 / Hito Steyerl: If You Don’t Have Bread, Eat Art!: Contemporary Art and Derivative Fascisms Could 15

Declining Declining 14

One of the first steps of the first steps One 16

remunerated internships? Introducing blockchain public blockchain public internships? Introducing remunerated 13

the bulk of capital will decamp immediately. health insurance? Or on any offshore art-related transaction? art-related offshore any on Or insurance? health in order to reign in tax fraud and money laundering? tax fraud and money in to reign in order fees, If art is an alternative currency, its circulation also outlines an also its circulation art currency, If is an alternative to be repossessed structures Could these operational infrastructure. of currency alternative value would the much How differently? work or restructured to be regulated art corrupt lose if its most aspects were of a minimum even about How larger communities? to benefit art’s rules – gallery in the market artist minimums, resale-time contracts, Let’s put the next paragraph into brackets. It just indicates a hypo- just indicates It into brackets. put the next paragraph Let’s thetical possibility. Now what? Where does one go from here? go from does one Where what? Now An Alternative Alternative Currency? Alternative Alternative An art as alternative currency not only circulate within existing systems not only circulate art currency as alternative economies (publics, institutions, launch not-yet-existing but even can it be an parallel art artmarkets, worlds, etc.)? If is a currency, transformation to expect any kind of progressive But undercurrent? technology or infrastructure the because just – itself by happen to or socialism to create exists – would be like expecting the internet benefit all humankind. The internet spawned automation to evenly results may be called Commune. The not the Paris and Amazon, Uber with but this mostly means that the poor share ‘the sharing economy,’ any less unilateral sharing be suggested, Should the rich, not vice versa. records for the production, transaction, and locating of artworks transaction, and locating for the production, records the most mortifying sponsor and patron relationships instead of the most mortifying relationships patron sponsor and artwashing manufacturing, and banks fossil extraction, weapons about asking for fees How bailed out with former cultural funding? to pay for art similar to those asked on photocopies workers’ on resales towards parallel art sectors would thus be to organize even partial parallel art even be to organize sectors would thus towards limited liquidity and barely sustainability in the absence of bubble of will be a new emerges version Whatever labour. amounts of free In contrast to the modernist autonomy of art art-affiliated autonomy. will Nor isolated. or unlinked, solitary, not is autonomy this schemes, technology. into in-built progress of some fantasy it come about by the contraryOn both a conscious effort it can only emerge through an autonomy that works entities. It’s among diverse and exchange The links it could transformation, and alchemy. circulation, through them links (a.k.a., air-kiss links) and reshaping build on exist as weak Hito Steyerl: If You Don’t Have Bread, Eat Art!: Contemporary Art and Derivative Fascisms / 228 and division.Spend free timeassistingcolleagues, speculative operationsthatindirectly increase authoritarianviolence towards dependencyon shakingtheunsustainableandmortifying any otheractors,whohave production. subsidized art more andartworkers, ithasbeenartists than well. Throughout history patrons, appliesatleastequally andcorporations.But thecontrary worldassponsoredused toperceiving theart by states,foundations, Could itwork likeanUnter, notanUber? How to dothis?People are via allmeansnecessary. isacurrency, If art canitbeanundercurrent? doing this. that cannotafford tosaynoanyofferofincomecouldsave timenot spinoffs, thuscreating reach and legitimacy. Even themajorityofartists time, but also by paying attention to blingstraction and circulating its politically toxic overhead issubsidized by meansoffree laborandlife bloated, entitled,fullysuperfluous,embarrassing,andmostofall under penal-colonyconditions,andotherbafflingbubbles?This armsraces,institutionalfranchisesbuilt means tofillthem,art-fair sponsor VIP prepreviews, bespokemuseumextensionswithoutany commissions inrelation tootherindustries.But whyshouldone who live ‘off theirwork’ subsidize themarket by wayofenormous to art’s circulation, thusmakingitstronger ascurrency. Even artists generally, involved ofotherways everyone alsocontributesinallsorts Butform ofwagelabour(orotherincome)fundsart-making. more concocting mixed-income schemesinwhich,simplyspeaking,some reimagined beyond blood,soil,nation,andcorporation,asnetworks related undercommons tosyncwiththeart- activities. But simultaneouslypeoplecantry would needtohappenwithinacompromised messofcontradictory the ideathatbelongingisinbecoming –notinhavingbeen? of neighbourhoods,publics, layered audiences? cities’? from haughty sovereignty tomodestnetworked devolution? follow municipalistnetworks theleadofnew andalliancesof‘rebel can platform cooperatives institutions contribute to this? Can art encryption work todebunk jargonsofauthenticimmediacy through encryption Can onetransformart’s currency intoart’s confluence? How can arts is art’s scale,perspective, andchallengeinde-growing constituencies? speed is necessary? Howspeed isnecessary? (andart-related) autonomyevolve canartistic imaginaries curious,open-minded, andspirited?How tomaketangible walls? How canpeoplegenuinelyshare whattheyneed? poisonous andrisingwater, infrastructure, and brand-new crumbling face? Do more you wanttoartwash insaneweather, insaneleaders, platforms. Askyourself: Do you wantglobalcapitalismwithafascist free for bank foundations. Don’t ‘share’ corporate crap on monopolist

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22 What How How 229 / Hito Steyerl: If You Don’t Have Bread, Eat Art!: Contemporary Art and Derivative Fascisms

- - - 27

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but in creating exchange. but in creating 4 options, but not fascisms in terms of future to twentieth-century movements that relate options for fascism. and marketing future by any means as equivalents, as in: creating fascisms or not because fascism is the really they are is no point in asking whether There do with its derivatives. which may or may not have anything to underlying entity, 3 in After Art at the end of this moment, the moment of the expansion of neo-liberal globalization. Now, powerful. even more seems historic moment, art as currency 1 2 Apparently still rather stable. Notes product but in the network; not in gaming or predicting the market not in gaming or predicting but in the network; product necessaryoverflow? with speculation Replace abstraction? It’s easy to imagine what the motto for art as the reserve currency of a easy to imagine what the motto for artas the reserve currency It’s envision a posh PR lieutenant polic fully rigged system might be. Just Stephen Squibb for Vidokle, and Anton Lütticken, you to Sven Thank very helpful comments. vision. Similarly, arts venues are already shifting into bonded ware already arts are venues vision. Similarly, inside gilded, gated compounds bank vaults houses and overdesigned worldwide. architects the same three seemingly designed by pushed gingerly declaring to anyone ing the entrance of a big art fair, just bread, have don’t you ‘If aside, displaced, exploited, and ignored: eat art!’ But as a reserve system for dumb, mean, and greedy money, art’s social art’s money, mean, and greedy a reserve as system for dumb, But (auto)destructsvalue and turns into a shell operation that ultimately di empty shells and amplifies fragmentation and just shields more exchanges that derivative fascists don’t control – yet. control fascists don’t that derivative exchanges Art’s organizing role in the value-process – long overlooked, overlooked, – long the value-process in role organizing Art’s clear – is at last becoming or fucked worshipped, downplayed, Art as realistically. then perhaps if not rationally, approach, enough to a maze constitute that art sectors already shows currency alternative lofty ideals, greed, gossip, good-old which in systems overlapping of inebriation, and ruthless networked competition form countless by by transaction than value is generated less of its cliques. The core haggling, heckling, criticism, hearsay, via gossip, endless negotiation, a solid tangle of feudal result is and shade. The small talk, peer reviews, pooling and fervent envy, love rejected enmity, and glowing loyalties short, is not in the the value vital energies. In striving, longing, and Hito Steyerl: If You Don’t Have Bread, Eat Art!: Contemporary Art and Derivative Fascisms / 230 from recent crises–Austria,fromexpansion,apillagestreak theso-calledEastern of point sincethemid-Nineties?Howdoesoneexplainconstantandgrowing presence fascist president, whenit’s ownunemploymentratehasn’t surpassed6percent atany to itslowestlevelintwenty-fouryears.WhyisAustria53percent likelytoelectaneo- is doingverywelleconomically?Indeed,theunemploymentrateinGermanyhasfallen arson fascisms. HowisitthatinGermany, ninetyrefugee campswere attackedlastyearby economic reasons are nottheonlyexplanationfornewpopularityofderivative industrialised middle 5 to futures and prediction markets.Thatsaid, itwouldbeextremely usefulto record the be bothfunnyand devastating forallarttobelikethisor madeondemandaccording Wanted enough reproduce art’s the manipulationofconsensus,submission tothetyrannyofaverages,etc.Arguably, opens 14 Liberate Tate, GulfLabor, etc. as are newartistunionsandother organizations workingonrelated issues,including 13 institutions andmuseums. 12 Its Bubble,’ArtnetNews,June28,2016. I 11 themselves. somewhat misleadingbecausetheyshowsomethingotherthanactually already do or This 10 9 nontransparency, andbecauseofitsoverwhelmingreliance onhumanrelations. set offunctions.Artascurrency gainsitsrelative stabilityprecisely becauseof decentralized transparency, northepretense toanautomatedincorruptible 8 Become Currency inaCryptocurrency World,’ TheNewStack,May31,2015. cryptocurrency israisedinaveryinformativetextbyJ.ChrisAnderson,‘WhyArtCould as currency worksinthesameway. Nevertheless,thepossibilityofartbecominga structural similaritiesbetweenartsystemsandcryptocurrencies, nottosuggestart 7 6 kill. threatened orjustslighted,blackmailthewholeofsociety, votefascist,destabilize,or much complicated.Thelatteralsorequires apartofthepopulation thatwill,ifitfeels of hard facts,thecorrelation betweeneconomichardship andfascistpopularityisvery it isalsomostcertainlynottheonlyreason fortheboominfascistderivatives.Inlight The economyismostcertainlyanimportantreason fortheaccelerationoffascism.But are refusing totakeinrefugees likeHungaryortryingtominimizenumbersPoland. European arson attacks.Incontrastderivativefascismsare strongest either incomparativelyrich so-called down, notup.Themore than50.000refugees strandedthere bytheclosingdownof Greece, hardest hitbycripplingausterity, votesforthefascistGoldenDawnare going at not as countries. ButinPortugal,economicinequalityiswayhigher, andunemploymentistwice car industriescheatingoncarbonemissions?It’s truethatinequalityhasriseninboth Europeanfunneled centuriesofSouthern peoples’futures intosubsidiesfordomestic industry; that

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By trying to gauge artists’ lifespans or investing according to By trying to gauge artists’ lifespans or investing according I suppose big art institutions could see themselves as cities. I suppose big art institutions could see themselves the twenty-four deposed How do we defend municipalities under attack, like See the Platform Cooperativism website http://platform.coop/about. The idea is to website http://platform.coop/about. The idea See the Platform Cooperativism One of many excellent examples is Neue Nachbarschaft in Berlin, where Berliners – is Neue Nachbarschaft in Berlin, where One of many excellent examples Pointed out by Anton Vidokle in ‘Art without Market, Art without Education: Political in ‘Art without Market, Art without Pointed out by Anton Vidokle able to say no to that it is a major luxury for most artists to be I am fully aware Adapting a set of propositions advanced by Fr Adapting a set of propositions And the currency function will be diminished by decr will be diminished by function And the currency Also of course see Walid Raad’ see Walid Also of course

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Structure of World History: From Modes of Production to Modes of Exchange Modes of Production History: From of World Structure 27 the number of the kids female artists have. 26 Confluence See the new issue of the journal over dynamic developments. loss of control in southeast Turkey, including Nusaybin, Cizre, Sur, and Suruç, some of which have Sur, including Nusaybin, Cizre, in southeast Turkey, self-rule and operate on a model of assembly-based autonomy? declared 25 A transversal, January 2011, http://eipcp.net/transversal/0811/massumi/en. on these and other notions http://transversal.at/transversal/0916. 23 24 municipalities utter Rich Meme,’ which maps vectors of a Black text ‘Poor Meme, excellent recent Dean’s http:// movement, and multiplicity, motion, history, by shared projected circulationism reallifemag.com/poor-meme-rich-meme. and associationism as sites of creative organization. Art systems combine most modes Art systems combine most modes organization. and associationism as sites of creative of on based on sharing, the dissolution of enclosures, mode of circulation of a potential future of parallel economies using creation locally actualized diverse constituencies, and the alternative On the one hand, this means LETS and other pre-blockchain currencies. which has been explored by Samir Amin, Immanuel Wallerstein, Andre Gunder Frank, Andre by Samir Amin, Immanuel Wallerstein, which has been explored fully developed version of this text will rely and Giovanni Arrighi, among others. A more heavily Karatani reflection Coming Exception,’ New Left Review 22 This conditions blockchain elements. See, for example, Sami Emory, ‘BitchCoin Is a New Cryptocurrency ‘BitchCoin Is a New Cryptocurrency blockchain elements. See, for example, Sami Emory, February 10, 2015, http://creators.vice.com/en_us/article/ Project, for Art,’ The Creator’s qkwvad/bitchcoin-is-a-cryptocurrency-for-art; 2015, http://dismagazine. ‘Monegraph and the Status of the Art Object,’ dis magazine, An excellent critical com/discussion/73342/monegraph-and-the-status-of-the-art-object. 21 platforms to users through use technology to connect workers and service-providers used in many of cooperatives. Blockchains are or organized worker-owned that are the 20 art courses and lessons in and newcomers – come together for both longtime residents German or music. 18 2013. Economy of Art,’ e-flux Journal 43, March 19 anything; 17 Minor Compositions, 2013. Study Fugitive Planning and Black. Brooklyn: Undercommons: how part-i. 16 or artworks to commodities reverting altogether, as currency function eliminating art’s products. 15 provenance and to a certain extent the authenticity of artworks, and to establish public to establish artworks, and of the authenticity to a certain extent and provenance through money laundering to prevent in order and their whereabouts of works registries more also support could perhaps of record-keeping run, this kind in the longer art. And and the total tracking potential for the this also creates Of course, projects. ambitious another level into social thus assimilating them on analysis of art works, secondary data metasurveillance. marketing and Hito Steyerl: If You Don’t Have Bread, Eat Art!: Contemporary Art and Derivative Fascisms / 232 The EndofProbability. Hoboken,NJ:Wiley, 2010. 28

I learned thisfromI learned ElieAyache’s fascinatingtreatise The BlankSwan: 233 / Ben Vickers: immutability mantra - - - - 1973:

–

1 Some lessons though are more unique and specific than others, buried unique and specific than more though are lessons Some is a visionary presidency in amongst the brief period of Allende’s into a legible version activities unfolding now that grounds initiative of reality. Namely an initiative orchestrated between 1971 between orchestrated an initiative Namely of reality. to a distributed decision support system deployed Cybersyn, Project aid in the management of the national economy of Chile. The system an economic simulator, sub projects: itself was made up of ‘four to check factorycustom software performance, a futuristic operations All of our technological systems are haunted by the imprint of dreams of dreams the imprint haunted by are technological systems All of our civiliza of human reckless drive The lost in time. now and nightmares Allende, a Chilean physician and politician, Salvador Dr. 1970 In in to preside Marxist president was the first He was elected to power. election Allende was quick Latin America. As one might expect, upon and collectivization of nationalization of vast on a process to embark on debts owed defaults to proposed in addition infrastructure, state inevitably This governments. and foreign international creditors to special of deeply entrenched upset, in quick succession, a number period after a so much so that in 1973, bodies; foreign and interests Allende Nixon, president perpetrated by economic warfare of severe militarya by the deposed to was led This CIA. the by backed coup and the brutal of Chile control establishment of the military junta’s very This is a and dark sad Pinochet. rule Augusto 40-year of General period of human history which has many lessons for what is now present. unfolding in the extreme immutability mantra immutability – has led deep time to the present – from innovate tions to continually and the miraculous, be it the seamless of the strange to the invention Mirror ancient Egypt’s mathematics that constitute astrotheological the rumblings immortality of in the early-twentieth-cen of Heaven; which became the cata as Cosmism, tury philosophy known Russian in the 1970s: an Cybersyn Project or Chile’s lyst for space exploration; government. automating away cybernetic system capable of advanced such as these, capable of reshaping socio-technical systems Hybrid their very The les few by and far between. nature are grand narratives, can draw tend parallels we can learn, insight to be gained and sons we perhaps time, of the aforementioned over to fluctuate dramatically is Cybersyn. to now most relevant Ben Vickers Ben Ben Vickers: immutability mantra / 234 these systems, Whilst itiseasytoundermineandmocktherhetoricaccompanying ground forinsurgentinnovation.most fertile intelligence)andourunstable futurein artificial thatprovides the inregard(particularly totheintersectionwithadvanced developments the latentpossibilitiesthatreside inEthereum’s unknown unknowns tracking platforms.Despite itbeingearlydaysisunquestionably prediction markets (a.k.a. ‘assassination markets’) or provenance the wholesale redesign of identity systems, anonymized marketplaces, along withtheirown accompanyinginternalcurrency: whetheritbe for anyone anywhere todeploy theirown decentralized applications, with code–Buterin Ethereum’s founderhasunleashedtheability models ofcentralbanking–replacing thehumandecisionmaking Satoshi Nakamoto’s invention irrevocably disintermediatedcurrent foundations.Into itsweaponsthesameway gradecryptographic technical innovations as Bitcoin but with significant upgrades made know asBitcoin 2.0,Ethereum follows manyofthesametropes and bureaucracy, embodyingauniquely‘Chilean Way toSocialism’. with thetouchofabutton,effectively automating-away vast tractsof socialist project: an advancedthe economy system capable of running McCulloch. Cybersyn was intended as a cornerstone to Chile’s specializing in management cybernetics and protégé of Warren The architect ofthissystemwas Stafford Beers,a Britishconsultant sotomonitorproduction innearrealthroughout time. thecountry angelic title Democratic Autonomous Organization, previously Organization, now crowned onethereum.org’s homepage withthe of Ethereum’s platform,the DAO orDecentralized Autonomous impact. There beingnobetterexampleofthisthanthetrophy feature can offerusonlyafleetingand whimsicaldiagramofitspotentialfuture language ofmaterialistsattempting tomakesenseofitsimplications 16th century. It isagovernance sandbox forourtime.Thedescriptive pirateutopia,equivalent tothoseofthecorsairenclavesthe true of the unregulated and experimental in theextreme, Ethereum represents bending phenomenaithasbeguntounleashontotheworld. Totally to one mainframe computer.’ room andanationalnetwork oftelexmachinesthatwere attached decentralized autonomousorganizations.’ platform focused on planetary scale computation, smart contractsand scalecomputation,smart platform focusedonplanetary Vitalik Buterin inorder toestablisha‘distributedblockchain based launched in August 2015. Dreamt up by the young blockchain pioneer remade, intheformofEthereum ‘the world computer’, a system As thelegacyofonesystemhauntsanother–Cybersyn isbeing 5

it isperhapslessinteresting themind thancharting

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235 / Ben Vickers: immutability mantra Intended as something akin as something akin Intended

– Tao Te Ching, 4th Century BC Te – Tao roughly $750 million, exchanges were were $750 million, exchanges roughly 8 In the space of a few hours Ethereum lost around 40 percent of 40 percent lost around space of a few the Ethereum hours In 7 to a decentralized stateless venture capital fund, The DAO welcomed DAO capital fund, The stateless venture to a decentralized with a cryptographic anywhere anyone wallet stuffed from investment in the space one expected it to happen, but No full of number strings. became the largest crowd-funding The DAO of less than a month $160 million – an amount held in raising over in history, exercise a 100 lines of code contained in just over Ether, currency Ethereum’s planetaryon a decentralized scale computer. its total market capitalization, its total market halted and the cavalry of the Ethereum Foundation led by Buterin Buterin led by Foundation halted and the cavalry of the Ethereum it could become as bottomless before Ether, of to stem the flow moved that simultaneous to the attack a averted, except Crisis as the valley. presumably shortingEther, of price the against placed been had bet $9 million. netting the attacker around Then on June 17th an attack was performed on The DAO, exploiting DAO, an attack was performedJune 17th on The Then on time, members of the Ethereum real In in its code. a weakness attacker’ dubbed ‘the hacker, community watched as an anonymous drained it of that slowly to The DAO call’ performed a ‘recursive funds. The Dao is empty (like a bowl), Its usefulness can never be exhausted. The Dao is bottomless (like a valley), Perhaps the ancestor of all things. Invisible or formless, it appears non-existing But actually it exists. I don’t know whose child it is at all. Lord. It seems to have even preceded the It was on the 30th of April 2016 that the first public DAO was the first public DAO 2016 that was on the 30th of April It a new blaze path ‘to stated mission was Its launched on Ethereum. existing for the betterment of its members, in business organization the with everywheresolely and operating and nowhere simultaneously code.’ will of unstoppable steadfast iron referred to as a DAC in the original white paper; Decentralized Decentralized paper; white original in the a DAC to as referred an represents essentially DAO The Corporation. Autonomous and code, in exclusively executes that constitution organizational Emphasized reality. a habit of shaping have languages know as we the fervour in operating by perhaps best which programmers with itself drawn down Scripture were to the code, as if it refer this space of God. the word from directly Ben Vickers: immutability mantra / 236 pause foraminute; imagine thatitwasanydifferent following foreveryone online.Let’s It is,Iacknowledge, difficulttofollow whatisgoingon,butdon’t were drawnontheimmutabilitymantraof‘code islaw’. – andinthetroll-infested caverns ofReddit theideologicalfaultlines the equivalent amountinETC onthe‘Ethereum Classic’ blockchain Ether ontheforked Ethereum blockchainpriortothefork alsohad listed thecurrency. Suddenly thatowned everyone thecryptocurrency and deployed it.Even tosupport Poloniex, amajortradingexchange, genitor; ‘Ethereum Classic’, andtoolswere websites, forums copied pro as the original, one true into its code. Claiming its birthright resuscitating thediscarded fork, breathing computingpower back Suddenly abreakaway renegade factionwithinthecommunitywas future –except itdidn’t die. die, whilsttheforked version setouttowards abrighter, unblemished This lefttheoriginaliterationof Ethereum’s blockchaintowitherand within 24hoursallfundspreviously heldin limbohadbeenreturned. that mattered hadagreed and the entire Ethereum systemforked; Miraculously thiswas achieved. On the21stofJuly 2016,everyone couldbeconfidentwouldsecurelyeveryone patchtheissue. to keepthenetwork online,andanupdatetothesoftware; onethat the minerswhocontributedistributedcomputingpower needed form, thiswouldrequire from thecommunity, support inparticular tracking ofalltransactions.Given thedecentralized nature oftheplat table blockchainsystemwhichconstitutesEthereum, and enablesthe attack owners itwouldrequire makinganadjustmenttotheimmu In order torecover thefundsthoughandreturn themtotheirpre- of thehackasanascenteventuality ofsuchimmature technology. seemed togesture towards atechnicalfix,ratherthananacceptance munity discuss in public how to resolve the issue(s). Rough consensus followed sawthedevelopment teamand thewiderEthereum com With TheDAO’s fundsfrozen forthenext21days, weeks that comes from hundreds ofthousands ofindividualswithastake, tying but inpracticeandwiththis the cold,hard collisionwith reality that speed, withrelative lowriskfortherest oftheplanet,notintheory the thrillcomes in observingthe unexpected unfolding at breakneck Instead online. be finally will Skynet soon sometime that possibility the even or on, early invested that anyone for gains profit + percent frictionless, trustless,accelerationist future forsocietyorthe20000 What’s excitingaboutthesedevelopmentsis not thepossibilityofa - - - - 237 / Ben Vickers: immutability mantra - -

example:

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The ‛Chilean Way’ to Socialism Hits a Dead End. Thesis. 2012. to Socialism The ‛Chilean Way’ New York: New York: Shock: When Everything Happens Now. Present

currency

rhetoric;

Chile’s ‘Project Cybersyn’. 2009. ‘Project Chile’s the

such of

Douglas.

value

total ‘Market Capitalization’ typically refers to ‘an estimation of the value of a business that ‘Market Capitalization’ typically refers Basic explainer: http://coindesk.com/understanding-dao-hack-journalists From the original Ethereum website c.2016 but no longer present: http://ethereum.org. website c.2016 but no longer present: the original Ethereum From Garcia Jr, Greg. 9/11/73: Greg. Jr, Garcia Medina, Eden. http://daohub.org

is obtained by multiplying the number of shares outstanding by the current price of a price outstanding by the current is obtained by multiplying the number of shares to it refers case of cryptocurrencies, as guided by the market. In the share’ the Detailed technical explanation: http://hackingdistributed.com/2016/06/18/analysis-of-the- explanation: technical Detailed dao-exploit 8 6 7 4 5 Example Hern, the answer to life, the universe and everything?’ Alex. ‘Blockchain: 3 1 Rushkoff, 2 http://theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/07/blockchain-answer-life-universe-everything- bitcoin-technology Notes And so now is probably a good time to highlight the current state the current highlight time to good a is probably so now And the short space of less than a In universe. of play in the blockchain $1.2 billion from capitalization has grown market Ethereum’s year any particular on or take 15 percent day $20+ billion give to around to for its development responsible the foundation – whilst this gives taking is not geared towards the development of a coherent political of a coherent the development towards geared taking is not it has no list and like Occupy one spoken out loud, at least not project, exclusively time, guided almost in real Instead it evolves of demands. those who choose to participate. politics of by the prefigurative runwaydevelopment tal autonomy and for at least half a century, transnational pacts between in the consolidation of stakes are the real Ethereum the EEA (Enterprise the establishment of corporations. In organizations including banks such 150+ Alliance) comprising over of Bank of Canada, Royal Bank National Santander, Morgan, as J.P. Accenture; Deloitte and firms Scotland, and UBS; global consulting close in – each working and Intel Cisco Systems tech giants Microsoft, - repre constructwhich to collaboration initiatives blockchain-based for our time. Woods sents nothing less than a Bretton their ideology to the flagpole of a technology thatstarted outas ‘neu- governance the is this mistake, no Make tral’. that 101 stone grinding Project Unlike Reich’. ‘Nerd the of projects political the inform will under this infrastructural program, or the Russian space Cybersyn http://informatics.indiana.edu/edenm/publications/MedinaIULive.pdf http://digitalcommons.wou.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1011&context=his Penguin, 2014. Ben Vickers: immutability mantra / 238 239 / Rob Myers: Blockchain Poetics

3 2 -

is against government, but for money and private and private but for money is against government, 4

and the blockchain technology that originated with it that originated blockchain technology and the 1 document written in 1994 by Timothy C. May Timothy document written in 1994 by Cyphernomicon inspire high political passions. For the libertarians and anarcho- For high political passions. inspire a is it technology, this promoted initially and wrote who capitalists and critical theorists the socialists For order. model of an ideal social it is literal fascism its popularity by been wrong-footed who have incorporating previous contributions to cypherpunk email lists. That incorporating previous using idea of crypto-anarchy, with the its crescendo document reaches encryptedstate, the smash to money electronic and communication enemy of individual coercive which is identified as an unjust and for contract law and cypherpunks. Crypto-anarchy’s by desire freedom a political anarcho-capitalism, money without a central state resembles and times in the Cyphernomicon ideology which is mentioned several form that crypto-anarchy identified as the even will take. Bitcoin is the fulfilment of the cypherpunk dream of stateless is the fulfilment of the cypherpunk dream Bitcoin in early expression worldview The cypherpunk was given money. the Where, What, Who, Who, What, Where, How in technological form. Neither group is happy with the blockchain’s group Neither in technological form. capital as the new global financial transport by for layer recuperation and the experience of the blockchain However, banking transactions. contemporaryto be can than complex relates it more is society how politics, and should inform ideological strokes reductive drawn in complex this discusses essay This does. it than philosophy and artmore the blockchain. phenomenology of ate some of its functions in its absence, the creation of peer-to-peer ate some of its functions in its absence, the creation Both as a tool to resist or destroy the state and as a necessity to recre the state and as a necessity or destroy Both as a tool to resist property. This is at odds with more traditional forms of anarchism forms of anarchism traditional with more This is at odds property. of the state. of the power property as a product private which regard of the power implies that the coercive ultimately Anarcho-capitalism security services, using private paid for using the state can be recreated and anarcho-capitalists anarchists capital. Socialist property owner’s the other’s each regarding tend not to take each other seriously, worldview as incoherent. Anarcho-capitalism Bitcoin Blockchain Poetics Blockchain Rob Myers Rob Rob Myers: Blockchain Poetics / 240 the direction thatBitcoin shouldbedeveloped in,thendisappeared. attempted inreal lifeby eGold. to administrate this third-party function, a solution later disastrously andacentraldatabase inorderprotagonists usegoldheldintrust describe asthe‘Byzantine Generals’ Problem’. is the‘double spendproblem’, enthusiasts orwhatcryptocurrency Preventing thesame electronic moneybeingspentmultipletimes like. can copythatasyou likeandthereby spenditasmanytimesyou If Isendyou anemailsaying‘Ihereby give you tencredit units’, you money needstobescarce butdatacanbecopiedwithoutrestriction. tive. Representing moneyaselectronic datahasaproblem, though; electronic moneywasakeycypherpunkandanarcho-capitalist objec first algorithmofpost-modern for statelesselectronic moneyin2009.Bitcoin’s ‘blockchain’ isthe a solutiontothedoublespendproblem andthereby tothedesire Satoshi Nakamoto, thepseudonymouscreator ofBitcoin, created meaning, orofsomeoneelsecapturingthesurplusvalue ofcode. they claimto. What is atriskistheblockingorironizing ofintended that intermsofestablishingthatsignifiershave the history and art, andauthenticityinmoney channels, resembles theproblem offorgery city, whilecommunicatingviapossiblytreacherous communications Byzantinethe apocryphal generalsfaceinagreeing aplantoattack the blockchainasagift, whoever orwhatever theymayhave been,gave theworldBitcoin and foundation myth.Satoshi,Bitcoin andexemplary hasanincorruptible In the figure of Satoshi Nakamoto (or rather his powerful absence), Myths have thepower todirect society’sdesires andachievements. PathologiesMyth, Virtue, science. doing souseseconomicincentives tosolve a problem incomputer andpossiblyhostile computingenvironment, andin untrustworthy The blockchainalgorithmisdesignedtocreate consensusinan to computingmodelsdeveloped through the twentieth century. the assumptionsofsecurityandconsistencythatwere foundational 1999 cypherpunknovel individuals involved inagiven transaction–usually banks. In the orotherhardwareservers controlled by someoneotherthanthe Previous electronic moneysystemsrelied on‘trusted third parties’, 10 builtagroup ofdiscipleswhounderstood Cryptonomicon computing 8 by Neal Stephenson

9 in that it departs from inthatitdeparts 5 Theproblem that

7 the - 6

241 / Rob Myers: Blockchain Poetics

17 14

banks 12 about a state 13

Entitlement, coercion and coercion Entitlement, 16

(a misspelling of ‘hold) are just some examples of the some examples of just of ‘hold) are (a misspelling 11

to the giving of sexual consent. 15 might say, this is ‘very not wow’. this is ‘very might say, Perhaps worse than the frenetic and wrong-headed speculation around speculation around and wrong-headed worse than the frenetic Perhaps altcoins, the rhetoric of the certainty of transactions and enforceability its tempts people to misapply the blockchain repeatedly by promised use of the to new recording kinds of quasi-property:protocols from firearms, described in the era of 19th century nothing economic bubbles are of The power the conviction of the shitcoin hodler. to compared who are workers that FinTech language can also be seen in the way parties the blockchain for the trusted of existing third recuperating revolutionaryfinancial institutions can hide behind rhetoric and feel- experiences) of community. good talk (and often real and state apparatus, that cyberspace libertariansand state apparatus, historically have very Bitcoin’s The against. themselves positioned in block first contains a message to prove Block’, ‘Genesis as the blockchain, known Times The – a quote from the date of its creation over-simplification haunt too many proposed blockchain use-cases blockchain proposed many too haunt over-simplification The mythologized virtues of Satoshi and the blockchain – their Satoshi and virtuesThe mythologized of to the and fairness – stand in contrast freedom, incorruptibility, giants of flesh and steel’, vices and corruptions of the ‘weary jargon and shibboleths reflecting attitudes and behaviours that have have and behaviours that attitudes shibboleths reflecting jargon and zenith its in-joke reached rise. This tendency Bitcoin’s emerged from which very by value its economic consciously grew with Dogecoin, culture. shared community through its growing outside of simple currency. As Dogecoin’s community of ‘shibes’ As Dogecoin’s outside of simple currency. they had started mining Bitcoin in 2009. ‘The Madness of Crowds’ Madness of in 2009. ‘The they had started mining Bitcoin and ‘hodl’ The society founded on this myth quickly developed culture and culture developed quickly this myth on society founded The (a the world,’ free the markets, ‘Free its ideals: to reflect language moon’ the ‘to implications), anarcho-capitalist to Bitcoin’s reference value), fiat currency of Bitcoin’s growth to the explosive (a reference But myth can also misdirect, and language also reflects a culture’s a culture’s and language also reflects can also misdirect, myth But of success spawned hundreds fears and disappointments. Bitcoin’s cryptocurrencies, ineptly managed or many of them other ‘altcoin’ and or ‘pump to as ‘shitcoins’, referred naked scams – pejoratively of these worthless The purchasers tokens speak currencies. dump’ as if who will become rich as surely ‘investors’ as though they are banking bail-out, a story that contrasts vividly with Bitcoin’s removal banking bail-out, a story removal that contrasts vividly with Bitcoin’s parties.of trusted third Rob Myers: Blockchain Poetics / 242 politics goesbacktoantiquity. bank codebooksinEurope, and therelationship between cryptography andmoneygoesbacktotheuseofmediaeval between cryptography have theirprecedents –the relationshipapplications ofencryption long before itsapplicationtoelectronic currency. Cypherpunk loved PKC, andusedittosecure emailandothercommunications that communicationscanbehiddenin.Thecypherpunksnaturally randomnumberstocreate amathematicalspace large,very of very 1970s, andlaterinthedecadeUSA. originally invented insecrecy by theUKgovernment intheearly transactions, Bitcoin usesPublic (PKC), Key Cryptography asystem established through itssecurityagainstdouble-spending. To secure As suggestedabove, theeconomicvalue oftheBitcoin blockchain is Security, Work, Power, Proof the mechanical minting process of cash (Bitcoin is a issued or enforced by the state. Despite this, fiat resembles Bitcoin in contrast ittostate-created ‘fiat’ money, onthebasisthatitisnot of those examples, it also functions as a critique of dollars butwhichcanonlybe spentwithinaspecificsystem. Unlike currency withequivalent value in pounds sterlingorUnited States Dollars ormobilephonecredit, it isjustanothercomplementary Monetarily, Bitcoin islikeAirMiles, Green Shield Stamps, Linden Economics, Incentives, Rationality behind it. of blocksisthelongestchain,chainwithmosthashing power power usedtodothisiscalled ‘hashingpower’. Themostsecure chain value, thecomputational hashwith aparticular ing acryptographic to theblockchainnetwork. Since thepuzzletakesformoffind to broadcast thevalue associatedwiththis‘new block’ oftransactions to solve butcheaptoconfirmpuzzle,andthereby bethefirstperson complete acomputationally(andtherefore economically)expensive ‘block reward’ bitcoins,you ofnew mustcompetetobethefirst a proposed emailanti-spamsystemcalled‘Hashcash’. To claimthe To secure blocks, Bitcoin uses a ‘proof-of-work’ scheme adopted from of scale is acypherpunkera,anditsdeployment ofPKC isdifferent by degrees

defamiliarization of traditionalcurr 19 But theeraofBitcoin and WikiLeaks encies. Bitcoin proponents 18 PKC usestheproperties

/ coin after all), and

problematization - 243 / Rob Myers: Blockchain Poetics ------to 21

The core difference then of Bitcoin is then of difference The core 20 several months profiling the wrong person for a literary person for the wrong months profiling magazine several in the creation of money out of thin air in the columns of databases databases of in the columns of thin air out of money creation in the running energy-hungry on Likewise, banks. Bitcoin by mainframes and mining for requirements in the capital fiat currency resembles rigs and hardware its systems in mining instantiation of the material means that, Bitcoin supply of the fixed Furthermore, wallet devices. will appreciate its value should guarantee that its scarcity like gold, to lead to deflationary time. This is intended which economics, over makes it very of and to adherents appealing to its early adopters economics. School Austrian Within the Bitcoin community there are economic and political argu political and economic are there community Bitcoin the Within of the Bitcoin the security comes from seen, this value have As we in- economic providing Bitcoin, in for paid is security This system. security of the system using the system itself. to maintain the centives in theoryare easy a closed loop, at least. They create These incentives that assume example, if we For to misunderstand or to get wrong. in transac opposed interests miners and account holders do not have reduce reasons (seeking to These mistakes can be made for technical (seeking to avoid costs or transaction times) or ideological reasons or to tie a system to a national jurisdic social relations competitive realize that Nakamoto’s implementation of Bitcoin has a libertarian implementation of Bitcoin that Nakamoto’s realize political aspect. the blockchain, about transactions ‘spamming’ ments about low-value about the fungibility of bit non-monetary it, transactions ‘bloating’ and servicescoins stolen or spent on dubious items criminals, and by or decrease these will increase to address about whether ‘censorship’ difficulty the the algorithmic level, At as a result. of Bitcoin the value the by puzzle for each block is adjusted of solving the proof-of-work value-protect reliable, the regular, system every to ensure two weeks of the blockchain. ing creation we may ones) low high fees, users from tion fees (miners benefit from competition for block remove if we Or fail to balance them correctly. building for incentive a different without introducing mining rewards of the system by the security may reduce and storing blocks then we open fewer miners, leaving the system more attracting and retaining attack. to a 51 percent built-in economic incentives Bitcoin’s to consider how tion). Failing ideological underpinnings, what and align with Bitcoin’s from result the diverse to address one may think of them, can lead to a failure ever on a monetary press that and incentives and conflicting motivations that it duplicates existing market-currency models without the need models without market-currency that it duplicates existing to spend don’t have You banks or state operators. for centralized Rob Myers: Blockchain Poetics / 244 able tocreate afork andstealblockrewards) such asthe51percent attackonFeathercoin (inwhichanattackerwas their security. beingbroken Examples forprofit, ofcryptocurrencies issufficientfor using thecoin,localtoBitcoin user-baseitself) maximizing behaviour expressed through thegame of miningand assumethatlocaleconomicrationality(profit-Cryptocurrencies technical orpoliticalreasons, thenittoowillseeadoptiondrop off. a problem foraltcoins.If Bitcoin itself gets theseincentives wrong, for system from societyinagametheoretically soundway. Thisisn’tjust 1st 1970,the roughly ten-minute durationofeach block marks the mapping from blockchaintimetothenumber ofsecondssinceJanuary physical universe cannotrival. Ignoring theUnix timestamps thatgive a andfinalitythatthe along theblockchainwitha certainty relativistic information (the transactions) that it contains. Time’s arrow points The securityoftheblockchain provides astrong temporalorder forthe Order (temporal, social,political) game –andwe donotalwaysknow whichgamewe are playing. on blockchaincurrencies shows that there isalwaysmore thanone economics, this influence of cultural and social factors contemporary in (slightly faster block times). Despite the primacy of game theory users), andonlysecondarilyonitstechnical-economic innovation social value (the fun-time, jargon-filled culture ofitscommunity of in relation tootherblockchaincurrencies, ispredicated firstlyonits on thissocial-ethicsofnetworked activity, Dogecoin’s differentiator the Bangladesh Liberation War asthe‘Indo-Pak’ war. Bollywood aesthetics,butratheronethathasdonesoby referring to not theonethathasoffendedlargestaudiencewithitspolished be seeninthefactthatmovie withthelowest score onIMDBis trolling activitywithinasupposedlyself-containeddigitalsystemcan and moralresponse. Anotherexampleofthiskindglobalsocial the supposedlydiscarded branchofthefork wastheonlyrational original Ethereum systemashavingbetrayed. For themmaintaining terms ofEthereum’s socialcontract–athattheyregarded the of theloudestproponents oftheETC fork phrasedtheiractionsin its progenitors, anexampleofglobal islikewise users reprised theuseofETC Ethereum fork againstthewishesof forexamplethe wayinwhich The activityoftrolling cryptocurrencies, this assumption. the coin,bringingoutsideforces tobear)cantrump maximizing behaviourthatknows itcanmakemore moneyoutside attacks onEthereum, show thatglobaleconomicrationality(profit-

22 or the denial of service orthedenialofservice social rationality. Some 23 Capitalizing 245 / Rob Myers: Blockchain Poetics - - - - - consensus The instantiation of this order in Bitcoin, or at least strong supportBitcoin, or at least strong for in The instantiation of this order the libertarian a tool for justice as seen from of point it, makes Bitcoin state appara from agency away – taking power decentralizes It view. Society Code, Law, As well as a strong internal temporal order, there is a strong social or- a strong is there internal temporal order, as a strong As well con ‘politics’ that deliberately excludes – one der implicit in Bitcoin of as the distortingceived intervention in authentic social of the state is no (or at least their transactions). There peers between relationships no in via inflation, on the blockchain – via tax, or devaluation ‘theft’ voluntary its surveillance payment for the state’s wars and and oppres accumulations and trades fair of continuum a is there Instead sion. peers. economic based on voluntary between relationships to a homogenously ordered tus and distributing it to users according whether of the state re-centralization, As a result, system of relations. which can pools’ in ‘mining or of blockchain mining hashing power carry seen as bad upgrades, is block protocol attacks or percent out 51 peers by a running created is blockchain The itself. of and in and the it. Bitcoin ertystate to guard can be upheld without the onwards, Nakamoto that. From precisely blockchain purport to allow absences – no state, no bank, no by such guiding is defined Bitcoin tokens. no real-world boardroom, passing of time, the ever-increasing expenditure of hashing power, and power, of hashing expenditure the ever-increasing of time, passing certainty in the blockchain. encoded of facts increasing the resulting of blocks. succession metronomic in the time fact over becomes Proof already updates are celebrations to software from events Real-world we everyone When the time with blocks tells blocks. timed to specific parties, trusted its time and fiat atomic third from switched have will earth, of the time timed to blockchain to the revolutions clocks timed of certaintyto the accumulation hashing power. through This absence-of-politics-as-politics puts any would-be critic in the po- This absence-of-politics-as-politics puts and an interventionistsition of having to defend coercion state, or is itself a form which Bitcoin of having to demonstrate the ways in to appear incoherent noted, anarcho-capitalism have of state. As we prop of private that the notion presupposes as it socialist anarchists algorithm, not a ruling algorithm. It embodies the political right of embodies algorithm, not a ruling It algorithm. further as by forks followed the state inevitably away from exit, a fork their over cryptocurrenciescommunities rise up around and disagree directions. Rob Myers: Blockchain Poetics / 246 LambdaMOO For enthusiasts,Lawrence manycryptocurrency Lessig’s Identity, Representation and socialmeasures forthefork). (gettingcommunitysupport code (a ‘hard fork’ modification of the underlying Ethereum system) community around it.Resolving itinvolved intensive work onboth rights, turnedademocraticventure capitalfundintoacrisisforthe hundred and fifty million dollars’ of tokens worth representing voting contractallowed smart bug inacryptocurrency hackerstostealone in society. ‘TheDAO hack’, inwhichapreviously undiscovered When society is represented as code, failures of code become failures both beyond recognition).gent legalframework(orpossiblydistorting societytobearonthisnew,democratic idealsofcontemporary emer rations, co-operativesorexistinggovernments ornew –bringingthe are beingcreated fororganizingvoting structures, whetherforcorpo- not create amore justsociety. In response, blockchain-basedsystems role ofthestateinadecentralized yet lessconstrainedmannerdoes ofthestatethatisbeingobjectedto?Reproducing thecoercive itself) the form (how something is maintained)or the function (maintenance requireproperty thecoercive power ofthestatetomaintainthem,isit tocurrencies inheritfrom anarcho-capitalism. If money, contracts and real worlddoesn’talsoapply. Andthere isanothertensionthatcryp blockchain doesn’tmeanthatthelawregarding stocksandshares inthe law oftheland.Just becauseyou are creating stocksandshares onthe is atension between the jurisdictional claims ofcode-as-lawandthe free from itsbourgeoisstateshackles–andchecksbalances.There deeds, intocontractsand‘intellectualproperty’. But thisisalawset of capital,property. From financial restrictions, through shares and codes implement areThe lawsthat cryptocurrency almost always those in onefork issimplyameaninglessstringofbitsinanother. is polycentric.cryptocurrencies You can always fork – and what is law on theirown individual blockchains,butcode-is-lawinthespaceof into hundreds ofdifferent coins. Individual codebasesmaybelaw Thecodeof inhuman perfection. Bitcoin hasbeenmodifiedorcopied principle ofcode-is-law, reducing ittohumanchoiceinthenameof initsoperation,debasesthe intention orhaslesshumanintervention whichcodebetterreflectsabout whichcodeshouldberun, Satoshi’s is noBitcoin network, andnoblockchain.But humanbeingsarguing Lessig’s dismay). Without code (and massed computing power) there (to has becomeanormative idealratherthanacriticalobservation

24 -era observation that,ontheInternet,-era observation ‘code islaw’ 26

25 - -

247 / Rob Myers: Blockchain Poetics - - , the BADA4CF5328394F73 There are also tricks to include are There 1BoatSLRHtKNngkdXEeobR76 27 e.g. can trust as interactions in their social each other have to trusthave in their economic transac each other . This is probably the only way that media-jamming-style the only way that probably . This is Using a PKC key as identity marker simultaneously hides a peer’s real hides a peer’s real simultaneously marker key as identity a PKC Using mathemati their blockchain identity with life identity and identifies spoofing of identity can take place on a blockchain without hacking it. can take place on a blockchain without spoofing of identity On the blockchain, data from the outside world is identified or from the blockchain, data On its cryptographic by hash. A cryptographicrepresented hash is a of a short but nonetheless almost certainly unique representation much longer piece of data. Cryptographic very to hashes are sensitive result in in the input will change in data, a single character different SHA256 cryptographicFor example, the output. completely different a meaning veryhash of my genome (a piece of data with from different and which would take many blocks to include in a quantity of Bitcoin blocks) is early 2017 one megabyte Bitcoin’s cal certainty as a matter of public record. This is a dialectic of absolute This is a dialectic of absolute cal certaintya matter of public record. as is a reified key’ ‘I am my private Saying and absolute identity. secrecy frees It identity. notion of individual and deliberately impoverished individuals to not and so they tions, a result. b53LETtpyT On the blockchain, the peers that engage in transactions are represented represented are in transactions that engage the peers the blockchain, On are addresses keys. Bitcoin public their PKC based on addresses by Although some of letters and numbers. meaningless strings deliberately of human-readable which adds a degree address’, a ‘vanity users have the start to structure key, of the Within the blockchain there is only codified truth: the truth the blockchain there of which Within the truth of has sent transactions to which other address, address of information) data (hashes or other representations or what value was included in those transactions. The truth of the blockchain is Epistemology, Ontology, Cosmology Ontology, Epistemology, other data in the blockchain in transaction outputs or addresses, and in transaction outputs or addresses, blockchain other data in the all been included in those ways. texts, images, code and music have 3CD278C33509E79B839CC0B0838658503B116D6CA9CA14B hash of your genome will be completely different even in the unlikely even be completely different genome will hash of your Placing us. between only a single codon different have that we event a time stamp on provides data or the hash of data in the blockchain existed at least after the date of mining of the block it it that proves with my genome has existed that contains it – someone or something #286917. block since at least Bitcoin Rob Myers: Blockchain Poetics / 248 order buttheinvention ofabsolute timeitself. post-Kantian, post-relativistic order kindoftemporal – notjustanew philosopher Nick Landhasarguedthattheblockchainrepresents a with thekindofrightwinganti-politicsthatwe have discussedabove, Viewed from withinthespaceofblockchain,identitiesare greater thanalltheworld’sencyclopedias. certainty This process works towardstruth established with an immutable,final state of the world, building the longest chain on it once more.true work’s computingpower willeventually settleononeofthemasthe andaconflictbetween them. needing-to-trust, Even thenthenet the blockchainforks there twochainsofnot- willbetwocertainties, of network consensus. This finalityisonlyonthechain,though. If obviation, atransactionalfinalityborn itistrust’s This isn’ttrust, than thecomputingpower oftheentire planet toundo. power. We quicklyknow thatitwouldtakemore very withacertainty computer bornoftheeconomicsyears ofplanetary-scale certainty certainty.cryptographic We know thatandwhentheystateditwitha at leastwhichaddress, hasstatedeachfactontheblockchainwith the proof-of-workminers performing algorithm. We know who, or is equaltotheamountofcomputingpower expendedover timeby to the accumulated security of theblocks that contain them. This by the blockchain represents facts, with a confidence proportional Through theblockchain we know facts,insofarasthedatacontained ever limitedthosefactsmaybe. demia thisisanextraordinarily infacts,how strong basisforcertainty statesoraca ofcontemporary with theimposedornegotiatedtruths blockchain. Thisquicklybecomesprohibitively expensive. In contrast factenteredamount oftimeequaltothesinceaparticular the more computingpower thanatleasthalftheBitcoin network foran oftheblockchainwould require tochangethetruth is constructed, economic rewards. Because oftheway eachblockintheBlockchain underpinned by aconsensusreached by computerscompetingfor chunks andusedtoanchorfactsinageological-time-defying entropy using onlythefinestartisanal constructed such anabsolutizationofthe ideaoftheblockchain,butiterating rather itisgrown into. Universe, where thepastand present exist,butthefuture doesnot, asoftware approximationimmense crypto-space, ofaGrowing Block 30 Similarly, stepping outsideofhisengagement 31 It iseasyto criticize

28 slicedinto

29 - - -

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cho-capitalism On Our Radar – O’Reilly, January 6, 2015. Mastering Bitcoin. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Improbable

The Politics of Bitcoin: Software as Right-Wing The Politics of Bitcoin: Software The

Bandits:

There are signs that it can become one – for signs that are There 32 and

. New York: Avon, 1999. Avon, Cryptonomicon. New York: 401.

–

‘Bullion

382

Kim.

Stephenson, Neal. See the section on ‘Functional disequilibrium: surplus value of code’ in Deleuze, Gilles Lamport, Leslie, Robert Shostak and Marshall Pease. ‘The Byzantine Generals Lamport, Leslie, Robert Shostak and Marshall Pease. http://cypherpunks.to/faq/cyphernomicron/cyphernomicon See for example: http://wiki.mises.org/wiki/anar See for example: Antonopoulos, Andreas. See for example: Antonopoulos, Andreas. See for example: Golumbia, David. Loukides, Mike. ‘The Computing of Distrust.’

2009, http://wired.com/2009/06/e-gold 7 8 Zetter, 6 Mark by Robert Hurley, the French from and Felix Guattari. Anti-Oedipus. Translated 1983, p. Seem, and Helen R. Lane. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 5 4, No. 3, Languages and Systems, Vol. on Programming ACM Transactions Problem.’ July 1982, pp. 3 4 1 2 Notes to provide a back-up and record of consciousness itself. a back-up and record to provide The blockchain is a site of socioeconomic alterity and an imaginary alterity is a site of socioeconomic The blockchain the economic order by recuperated been entirely that has not yet culturally pervasive a is it yet transcend. Nor that it sought to for were steam or computers ceramics, as fire, enabling metaphor, cultures. previous Outro through those objections and our answers to them in turn can be can be in turn to them our answers and those objections through the blockchain. of appreciation critical a deeper in gaining useful 9 in this brief moment of potential it nonetheless reflects, contrasts of potential it nonetheless reflects, in this brief moment to mirror as a dark global socio-political order with and animates the for, It contains, or is a screen diffract our post-economic-crisis society. recognizable both wealth common and authenticity social for hopes expressed uniquely inflected ideologically, yet wider society and from and tips. token sales, algorithmic organizations, protocols, in software income and of enforcing fantasies of passive is also haunted by It with this, the closer we engage particular ideas of justice. The more as the as a critical resource the blockchain’s value get to realizing we was for net.art, systems of communication and or earlier Internet for the conceptual art movement. were exchange example philosopher and economic theorist Melanie Swan imagines Swan theorist Melanie economic and example philosopher out to encompass an both reaching the blockchain ultimately thoughts interplanetary our own to encompass inwards economy and . Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2016. . Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, Extremism Media, 2017. Rob Myers: Blockchain Poetics / 250 cryptography#classical_cryptography 30 June2016.http://lrb.co.uk/v38/n13/andrew-ohagan/the-satoshi-affair 2010. 1999. London: Richard Bentley, 1841. 14 13 http://eff.org/cyberspace-independence 12 11 http://bitcoin.org/en/bitcoin-paper 10 http://radar.oreilly.com/2015/01/the-computing-of-distrust 33 32 2015. Seealso:Land,Nick.Crypto-Current . Shanghai:TimeSpiralPress, forthcoming. 31 30 stackexchange.com/a/2852/1660 29 28 27 understanding-dao-hack-journalists 26 25 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/a_rape_in_cyberspace 24 http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-story-behind-the-worst-movie-on-imdb 23 feathercoin-hit-by-massive-attack 22 O’Hagan, 21 deflation-is-not-a-problem-for-bitcoin/34298 Bitcoin.’ 2015.http://insidebitcoins.com/news/economist-robert-murphy-explains-why- Torpey, 20 19 18 http://suitpossum.blogspot.ca/2014/08/why-i-buy-into-Dogecoin 17 the Coin?’2016.http://cryptocoinsnews.com/sex-consent-smart-contracts-issue-coin 16 Violence.’ 2016.http://news.bitcoin.com/glockchain-hold-police-accountable 15

Nakamoto, Satoshi.‘Bitcoin:APeer-to-Peer Electr Swan, Melanie. Bolter, J.David. ‘Turing’s Man.’ChapelHill:UniversityofNorthCarolina Press, 1984. FOAM. ‘TheArtofEconomyPart1.’http://youtube.com/watch?v=31wRg8p1sPk, See thedescriptionat:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gr See here forthemathematicsof br Lieven, LB.‘ArtisanalIntegers.’2015.http://neverendingbooks.or Myers, Rob.‘Proof ofExistence.’ 2014.http://r Siegel, David.‘UnderstandingTheDAOAttack.’2016.http://coindesk.com/ Lessig, Lawrence. For background tocontemporarypublicdiscussionofLambdaMOO,see: Goldberg, David.‘TheStoryBehindtheW Bradbury, Danny For someofthishistorysee: Paar, ChristofandJanPelzl. Scott, Brett. ‘Muchsoul,veryemotion:WhyIbuyintothecultofDogecoin.’2014. See forexample:O’Connel,Justin.‘SexConsentSmartContracts:Would Y See forexample:Redman,‘Why‘Glockchain’CouldHoldPoliceAccountable,Curb Mackay, Charles. See theexplanationat:http://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Genesis_block Barlow, JohnPerry http://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=375643.0

Kyle.

Andrew.

‘Economist Blockchain. Sebastopol,CA:O’ReillyMedia,2016. . ‘Feathercoin hitbymassiveattack.’2013.http://coindesk.com/ Extraordinary PopularDelusionsandtheMadnessofCrowds .

‘The Code andOtherLawsofCyberspace.NewYork: BasicBooks, . ‘ADeclarationoftheIndependenceCyberspace.’1996.

Satoshi

Robert Understanding Cryptography.Berlin:Springer-Verlag, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/history_of_

Affair.’

Murphy eaking publickeycryptography:http://bitcoin.

London ReviewofBooks,Vol. 38,No.13,

Explains orst MovieonIMDB.’2014. obmyers.org/proof-of-existence

Why onic CashSystem.’2008. owing_block_universe

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251 / Max Dovey: Love on the Block - 10ef0ecc2c2a1315bf9800b3ac6e87d3cbc87b9de0cfa9b789143e = Bitoin Transacton aee1d6b239 Hex = 6a2257652c204f73636172204164616d204461726d6177616e20616e642059656 e6e692c Adam Darmawan and Yenni, Oscar Ascii = We, $ 1,874.17 - $ 1,873.98 fee = $ 0.19 Transaction (236 bytes) 86655 Confirmations 1MAPQjWKMjmSQrrYrsDff79ZfSd5z326gW 18nokhVDSj3d6W97bnaCqZMCzqoNedqzTj - = 5b5a06638a59f715d5241c34174fff18b9fc97d739ec9ebb5d Bitcoin Transaction 8418f651e31e70 Hex = 6a2570726f6d69736520746f2074616b652073686172656420726573706f6e7369 62696c697479 responsibility Ascii = promise to take shared $ 792.42 - $ 792.24 fee = $ 0.19 Transaction (239 bytes) 86655 Confirmations 17JcxFbyTqKyUHhtr8PDredFWuz1CeTKmT 1B4eh2NtR7HunfqxYehsfT9Na9atCT7g9z = 0062f69f3159b5e5ab308e0aa0dba5119f7db82b021c50a0a54e543f7 Bitcoin Transaction dc96027 Hex = 6a1f666f72206f7572206d617272696167652e2057652070726f6d69736520746f promise to Ascii = for our marriage. We $ 269.03 - $ 268.85 fee = $ 0.19 Transaction (234 bytes) 86655 Confirmations 1NsVToszTu4NfYT23uBHLAxp21dzL2FSvz 1AdaAwC4W3evrmkjFxNbCM5XoSgK42A74J = 39f9ec244f77c0b9cffeade4b92cfd16334c4e040fe58bc96b51b - Bitcoin Transaction fd958f03f4d Hex = 6a236465766f7465206f757273656c76657320616e64206265206661697468667 56c20696e Ascii = devote ourselves and be faithful in $ 124.86 - $ 124.67 fee = $ 0.19 Transaction (237 bytes) 86655 Confirmations 1EeVDRnLYzug817W5R3rf2V7UpcKtuv9Jn 1DBgbwN1fRCpxfbVGJZyPx5zEajyANarxN = f041c4b0589875c45febf921c719b2aef52de18a38d26b59f - Bitcoin Transaction 0ca31e695238a70 Hex = 6a1965766572792077617920746f206f6e6520616e6f746865722e Ascii = every way to one another. $ 124.65 - $ 124.47 fee = $ 0.19 Transaction (228 bytes) 86654 Confirmations 1M8HHfE6eQpky833Uh8Kh77JquUS4a6pCk 19ZZvZwFA2MRaNaaWCFBi64S1b8svT645 - = 5ff791ac0c4e4f04cceefe178e9a25ae2f0eb00f30d5eb4cd73aae Bitcoin Transaction a0d345f541 Hex = 6a1d57652077696c6c207368617265207468697320736f6c656d6e20766f77 will share this solemn vow Ascii = We $ 708.93 - $ 708.75 fee = $ 0.19 Transaction Love on the Block Love on Max Dovey Max Max Dovey: Love on the Block / 252 198Yi4E4M4TtTWDVGtmx54aP11kt6Hb1FN 1EV4qtBCUAVGmd99uFJoNDetQVYWq39jcE 86653 Confirmations (226bytes) Transaction fee=$0.19 $124.65 -$124.47 Ascii =untilourdyingbreaths. Hex =6a18756e74696c206f7572206479696e6720627265617468732e 97b0578797a759f1552f Bitcoin Transaction = 017202287321d49bdd4a793d5a1a112d3fd853df193b- 12X8o3ZKWXAqF1J111fLiaxH9PCnMNzzFm 1DYcB34vPPSD1Ex93FEV73TWpizHB7yKjP 86652 Confirmations (223 bytes) Transaction fee=$0.19 $111.97 -$111.78 Ascii =fromthisverymoment Hex =6a1566726f6d20746869732076657279206d6f6d656e74 f216739e2a9 Bitcoin Transaction = 1be8855420bf4cbb4b0e23a74e42f6c04195d78ab149fb0a5f67d- 1C6MFsat54HeD51uzjbVSbL6YdsQWVJh3D 1FoJPn8mHZTeiPhLpzxWe29ds5MWhEPvXG 86653 Confirmations (238 bytes) Transaction fee=$0.19 $ 79.97-79.78 Ascii =witheverlastingloveinourhearts, 617274732c Hex =6a247769746820657665726c617374696e67206c6f766520696e206f7572206865 68dae Bitcoin Transaction =c20f6b396208cadc951a33cd1ee7ce4a8b8c7cc1bfffcc22eb9156eb0af- 16Cz5s37SwhThspFfQZCE8ttYpmVRx6miJ 17ePTBvtX6msSC6jqPbgacyvo6r5QttWkM 86653 Confirmations (231 bytes) ring withinawider movement –onethat inthecrypto-community Bitcoin fanaticsthere experimentation occur hassincebeenfurther wedding ceremonies were by asmallnumberofextreme performed with codedcontractsstored ontheblockchain. Whilst someinitial contracts’thatcombine networked devices ments todesigning‘smart vowsadapt themaritalcontractfrom encrypting intoBitcoin pay- couples have continuedtoexpress theirlove ontheblockchainand church and state.Since thefirst Bitcoin marriage ceremony in2014, reveal adeeperdevotion towards blockchaintechnologyasthenew capsulate love andadministratecivic arrangements,suchasmarriage, people are developing toen- Bitcoin, blockchainandcryptography a firstdateoutsidehighstreet bank,butthe various waysinwhich For many, usingBitcoin toofficiateamarriagesoundsas romanticas is forever.’ –Wedding Vows ofDavidMondrusandJoyceBayo ‘For better or worse,till death dous part, becausetheblockchain http://bitcoinwedding.com (Price inUSDollarscorrectonApril2017) on 26September201512:28:21(UTC+7) Recorded in10ef0e,5b5a06,0062f6,39f9ec,f041c4,5ff791,c20f6b,1be885,017202

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The first recorded example of a Bitcoin wedding ceremony was wedding ceremony Bitcoin example of a recorded The first Florida, Disneyworld in Mondrus David and Bayo Joyce between ATM of a Bitcoin of the alt-altar the couple stood in front where attached the with another one pay to ATM the used pair The machine. or worse, till death do us part, better because the comment: ‘For in this case to cement a belief in is used Bitcoin blockchain is forever’. unfamiliar anyone however ledger, Blockchain the of permanence the the why asking for forgiven be would technology underlying the with to ‘For and alter their vows cards their credit just use couple didn’t Swapping is forever’. Visa better or worse, till death do us part, because ambition to use signifies a growing ATM the alter for a Bitcoin encryption, cryptography database to pursue the and the Blockchain than payments but also as more notion of using financial transactions performed Indonesia from Yenni and Oscar as contractual agreements. as but encoded much lengthier vows their marriage in a similar way, transaction contains a hex hex strings into a series of transactions. Each Code for convertedStandard when (American ASCII that string into encrypted their personalized, vows. reveals Interchange) Information $2,000 to eighteen arbitrary accounts in order over transferred Oscar payments into a number a series of Bitcoin over to encode the vows 10 minutes to clear the each block taking on average With of blocks. taken longer than David would have the vows of validating process over vows distributing one’s one off payment and perhaps and Joyce’s in both The grooms a longer lasting love. multiple payments shows known well are Darmawan) and Oscar Mondrus marriages (David ‘What The contract.’ dings, we see not just individuals invested in the notions of perma notions in the invested just individuals see not we dings, a spiritual commit the blockchain, but viability implicit in nence and not only transform – a faith that it will blockchain ideal ment to the model absolutist a technologically inaugurate but arrangements, legal organizations traditional and circumvents that defies of governance the start that aims to of a sermon are weddings Bitcoin of power. for the system alternative as an of the blockchain persuade society within symbolic of a wider-culture They are administration of society. a crypto to reveal political ambition beyond communities that go faith and to cryptographicspiritual dimension belief, where protocol commitments to become lived sovereignty performedof software acts technological fundamentalism. aims to proliferate the viability of the blockchain as a governance governance as a blockchain of the the viability to proliferate aims wed at Bitcoin Looking authorities. central replaces that technology Max Dovey: Love on the Block / 254 jewels’ nolongerseemstobeonline). ‘redthe QRCoderingshehadonsaleattime(unfortunately box store, topromote sothewedding appearstobeastagedopportunity Bitcoin wedding. Oscar wasawarded first holdingthe for acertificate Indonesian sitesand news successful andcirculated widelyoncrypto-currency theirfinancialinterests. to serve In thissenseboth weddings were Bitcoin investors andpublicitystuntssuchasthisare oftenengineered Oscar &Yenni Wedding Invitation, rightsandevenwhich willalsoincludeproperty automatingdivorce. beginning ofaseriesexperimentswithprogramming contracts, re-configured one’s vowscryptographically andencrypting isjustthe marriage isoneofthemore popularcivicarrangementstobecome and socialbondscanbere-configured asblockchaintransactions?The Bitcoin transactions, into‘proof oflove’, whatotherfeelings,relations By process turning‘proof-of-work’, for validating thecryptographic the beliefinblockchain’spermanencetoward aspiritualdimension. symbolic actsalsoreveal personaldevotion towards Bitcoin andturns the market priceofyour favourite crypto-currency, however these For thesegrooms theBitcoin asanovel wedding serves waytoinflate The BTCring, http://thebtcring.com, 2015

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5 ‘GeoCoin’ is a platform that connects GPS data to digital wallets data to digital GPS connects a platform that is ‘GeoCoin’ for crypto-currencies, financial or economic users to design enabling a developed We on location and movement. arrangements based temporary smartcreate to people enable would that contract shared spending would be bound one another whose bank accounts between joined individuals to share their location data. Like marriage, it by This application was named physical proximity. finances based on their in the middle practice of ‘handfasting’ after the informal Handfastr ages – a temporary without having that was valid marital arrangement or the church. a priest by to be solemnized Handfastr, Corina Angheloiu, Max Dovey, James Stewart, 2016 Corina Angheloiu, Max Dovey, Handfastr, smart con- how with experimenting begun also have Programmers – the conditions anticipate – even tracts could be used to process I have participated I have wedding based blockchain of a the design in University departmentInformatics from Design The with application on a geo-locative based prototypes designed we where of Edinburgh crypto-currency called ‘GeoCoin’. to enforce a smart contract – a self-executing script stored on the script stored a smartto enforce contract – a self-executing together in the are people when two or more blockchain – so that the same spend money from same physical space they can access and based smart blockchain between contracts digital wallet. The difference previously ceremonies wedding and the Bitcoin such as Handfastr happens once with a ceremony mentioned is that while a Bitcoin a smartfinancial transaction (or series of transactions), contract is a over piece of code containing rulesexecuted be can that conditions and and the wedding as a ceremony, Bitcoin a period of time. Think of a untangle laws to smart emerges, requiring contract as the marriage that and annul it. Max Dovey: Love on the Block / 256 the extreme free libertarian market attitudesthat have driven Bitcoin: Software asRight-Wing Extremism David Golumbia highlights originated from anobscure cypherpunkmailinglist. that ofapoliticaltrajectory to considerthisdevelopment aspart that are beingengineered intoblockchaincontractsanditisinteresting Weddings anddivorces are justoneofmanycivicandlegalprocedures rangements dowe wanttoturnintoautonomousgoverning system(s). should be critically reflected upon and we should ask what kind of ar state, however, contractsystemssuchasthis experimentsinsmart ates individualsfrom thecentralized powers suchasthechurch and governance. Acommonattitudeisthatblockchaintechnologyliber programmers’ eager todemonstratetheviableefficiencyofnetworked cess rightsisalogicalapplicationofthesetoolsforblockchainbased procedures thatinvolve thesplittingofproperty, ownership andac for adivorce tocodelegal orseparationofcouples.Theopportunity 2.0.’ applications. For example,Ethereum’s landingpagedisplays a and democraticorganizations whichare broadly defined as‘governance developers tobuildexperimentsinvoting systems, legalapplications Ethereum isablockchain basedplatformthatexplicitlyencourages thread: ‘UsingEthereum to create adigitalpolitical party?’ blockchain.’ replaces itselfonthe do afewthings.Eventuallygovernment Lettheminviteusinand ‘My goalistotake_undergovernment. andtechnology to enablegreater individualfreedoms.cryptology sovereignty, borderless nationalismandblockchainfundamentalism. towards different software thatinformsambitiousvisionsofcrypto- is a committed devotionsub communities forming within certain ideology that motivates a large extent of blockchain culture, there powers suchasthestateand church remains thedominant political toundermineinstitutional crusade argue thatwhilethelibertarian and experimentsincreating non-hierarchical organizations.Iwould decentralized ledgerscanbeusedtocreate consensusbasedsystems Organizations (DAOs) –encouragesprogrammers toenvisionhow host andexecute contractsandDecentralized smart Autonomous people towriteanddevelop codeontoacustomblockchainthatcan states. Blockchain platforms suchasEthereum –aplatformthatallows sovereignideals withwhichtoformandexperimentexclusionary where provide blockchainsoftware, protocol andencryption founding blockchain governance hasgiven risetoanotion of‘crypto-sovereignty’ unregulated currencies, andtheshifttowards Bitcoin weddings and The ambitionswithinthiscommunitynolongermerely liewithin – Commentfrom BirdsPointOfView inresponse to In The Politics of

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Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin maintains the belief that maintains the Buterin Vitalik founder Ethereum computer’ that could potentially will one day be a ‘world Ethereum applications, or in turn via decentralized through manage citizens software de facto coded law and self-executing a combination of many While devices. of Things (IoT) connected to Internet thought speculative remain under’ government experiments to ‘take community, Reddit the Ethereum experiments within consequence of facilitating the creation of ‘unstoppable applications’ of ‘unstoppable creation of facilitating the consequence community now that a large portionhas been of the Ethereum smartand DAOs blockchain, how of visions ambitious harbours governments. traditional state can replace contracts with undertaken into crypto-sovereignty experiment most prolific the through Nation’ Voluntary Borderless ‘Decentralized a calls it what and a ‘blockchain powered ID citizenships situated embassies, Bitcoin now). The can laws civic and common how of boundaries the questions that be adapted into coded smart The application’s interface contracts. of smart contracts within a chat messaging incorporates the deployment coded for emoji and other symbols to activate client that would allow parties. messaging into integration The different contracts between applications obfuscates coded contracts into communication technology and hopes to turn messaging interactions and emoji into law’ of ‘common law’. The authority of this ‘common activations the adoption of mass users and until through will only be created symbolic (for purely admit that it remains the developers then, even ❑ rewards shared ❑ the community at large ❑ jurisdiction’. structures that use non-hierarchical voting to reach a consensus. to reach voting use non-hierarchical that structures visual guide on how to ‘build a democracy on the blockchain’ and many and many on the blockchain’ ‘build a democracy to how guide on visual governance alternative to demonstrate the platform use applications of ‘democratizing power’will be effective in convincing others to be effective of ‘democratizing power’will self executing contracts, Bitnation have also tried their hand at have contracts, Bitnation self executing smart Called contract weddings. commitment of ‘legacy weddings’ into 3 defined protocols: into 3 defined commitment of ‘legacy weddings’ Max Dovey: Love on the Block / 258 ‘Ethereum Classic’community: purists thatdivorced themselves from Ethereum andare known asthe been affected by thehack,forminga devoted group of blockchain Thisalliancecontinuedtotradeontheblocksthat had intervention. fusing toacknowledge fork thenew asitwasproduct of(human) pressed theirdevotion towards Ethereum’s roots asnon-regulated –re subject ofthischapter–wasasmallalliancedie-hards thatex ideas andphilosophy. tothe What emerged–andwhatisimportant consequently splittingthecommunitybasedondifferingblockchain ing philosophyofblockchainasanun-regulated autonomousentity, underminingthe found The majority of them voted tointervene, associated tothehackandlosealotofinvestors andalotofmoney. ceded theallegedhack),ortocontinueandpermittransactions hard fork (rolling back all transactions to a point in time that pre- and foundation found themselves in a difficult position – to intervene was leakedfrom aDAO withover 10,000members.The Ethereum in This beliefcameunderscrutiny June 2016when over $50million ment withaspiritualbeliefintheblockchain’sungoverned autonomy. under’ government politicalsenti- bodiescombinesbothlibertarian The confidencewithintheblockchaincommunityto eventually ‘take de-centralized governance. blockchain communityofthepotentialforcrypto-sovereignty and their infancy, littlethatdeterstheambitionwithin there isvery nation states. While DIYexperimentssuchasBitnation are stillin in‘de-centralized borderlessparticipate nations’infavour ofsovereign towards different blockchainlegions. nity andanextreme devotion withwhich someindividualsmake represents anemergingsovereignty withintheblockchaincommu- plication’. Secondly, ithighlightstheproto-patriotic languagethat useful forsomeonetobeable tostepinandfixthe‘unstoppableap philosophies, andillustrates that whenthingsdon’tgotoplan,itis Firstly, itreveals conflictbetween thecommunities’crypto differing The Deceleration of Independence isinteresting inmanyways. Ethereum Classic consequences ofouractions. do notmakethisdeclarationlightly, norwithout forethought tothe truth, westandbyit,supportingitsimmutabilityand future. We interference. Inrealizing that the blockchain represents absolute blockchain that is truly free from censorship, fraud or third party united byacommonvisiontocontinuetheoriginal Ethereum 1,920,000, weasacommunityofsovereign individualsstood Let it be knowntothe entire world that on July 20th,2016,atblock

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the initially novel, strange or more extreme fantasies within the fantasies within extreme strange or more the initially novel, crypto-community get integrated within governments emerge and critically or even prevent, to order scale. In on an (inter)national important it is on such projects, to articulateengage with and reflect of the proliferation drive that motivations the political and spiritual so will end up with us to do begin with. Failing such applications to N.p., n.d. 04 Apr. 2017, https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/2hffwd/couple_to_ N.p., n.d. 04 Apr. use_blockchain_to_contract_marriage_im with some of the radical sub cultures and extreme fundamental views and extreme sub cultures with some of the radical marriage such as e-citizenship, projects that initiate and proliferate This will lead to the creative contracts and statements of independence. within and pre-determined potential getting captured and imaginative to a dominant crypto harder hegemony and it will become even encountering a spiritual experiment and design in this space without How crypto-cultures. different fundamentalism towards or extreme funerals, blockchain birth blockchain from registries, we far away are possible to encode your is already It blockchain medical records? DNA genome onto the blockchain experimentation into how bio immortalitybio furtherto lead could how into experimentation and a ledger afterlife. spiritual beliefs in the permanence of blockchain should help faith and wedlock Analyzing patriotic acts of sovereignty, some of the more made by us critique and counter the propositions become and community blockchain the members within extreme the transition of the spiritual beliefs that fundamentally drive aware and state. and business to church banks of blockchain from 3 Rahmat At CEO Bitcoin.co.id.’ Steemit. N.p., 05 July 2016, http://steemit.com/bitcoin/@ rahmat/2gwcng-indonesian-record-museum-muri-bestowed-a-special-award-at-ceo- bitcoin-co-id. Accessed 09.04.2017. 2 ‘Couple Notes 1 falling for blockchain’s ‘revolutionaryfalling for blockchain’s potential’ citizenship with the e-residency program. with the e-residency citizenship At first sight, Bitcoin weddings may appear as novelty acts of public of public acts novelty as appear may weddings Bitcoin sight, first At for such further the way they pave indicated, have but as I devotion of the ‘statement such as acts proto-patriotic and pseudo-religious do not occur acts of crypto-sovereignty These language independence’. technology is not when blockchain and emerge at a time in isolation government and sector but NGOs the financial adopted by only being borderless decentralized creating experiments into bodies. Bitnation’s an to such Estonian government with the resonated nations has borderless together on providing working now extent that they are panampost.com/belen-marty/2014/10/07/couple-make-history-with-worlds-first-bitcoinwedding. Accessed 16.04.2017. Max Dovey: Love on the Block / 260 Accessed 30.04.2017. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_marriage_in_Great_Britain_and_Ireland http://genecoin.me/index. Accessed14.04.2017. city. Accessed30.04.2017. http://networkcultures.org/moneylab/2016/04/29/temporary-marriages-in-a-blockchain- Bitcoin ischangingmoney, businessandtheworld.London:PortfolioPenguin,2016. pressrelease-estonia-bitnation-public-notary-partnership. Accessed 16.08.2017 http://blog.bitnation.co/smart-love Minneapolis: UniversityofMinnesotaPress, 2016. 7 6 5 4 16 15 14 Independence.pdf. Accessed07.04.2017. Community, 2017.http://ethereumclassic.github.io/assets/ETC_Declaration_of_ 13 12 11 10 9 political_party/. Accessed16.04.2017. http://reddit.com/r/ethereum/comments/55dxnq/using_ethereum_to_create_a_digital_ 8

‘Using Ethereum tocr Golumbia, David. ‘History ofmarriageinGreat BritainandIr ‘Temporary MarriagesinaBlockchainCity.’ Account Suspended.N.p.,n.d.,http://redboxjewels.com. Accessed12.04.2017. For anup-to-datelistofthemostrecent check: ‘Make aBackupofYourself UsingBitcoin.’ Tapscott, Don,andAlexTapscott. 2.0. BITNATION,Governance BITNATION, 21Mar. 2017, The Ethereum ClassicDeclarationofIndependence.N.p.:TheEthereum Classic Ibid. Smart Love 2.0.’BITNA ‘Governance BITNATION BlogSmartLoveComments.N.p.,n.d.4Mar. 2017. The politicsofBitcoin:software asright-wingextremism . eate adigitalpoliticalparty?’Reddit.N.p.,n.d. TION. 21Mar. 2017. Blockchain revolution: howthetechnologybehind eland.’ MoneyLab: FailingBetter.N.p.,n.d., Genecoin. N.p.,n.d. http://bitnation.co. Accessed30.04.2017. http://dapps.ethercasts.com Wikipedia. WikimediaFoundation, http://bitnation.co/blog/ . . 261 / Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum ------The 1

as the same transaction, one of mundane ‘security theatre’. ‘security of mundane transaction, one as the same My first job for a museum was invigilator and cloakroom attendant. a museum was invigilator and cloakroom first job for My responsibility for property was and of care process The micro-level on the one hand performed artworks and on the other for invaluable everyday interaction with the possessions. Although my hand visitors’ observation distanced from fondling of personal to casual assets varied was experienced of ‘stuff’ as a human protector items, my presence Collections Management on the on Management Collections A ReturnBlockchain: to the Principles Museum of the Helen Kaplinsky Helen My casual sub-contracted shifts as an invigilator were agreed with lit agreed as an invigilator were casual sub-contracted shifts My resting place for an artwork ideal, the final Western to the According feed content into this Whilst my peers and I directly is the museum. facilitator the blockchain, appears as a future monolithic container, with the institu sub-contracted relationship to our decentralized, blockchain is often described as a move from a model of security a model of security from described as a move blockchain is often trustbased on embodied via a trustless to smart contracts executed when envisaging the post-human museum, the However, network. role of museum Today the need for culturally codified bodies persists. security for the artwork, but invigilator operates not only as perceived also as an opportunity to engage with the artwork for the public by means of a human dialogical interaction. and one hour break tle notice and included an unpaid twenty-minute and by invigilators, security guards room used for lunch. The staff was an under room’ to as the ‘mess referred attendants, cloak room beneath the grandeur of the public galleries. bunker hidden ground same museum, an invited independ later I found myself in the Years de star-architect floor to the third time elevated this ent contractor, a Dickensian signed cafe reserved for office staff. Conjuring images of has always stuck with me as indica room class, the mess working nineteenth by museum. Subsidized Victorian of the ideals of the tive century municipal galleries in towns industrialists, many of the main this history. the UK can be traced through and cities throughout dialogical museum, of the open-source, ideal the retro-fitted Beneath the management of bodies ingrained through ideals remain Victorian and objects. based are of museum collections management tion. The conventions Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum / 262 sightlines function toproduce self-regulating bodies. is implicatedby thetransparency of transactions. In both casesclear drawn withthedistributedarchitecture oftheblockchain where trust tions ofspectacleandsurveillance’ (Bennett 78).Here a parallelcanbe points fromcould beseen,thuscombiningthefunc- whicheveryone couldsee,thereand exhibitssothat,whileeveryone were also vantage panopticon, where ‘the arrangement ofrelations between thepublic the Victorian produced display of an cultural exhibitionary artefacts, of Control’ inthetwentieth century. Foucault’s followers describehow society’ andexpanded by Deleuze’s inthenineteenthcentury ‘Societies Foucault’s ofinstitutions operatingthe‘discipline narrative ofthebirth The Victorian publicmuseumhasbeenunderstoodaccording to with trust. Enlightenment museum,boundtoanetwork offleshybodiesimbued on theblockchainreturns emphasistothephysicalassetwithin a red-herring – instead, the more revealing mode of value-circulation reputation. Unpicking whyborn-digital‘intellectualproperty’ (IP)is for organization,according to institutional validation category and will focusonthequestionofhow value ismeasured andusedasa a UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) time-stamp. relation between timeandownership, witheachblockvalidated via space.Theblockchaincontinuesthisemphasisonalinear surveilled according toalinearprojection oftimeandwithinthedesigna The ownership of bothborn-digitaland physicalassets isformulated Crimp, Hooper-Greenhill). nology of progress, follows Foucault’s ‘disciplinary society’ (Bennett, ‘disciplinary museum’, thatcategorizes objectsaccording toachro education(147).Forelementary ahostofpostmodern thinkers,the the principlesofmanyotherinstitutions,including pticon’ prisonarchitecture isregarded by Foucault asfundamentalto asexemplifiedernance by meansofsurveillance, in Bentham’s ‘pano- regime ofprogressive socialization(Foucault, 269).Thecreed ofgov stages of theirtransformation’ in order the institutional to perform to age,mentalattitude,thetechniqueofcorrection tobeused,the according tothepenalgravityoftheiract,butabove all according tion ofbodieswhere ‘Convictsmustbeisolatedoratleastdistributed set ofculturalcodesandcategories.Foucault describestheclassifica by how spaceandtimeisorganized according toarigorously stratified Enlightenment paradigmsofthemuseumthatdefinewhatisvisible set managementprojects currently ontheblockchainare reproducing as – mechanismsfundamentaltotheblockchain.Themajorityofart these modesare steepedinmechanismsofdatabasesandcontracts upon Enlightenment modesofcategorizationandcare. Furthermore,

2 In thistextI of supervision - - - - 263 / Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum ------World World Frontier concerning how concerning how Matter Dark

rown traces the pan-optical architectures of the slave slave the of architectures pan-optical the traces rown 111). B 111).

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opportunities.’ included ironic imagery to included ironic and invited developers west of the wild entering uncharted territory are ‘…you of the explorer: play the role is a lot of There and explore. invited to test the grounds are and you be ravaging may there traps, still be undiscovered may there danger, for room also is vast but there bands of pirates waiting to attack you, The techno-progressive blockchain ‘pioneers’ Ethereum openly espouse Ethereum ‘pioneers’ blockchain The techno-progressive called Ethereum, release of a colonial attitude. The first live tionary masses into well behaved citizens. The narrative of the World the of narrative The tionary citizens. behaved into well masses benefits Empire, British closely tied to upholding the Exhibition, work recent more Brown’s Simone from life the policing of black surveillanceby informed are technologies the world exhibition shows description of Vanke’s diction. Francesca as Turkey) and Tunisia states (Egypt, or ‘Oriental’ that the ‘Levant’ that they could space, in order given and China, were as Brazil well be observed to the purpose of evidencing a comparative – for the twin industries, and the seemingly paradoxical western ‘progressive’ more ana of identity could be understood, hope that their ‘authenticity pro mysterious a if by example, as by someway in and ‘caught’ lyzed, of proof 200). A public ledger of data provides (Vanke cess of osmosis’ and serves to evidence claims to individual authorship ‘authenticity’ meaning asset management of art on the blockchain and ownership, to continue this colonial imperative. threatens The birth of the museum provides a further of colonial juris example The birth of the museum provides (110 surveillancedigital of schemas racializing the in continued as ship ex- at racial bias have looking studies recognition Facial perienced today. whiteness and are trained to a prototypical that algorithms are shown Africans. Caucasoids over better at identifying gender for therefore at Crystal Palace in 1851 demonstrates how the decision in 1851 demonstrates how at CrystalExhibition Palace domain of the the private of princely objects from displays to move apothecary revolu spectacle transformed the potentially to a public ages of discovery and brought back to the apothecaries of aristocratic of aristocratic back to the apothecaries brought and discovery ages of and a ‘working display formed both an impressive they where patrons, ‘science’ today call of what we early practitioners for the collection’ was of this collection colonial function 22). The (Hooper-Greenhill gatekeeping of ac the physical and intellectual embedded through the first Bennet, Tony For of ‘knowledge’. cess to these objects The genesis of the Western museum is found in the ‘Cabinet of ‘Cabinet in the is found museum Western the genesis of The voy from collected were Items Renaissance. early the of Curiosity’ Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum / 264 loses his military position when he enters into a drunken brawl,as positionwhenheenters intoadrunken loses hismilitary forRosamond.pertinent She refers toCassio,Othello’s officer who who boughtthekeyvalues oftheRenaissance to theatre isnotably ered beyond the confines of the quantifiedand digital. Shakespeare, inclusive schema,claimsthe‘Reputation Economy’ canbeconsid- Most Valuable Asset’. Drawing uponFertik’s work, Rosamond’s more Your Digital Footprint in a World Where Your Reputation Is Your who in2015published‘The Reputation Economy: How to Optimize was coinedby CEOofareputation managementfirm Michael Fertik, Thephrase‘Reputation Economy’ the structure oftheplatformitself’. tually be(mightactuallyfeellike)andontheotherhandit belongsto we are whatourpotentialinthesocialworldmightac- actuallyworth, subjectivity bothbelongstous,reputation reflects what we mightfeel subject.’ In the eraof Web 2.0socialmedia, Rosamond claims ‘our developing ‘a ofreputation asthenetwork extensivityofthe theory public managementofculturalassets.Emily Rosamond hasbeen contracts could,reinforce thisstillexistingcolonialimpulseforthe A value systemofreputation embeddedinblockchaindatabasesand institutional power distributionontheblockchain. ist onlineplatforms,currently theyare unlikelytobenefitfrom non- relyingand aconsequenceofdisenfranchisedartists uponimperial ability tobuildsocialandfinancialsolidarityonline.Asbotha result producingbroad born-digitalwork baseofartists are limitedintheir subscription from establishedmuseumsandgalleries.Meanwhile, the producing born-digitalwork whoalready derive value according to tions ofart. Vastari andAscribe,forexample,are working withartists operatingacross themarketscessful blockchainstart-ups andinstitu- capital toprotect’ (8).One canapplythesame logictothemostsuc perhaps, socialeliteswithhigheducation,accesstotechnologyand the existingsystems.Thosewhoare most likelytoseekescapeare, little to empower thebroader socialmajority who remain reliant on ing weak localinstitutionsmighthelpindividualpeople,butdoes greater risks,includingthepotentialforexploitationwhere ‘escap context.Ineach particular countrieswithweak institutionsthere are cal affects,dependentonthe resilience oftheexistinginstitutionsin understood as having geographically and economically asymmetri technologyshouldbe potential benefitsofblockchainasadisruptive ‘Techno-Colonial Solutionism from Above?’, Scottarguesthatthe Describing theactivitiesofBitcoin entrepreneurs inachaptertitled journalist, campaigner and formerderivatives broker Brett Scott. weak economieshasbeenoutlinedinawhitepaperfortheUNby The dangersof Silicon Valley fin-techsadvancing intocountrieswith - - - - 265 / Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum - - - - internal - public state in revealing a continuity in our conception of reputation with that of the that of the with reputation of our conception in a continuity revealing - a conver by is formed suggests, Rosamond Reputation, Renaissance. to an a fidelity of self, representation of an externalized gence sense of self, and relies heavily on subscription from from heavily on subscription and relies sense of self, crusades, built in the age of the apothecaries to the From stitutions. the blockchain, databases on exhibition, and finally public Victorian - of reputa conception of Rosamond’s levels various one can identify his assets throughout systems of management for cultural tion across On the blockchain, reputation management has the potential to management the blockchain, reputation On 2.0 systems such as star ratings Web established build upon already and extended Fertik as outlined by and likes on Facebook on eBay management tool Backfeed, blockchain Decentralized Rosamond. by granted via ‘rewards users to hedge bets based upon reputation allows influence in the community to contributors and their corresponding of (Proof of the protocol the workings calculated automatically by forking that allows a feature with accommodated, is Diversity Value)’. Backfeed’s is key to feature, This diversity consensus. of alternative and seeks to counteract the persis- redistribution of value endeavour reputation is where effect, network of bias caused by tent problem of this adaption de- subscription. The success based upon cumulative the dominant characteristic of the model against pends upon working in place, feature with the diversity Even feedback loops. of positive to the transparency linked of reputation, the automated evaluation of self-discipline, thereby continues a regime of calculated activity, the historyreproducing of subjects under surveillance within the measures on the blockchain ‘Reputation public museum. However, - previ much the community trusts and is calculated on your you, how and (Dennis ous transactions and interactions with the community’ state, monolithic the to authority than passing 131). Rather Owen as located both for and with a commu the transaction characterized the Museum’s essay ‘On influential 1980 October Crimp’s Douglas tory. The Renaissance ‘Cabinet of Curiosity’ organized objects for the organized Curiosity’ Renaissance ‘Cabinet of The tory. of repu and advancement power of princely and aristocratic ‘display imperial collections 73). Although the (Bennett tations and careers’ the visible, not publicly were aristocrats promoted that question in for lev implications have of the acquisitions did strength perceived For both subjects. a els of influence across class who governed ruling of the publicness blockchain, and also the exhibition Victorian the serves cultural assets) directly content (data and exhibited a recursive fidelity the account to holds Transparency self-governance. of process as a mechanism of self-discipline. of the internal to the external selves nity of independent actors. Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum / 266 unwaged labour online.Following thisunpickingofinformallabour the 1970sradicalfeminist manifesto ‘Wages forHousework’ and Laurel Ptak’ssurveillance. Wages forFacebook drawsaparallelbetween as marketing toolsthatdisciplinesubjects, indistinguishablefrom platforms tocontributecontent are now widelyunderstoodby users increased legibilityconcerningtherole ofbigdata.Invitations from The Snowden leaksof June 2013marked thebeginningofanera producing. alienatestheaudiencefrom thevaluefurther theyare engagedin place are ancient andunquantifiableformsofculturalpracticethat of reputation visibletotheinstitutioninfirst that maketheartist andinstitution,theformulations back intoacentralized siloofartist Whilst theownership ofvalue andfeeds is drawnintotheartwork themselves are transmuted into display and exhibition (Srnicek). museum are only outsourced tovisitingusers’ bodies,which surveilled containedinthe artworks the contentsandvalue ofcontemporary Much like‘Platform Capitalism’ of Web 2.0thatIwilldiscusslater, the claimthatmeaningandvalue isproduced through interaction. even mere presence isopentointerpretation, audiencestoward divert with theaudience.Asynchronous displaysofobjectswhosevalue and relational contentandwhere incollaboration meaningisconstructed experience-led museumofthe2000swhichisfilledtobrimwith and reputation led by a community of userson Web 2.0 reflects the of content the rise of networked communication, the trajectory the municipalmuseumfollowed turn.In thisartistic parallelwith conception ofrelationally wasreadily appropriated and by artists and cinemas. Toward this thesecondhalfoftwentieth century not only in the museum, but also cemeteries, gardens, theme parks temporalities andnon-hegemonicotherness,exemplified by Foucault in contempt’ (Lord 2). notions ofhistoricalcontinuityandcoherence thatFoucault holds as‘aand doesperform positive force –…fordismantlingthevery indefinitely accumulatingtime’, Lord arguesthatthemuseumcan Foucauldian notion,thatmuseums and librariesare ‘heterotopias of and anover-simplification of Foucault’s ideas. Summoning another societyisbothadenialofthepotentialmuseum disciplinary Foucauldian reading ofthe ofthemuseumasaninstrument on theblockchain.According toBeth Lord, Crimp’s postmodern theproverbialcrushes actorsoperatingtoday communityoftrusted system withinthemuseumthatallows foronlyonenarrative and Foucault’s ‘disciplinary society’ Crimp describesanarchaic value of allthevarious attemptstodenytheheterogeneity’ (50).Following Ruins’ stakedtheclaimthat‘the ofmuseologyisahistory history Heterotopias are relational placeswithlayered 267 / Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum - - - - not-for-profit, not-for-profit,

. Instead . Instead curator independence and , in Art Ampliative and Adrian and Adrian Mycelia n the current informal n the current private, private, commercial

. Despite the argument for the . Despite digital workers seek to build models that address the flow of the flow that address seek to build models Art DIY spheres of influence. I of DIY spheres

supplementing the role of role independent supplementing the could lead to a positive feedback loop or could lead to a positive Art Ampliative /

Ampliative - that prom for the blockchain proposed is a project Art Ampliative dis remunerate, labour ‘to ad-hoc free ises to enable artists receiving Adopting industry’. trade music an argument for a ‘fair makes Mycelia enables contributors to her songs to smart contracts, Heap Ethereum’s is out the middle men, there ‘cutting payment of royalties: claim direct between exchange intimate direct a sense of getting back to the more This aim mirrors (Washtell). artist and listener’ dependency. to this informal network their works’ and project tribute, recognize institutions rewarded frequently along with the more of labourers, map in value exercise Whilst a potentially fascinating and brands. effect of the en masse network ping and political act of redistribution, mapping in on the basis and labour is provided care whereby ‘bandwagon effect’ to informal relating data of ‘passing’ the danger Here, of reputation. quantified projected through expressed labour could see reputation structures complex incentive are – speculation. There remuneration that supersedes the need, or any for enacting informal artistic labour, fact, In mechanism. reward systematic a within reason, quantifiable activity with culturally coded forms of reci of capturing the process valu might actually deter participation,more making it by procity, able to keep. singular artisticof it enables the convention that authorship to be administration. distributed with no limit to the complexity of credit there emerges a need to observe there vulnerability and co-dependence and attention of care and actors. Infrastructures among institutions bodies, but these actors are enacting by require to build reputation foundationaltheir in Still informally. operating when visible rarely Heap’s such as Imogen stages, blockchain projects Onco’s to a constant negotiation between according value institutional is cause to be suspicious management, there economy of reputation of the term differentiations between public a historical continuity made previously, there are projects harnessing projects are there previously, continuity made a historical for of remuneration redistribution toward management reputation collapse in the in the midst of a reign brands Self-managed labour. as clearly formalized by platforms by means of capital expropriation, expropriation, capital of means by platforms by formalized as clearly is track artistic of IP to the inscription and frequently can be – work in order platforms these from control of wrestling as a project – seen to the wealth to redistribute Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum / 268 and how adigitalassetwillappear online inthefuture. Interplanetary with enoughdata,itcoulddevelop the intelligencetopredict where If thetrackingalgorithmforwhereonthe.net isadequately nurtured their sightsonownership ofthehumanmindas well asit’s creations. implication here isforIP, onewondersiftheIPBD teamare setting approximation to ownership onthe Internet’ (Sheridan). Whilst the has spread. Thisfunctionality, claimAscribeisthe ‘the closestpossible the imagefirstappeared how online,andproduces graphics charting it on how manywebsites andunique pagesanimageappearson,when images. Theproject whereonthe.net provides userswithinformation tobuildprovenancefunctionality whentrying pathsandIPtrackfor The sameteamasIPBDandAscribebuiltwhereonthe.net asaspinout IPBD’s precursor encryption. Ascribeisatool thatcreates proprietary ambition is framed as a gift to the commons, Whilst this interplanetary delivering escapefrom walledgardens and centralized silosofdata. a foundationby anetwork offor-profit andnot-for-profit caretakers, an inspiration,IPDBproposes as apublicdecentralized databaserun Barlow’s 1996‘A Declaration oftheIndependence ofCyberspace’ as larger project;Database. IPDBInterplanetary Quoting John Perry market issimplyalowthe art riskarena inwhichtodevelop amuch mentioned.Forambition ofAscribefrom theotherstart-ups Ascribe, tion ofIPwithmachinelearningandbigdataiswhatseparatesthe blockchain.Theheadycombina thenticity dataontheincorruptible create limitededitionsaleablework andregister ofau- thecertificate inorder born-digitalartworks for physicalworks. to Ascribeencrypt rent office;and whospecialize in Verisart, verificationof provenance artists’ rightsmanagementtool;Blockai –abottom-upfrauddeter- sales assistant flogging limited digital editions; gallery Monegraph, an point. TheyincludeAscribe,themostvisiblearmofwhosebrandisa takeIPastheirstarting start-ups A tideofsuccessfulblockchainart commons. practicesthatgrowcritiqued asatoddswithartistic outofthedigital far resulted in a defaultto the IPmodelofvalue recognition, often according toqualitative multi-layered incentives hastherefore thus to still inthemanifestostage.Thestruggle reconcile informal labour, successfully enactandtestitsproposition, whereas Ampliative Art is lawful usage by other producers. The Mycelia project has managed to autonomyoverembeds theclaimtoartistic ideas,thereby preventing property. Whether individualized or collective, the project still a muchproblematized formatforrecognizing value –intellectual works, Myceliaart ’s retrieval ofreward demonstratesareliance on Whilst Ampliative informalcare Art forandtowards seekstoobserve - 269 / Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum The Thing In the same the In 5

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it was revealed that their first it was revealed The Thing. launched in 1991, is often The necessary proof-of-work validation implicit in implicit validation necessaryThe proof-of-work 4

well as employing the spontaneous right-click copy as employing well legend The permissions. copyright dismissing thus computer, the of autonomy to often summoned is that artists in the 1990s retained activity such as the female- their data via off-platform and own share of collaboration a European initiated by only mailing-list FACES, in 1997, and net.art intervention collective irational. workers’ ‘digital ‘irational’ information, deploying international system for org, ‘an services for the displaced and roaming.’ products and that prediction.’ that AI presents itself as a potential ambition behind the project, although although project, behind the ambition potential itself as a AI presents it. Scaling not mention IPBD do Übermensch their even and Ascribe the art back to and AI speculation of the question future the market, Myers Rob flow of what efficient a more points toward of Ascribe blockchain to #Accelerationism, essay connecting the an In describes. a hundred reward security might market prediction ‘a imagines Myers Tate particularpoints if a ten or at artist show Satoshis headline a has happening, chance of that percent an 80 think there’s you If Modern. representing security the for points 8 or Satoshis to 80 up pay can you era, first operating as an electronic bulletin board system (BBS) and bulletin board era, first operating as an electronic later transferring to a website referenced as the first online exhibition host. But breaking with the But breaking as the first online exhibition host. referenced of 1.0 commons, when remnants Web of the folklore were displayed as part of the New Museum exhibition NYC 1993: exhibition NYC Museum as part displayed of the New were Star & No Trash Set, Jet Experimental unsigned an Halley, artist by piece Peter a ‘featured show online With unlimited edition which sold 16 digital copies at $20 a pop. These art blockchain projects, with Ascribe at the helm, and even These arteven with Ascribe at the helm, and blockchain projects, , present Mycelia seeming collaborative and horizontal the more manage born-digital assets as specifically designed to themselves unique, as though they were and distributed digitally’ stored ‘created, cryptography 83). They utilize to or limited edition, objects (Paul – where problem payment’ ‘double called the what is often solve than one location for only one payment. an asset is used in more The business of embedding artificial into the digital asset is scarcity enclosure continued appears to be an inevitable and with what aligned within colonial apparatus. For of the mythos of the online commons of digital decades, artists embraced the lossless reproducibility have apparently a vast, upon draw and to contribute them allows that assets for re-appropriation common, catalogue of digital material available generations – of artists These communities – perhaps even and remix. Commons (CC) licensing as Creative through operated formally have this marketization leads one straight back to the continuing value of back to the continuing value leads one straight this marketization the bricks and mortar museum. Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum / 270 VVORK The ascentof Web 2.0‘Platform Capitalism’ sawprojects suchas practice outsidethemarket. generationwhoareupon thenet.art oftencharacterized asclaiminga cultures, andputspaidtothenaive, rose tintedadmirationbestowed concepts of value andremuneration between colonialandblockchain todemonstrateacontinuitywith serves marketization ofonlineart the pieceinadatabasefile’ (Kopstein). Thisanecdoteofthefaulty in anactofadmittedfutility, kepttrackofwhohaddownloaded no waytoenforce payment, Wolfgang Staehle ( born-digital work, butalso the tracking and distribution of physical database, theonlinespaceis not onlyrelevant tothemanagement of provenance, location, value andfutures in databases.Operating asa and museumshave beenthe Historically andstilltoalargeextenttoday, commercial galleries autonomy,artistic itbreaks down parametersofIP. thevery as a multiplicity of similarity that has moved so far from the claim of free sharingofindividual works, butinsteadthecommons issituated the termsofcommonownership are nolongersituatedintheneedfor tion preferred by thepost-internetgeneration. AsConnorelucidates, reputation andvalue from theresults. However, CCisnotadesigna community whilealsolendingitselftoindividual’s accumulationof potentiallytothebenefitofCC of datacopiedbetween artists, blockchain facilitatesthecontinuedenclosure ofacommoncatalogue Following thisrationale, inscriptionofIPintodigitalworks onthe formal recognition and tracking of singular authorship within this. autonomy,collapse ofartistic whilst still maintainingasystemfor of CCisthatitarguesforthealignmentcopyrightlawwith larity’ provide anetworked affiliative value.Theparadoxical conceit perhaps increasing –power ofreputation, where ‘like-ness’ and‘simi The ‘Platform Capitalism’ generationdemonstratesthecontinued– it radical andinteresting. Instead ofarguing forartists’ uniqueness, was algorithmictotheextreme. Butthisiswhatmade made it seem as if artistic production‘…similarities and patterns through theaestheticcollusionofwork posted: Connor suggests,theproject didenacttheidealofadigitalcommon specific kindofcorporateenclosure; however, asRhizome’s Michael on the centralized platform WordPress might point toward a very blogwashosted art contemporary net generation.Thattheartist-run

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Bernadine Bröcker, Director at Vastari states that: ‘Vastari, in which in that: ‘Vastari, states Vastari at Director Bröcker, Bernadine between a middleman as acts stake, investment an holds Everledger art looking for newart pieces and private collectors are museums that of their art getting it exhibited in the value by that want to increase public. This new partnership will see the art possessed information written immutably to the Blockchain.’ Vastari by ing place of the museum, Vastari formalizes the way artists, formalizes collectors Vastari ing place of the museum, their assets to showcase used websites and independent curators have gener is that value the and brand, of their self-management the for ‘network The the museum. when they reach these assets ated from the text-based along with the shift from of the www protocol effect’ Daily Art Contemporary website seen has internet image-based to Focusing on the journey of the physical artwork toward the final rest the final artwork on the journey of the physical toward Focusing database for physical artworkdatabase for physical the on the blockchain acts to facilitate built through of reputation convention continued Enlightenment’s museum display. Blockchain start-ups dealing in born-digital art through Blockchain embed value combined with of artistic labour, challenging the informal nature IP, redistributing for argument the However, exploitation. user 2.0 Web Capitalism’ is a simplification ‘Platform centralized away from value reputation and of The cultural practice of value. of the circulation quantifiable and individualistic concerns of IP. beyond exists incentive tributes an apparently equivalent rendering of the work-as-review work-as-review the of rendering equivalent apparently an tributes and back to scene. The scene to market, from visibility, pure through has seen a internet era of the image-based and platform-capitalized databases towards as self-managed as well self-owned away from move storage and dissemination services.Whilst sites centrally administered such as cultural capital, where ate a little like time-based databases tracking by value signal posts adjacent visible and most are posts newest the disguised as arrives 2.0 network Web association, participation in a visibility in foreground who Vastari contrast to in activity, marketing to ownership. relation (2008 in after exhibition. Following timely documentation of exhibition the footsteps of artist initiated chain for products, most notably through their Vastari product. Vastari their through most notably products, chain for scans of physical works, and only later did they host exhibitions as exhibitions host they did later only and works, physical of scans artborn-digital audio, and of text, sets comprised multimedia and Everledger blockchain start-up London-based (Kopstein). video files supply an ethical track and verify to fraud prevention, toward works artworks. Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum / 272 States, as‘securitytheatre’. Espenschied usingColloq,Rhizome’s prototype social mediaarchiving tool. within. of the Victorian stillaspire publicmuseummanyartists toexhibit disciplining subjecthoodcontinuesthepanopticalcolonialsurveillance the transparency ofcalculatedactivity. Thisdistributedformof threatens toenableautomatedevaluation ofreputation basedon whereonthe.net, andtheirbigbrother Database IPDBInterplanetary and endingwiththemuseum.Thespeculative markets suggested by as amediatorofreputation towards achievingvalidation, beginning market, inorderof theculturalpracticeactorsinart toact developed abusinessspecificallybaseduponnuancedunderstanding away withtheneedforatrusted Duke UniversityPress, 2015. Browne, Simone. DarkMatter:Onthe SurveillanceofBlackness.DurhamandLondon: Bennett, Tony. ‘TheExhibitionaryComplex.’newformations,No.4Spring1988. Backfeed. Explore inDepth.http://backfeed.cc/explore-in-depth. Accessed11.06.2017. Ampliative Art.Introduction. http://ampliativeart.org/en/introduction. Accessed11.06.17. About IPDBFoundation.IPBD.http://ipdb.foundation/abou t. Accessed11.06.2017. analysis reports.’ technologyspaceandprocessingplayers reputational intheart ‘APIscollectors, commercial galleriesandartists with othermajor The management of physical assets through Vastari offers museums, 9 8 provide 7 In 6 ‘ruins’. that havebroken linksandare therefore partially working are referred tobyBuntingas the workofHeathBuntingamongothermembersgroup. Someofthenet.artworks stable versionofDrupalCommons.irational.org includesanongoingarchive mostlyof FACES 5 4 http://furtherfield.org/features/articles/abc-accelerationist-blockchain-critique 3 been putasideasanadjacentlineofenquiry. philosophical interrogation oftimeandspacepostulatesexplored byNickLandhave for thesakeoffocusbothquestioninconsistencywitha-synchronicity and tightly boundtoautomation,asdescribedbyMikePeppiamongothers.Whilstrelevant, 2 repercussions duetotheSeptember11 Security Theatre’,inwhichhedescribestheairportsecurity forNewInternationalist Cryptographer andwriterBruceSchneiercoinedthetermin2009article‘Beyond the feelingofimproved securitywhiledoinglittleornothingtoactuallyachieveit. 1 Notes &References

Everledger useasimilarapproach toPr ‘Security Theatre’ isthepracticeofinvestingincountermeasur We’re Hiring!, http://coindesk.com/everledger-announces-partnership-vastari-combat-art-fraud http://github.com/ethereum/frontier-guide/blob/master/README.md This projection oftimeisbroadly out ofsyncwiththeagileasynchronous eraso

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#74 – June 2016. http://e-flux.com/journal/74/59798/asynchronous-on-the-sublime- Onomatopee, 2015. , 2014. http://wagesforfacebook.com. Accessed for Facebook Wages Ptak, Laurel. 11.04.2017. Administration of the Everyday. On the Sublime Pepi, Mike. Asynchronous! http://furtherfield.org/features/articles/abc-accelerationist-blockchain-critique Society, Myers, Rob. The ABC of Accelerationist Blockchain Critique Accessed 10.06.2017. - Care-pres Eilean. Museums and the Shaping of Knowledge (Heritage: Hooper-Greenhill, Routledge, 1992. ervation-management), London and New York: . Accessed 18.04.2017. . http://net-art.org/node/92 . net.art.org irational.org Accessed 20.04.2017. 2009. http://schneier. . Schneier on Security, Bruce, Beyond Security Theatre Schneier, . Accessed 19.06.2017. com/essays/archives/2009/11/beyond_security_thea Play a Role in Building and Blockchain Technology ‘How Can Cryptocurrency Scott, Brett. Institute for Social Development Social and Solidarity Finance?’ United Nations Research . Accessed 11.06.2017. Paper, 2016. http://unrisd.org/brett-scott – Working 2015. supply chains. Provenance, in product Blockchain: the solution for transparency http://provenance.org/whitepaper New Media Art’ and Preserving Presenting Paul, Christiane. ‘Curation Context Archive: in No internet, no art: A Lunch Bytes Anthology, Kopstein, 1967. http://foucault.info/doc/documents/heterotopia/foucault-heterotopia-en-html pp. pp. system based reputation A next generation Owen, G. Rep on the block: Dennis, R and , 2015. http://the-blockchain.com/docs/A%20next%20generation%20 on the blockchain . Accessed 18.04.2017. reputation%20system%20based%20on%20the%20blockchain.pdf Database to Combat Art Fraud. Coindesk, Jacob. Everledger Plans Blockchain Donnelly, 2016. http://coindesk.com/everledger-announces-partnership-vastari-combat-art-fraud/ Accessed 15.04.2017. . Accessed Guide. http://ethereum.gitbooks.io/frontier-guide/content/ Frontier Ethereum 11.06.2017. Art. http://faces-l.net/en/content/faces- Technology, Gender, Story. FACES: FACES storyhtml. Accessed 18.04.2017. in a Digital Footprint How to Optimize Your Fertik, Michael, The Reputation Economy: Asset. London: Piatkus, 2015. Most Valuable Is Your Reputation Your Where World by Alan Birth of the Prison. Translated Foucault, Michel. Discipline and Punish: The Books,1995. Vintage Sheridan. 2nd ed. New York: Continuité 5, Mouvement, . Architecture, Foucault, Michel. Of Other Spaces, Heterotopias we archived a contemporary art blog. a contemporary (and why) we archived How After VVORK: Michael. Connor, . Accessed 2015. http://rhizome.org/editorial/2015/feb/9/archiving-vvork Rhizome, 18.04.2017. 1980. 13 Summer, , Vol. Ruins.’ October ‘On the Museum’s Crimp, Douglas. 1992, 59. Winter, October, Vol. of Control.’ ‘Postscript on the Societies Deleuze, Giles. from the dead: Archivists revive the bulletin board that rallied NYC�s art scene in the the bulletin board revive the dead: Archivists from 2013. http://theverge.com/2013/3/15/4104494/the-thing-reloaded- 1990s. The Verge Accessed 18.04.2017. bringing-bbs-networks-back-from-the-dead of spacetime, 2016. http://youtube.com/ Land, Nick. The blockchain solves the problem . Accessed 20.04.2016. watch?v=2PMGuNZreWA and genealogy. Museum and representation, museum: difference, Beth. Foucault’s Lord, Helen Kaplinsky: Collections Management on the Blockchain: A Return to the Principles of the Museum / 274 Rosamond, Emily. ReputationPower,2017. administration-of-the-everyday/. Accessed02.03.2017. net. Accessed11.06.2017. whereonthe.net: Trace howimagesspread overtime.http://whereonthe. ontheInternet heap-explains-why-blockchain. Accessed18.04.2017. a revolution, CityA.M,2016.http://cityam.com/245150/revive-music-industry-imogen- Washtell, Francesca.Howtorevive themusicindustry, blockchaincouldbringabout Edited Exhibition of1851’Britain,theEmpire, andtheWorld attheGreat Exhibitionof1851 Vanke, Francesca.‘Degrees TheOttomanEmpire ofOtherness: andChinaattheGreat Nick,PlatformCapitalism.Cambridge:PolityPress,Srnicek, 2016. Accessed 22.04.2017. http://ascribe.io/uncategorized/the-future-of-art-deep-dreams-ai-and-ascribe Sheridan, Carly. TheFuture ofArt:DeepDreams, AIandascribe.AscribeBlog,2016. Accessed 18.04.2017.

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2 – B.S. Johnson, Christie Malry’s Own Double-Entry Malry’s – B.S. Johnson, Christie The economy of representation and the moral and economic rights representation The economy of DACS and Art Data and Art DACS Into this territory as Head of Research and Innovation at DACS (The at DACS and Innovation of Research territory this Into as Head shapehelped have I 2014 since Artists and Society) Design Copyright artist. the economic and cultural capital of the an agenda that explores organization to help defineby the been asked specifically I have More its mission; transforming the financial landscape strategies to deliver for visual artists. This was a quote randomly sucked from the net to preface this text this the net to preface sucked from This was a quote randomly cultural shared our Wikipedia, from is sourced It on the blockchain. whicha permanent array of data but one is not Wikipedia ledger. and punctuation. and detours of prejudice is subject to the whims the late by to suggest this penultimate novel seemed appropriate It the perfect as to backdrop B.S. Johnson novelist avant-garde British consider the frictions and opportunities of the blockchain and the dis poisoning of which the novel consists of words the number as it is roughly deaths nor neither not many more, are there Be assured so far. words.’ ‘A total of just over twenty thousand people died of cyanide died of cyanide thousand people just over twenty ‘A total of the media is prisoner to in an era of simulation. Philosophy live We thesuggests newsthe and militarization of increasingly ‘softwar’ young man, of the metafictional account of a disaffected prescience of double-entry who applies the principles bookkeeping Christie Malry, himself against society in an increasingly life, ‘crediting’ to his own the argued, Baudrillard Jean As ‘debits’. perceived manner for violent change but rather it was a regime of 1991 did not happen War Gulf and of ‘simulation’ to the production ‘real’ the politics of the from become increasingly 9/11 have media spectacle in which the stakes post delirious. Artists Rights in the Era of the the Era of the Rights in Artists Ledger Distributed tributed ledger. Mark Waugh Mark Mark Waugh: Artists Rights in the Era of the Distributed Ledger / 276 the benefits of visual artists andatwhatrisk?’ the benefitsofvisualartists of the blockchain and howopportunities can these be materialized for The question we wouldaskinthiscontext is,‘Whatare thepractical and withwhomwe mayornothave conflictsofinterest. tions whorequire ustoexchange informationforbusinesspurposes and often conflicting databases. We work with a variety of organiza Our problem is typical of data hubs whose nodes operate in diverse increasingly customized databasestofacilitateourbusinessglobally. Since 1984DACS hasdeveloped acomplextaxonomy whichdrives that maybeexploitedbecauseofitsover-simplicity. classifier–in factafictionalidentity– isanarbitrary ‘visual artists’ DACS that wouldnotwant toalterthisrightbutwe dowanttoassert moral andeconomicrightsover theuseoftheirimages. haveThe fundamentaltenetoflaw we willbuildonis:visualartists istrative challenges,suchasthedocumentationofbusiness. we dobelieve blockchain technologiescanhelpaddress simpleadmin ficulties. However, incasesoflegitimatetransfertitleorlicensing, In suchdeliberations blockchain-basedcontractswillfacesimilardif challenge totheexistingformsoflawaround copyrightinparticular. eachposetheirown art as appropriation, installationorperformance ations requiredPractices artists. by thepracticesofcontemporary such when judgesrefuse toengagewiththeflexibilityandspecialconsider of law-makingandenforcement remain problematic –particularly Act 1988occasionally amendmentsare agreed, butaspectsofthisarea case reasoning. In casesfollowing theCopyright,Designs andPatents the Acts ofUnion of1707.Our lawsare developed through case-by- disparate setoftextswhichare supposedlyinconvergence following accordance with British Law. The lawsystem itself isan anarchic and fromartists’ the public affirmation of asuite of articulated in rights tion, theroyalties due,andthelistofbeneficiaries.Thisledgerstarts tween ledgersorsetsofinformationsuchaslicensesissued,theirdura an intersticefortheaccuratemigrationandtranslationofdatabe We are therefore unsurprisinglylookingatblockchaintechnologyas are oftentransferred through contractorinheritance. licenses forroyalties whichare oftengenealogicallycomplex,asrights iscoreof artists tothebusinessofDACS. We distributeandissue ------277 / Mark Waugh: Artists Rights in the Era of the Distributed Ledger - - - - - Electronic Superhighway Superhighway Electronic the au- the Post-Internet Object Image The Measuring history a theoretical through Measuring 4

. , where a large exhibition section was dedicated to a large , where Simulations (2016) curated by Omar Kholeif. It traced a trajectory traced a It Kholeif. Omar (2016) curated by The emerging generation of born-digital artists generation of The emerging and deal 3 1996

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thor mapped out how the shared nature of images on the internet had on the internet of images nature the shared out how thor mapped in which art changed the way fundamentally and is both experienced produced. ers expect to sell and share online at scale and velocity. Social media Social scale and velocity. online at sell and share to expect ers and oth Snapchat Pinterest, Facebook, platforms such as Instagram, The environments. becoming sales platforms and exhibition ers are to the roadmap survey that explored of works most comprehensive the exhibition was art’ ‘post-internet wards 2016 Biennial 2016 Berlin recent fully exposed at the This shift was more in Drag Future The of Jean after the publication was established in 1984 a year DACS Baudrillard’s from cybernetic artfrom and internet art, without fully articulating the internet of capitalization the and resistance political between tensions interests. corporate by blockchain scenarios portraying this new of future tech- projections political hedging of blockchain This nology as stealth Neo-Liberalism. Blockchain face’ affirmation that the ‘in your an was accompanied by and artistshad arrived, should be paying attention. In Artie Vierkant’s 2010 essay 2010 Vierkant’s Artie In Post-Internet Art and the Blockchain and Art Post-Internet tract value from an investment in it. An artwork is a data genera an investment from tract value Hurvin (2009) by such as Afrosheen a work How tor and recording. or editioned is a cumula- Anderson might be loaned, sold, licensed for ARR (Artist Resale DACS by represented task. Anderson is tive the secondary monitor all sales through Rights) which means that we he is a licensing member such as auction houses. Additionally, market files on our Artimage licensing as hi-res available are and his works part is potentially of the narrative platform. This means that DACS points in time with dif- several At of such works. of the circulation private international galleries, houses, such as auction interests ferent dealers, publishers, academics and others whose business systems are Today a work which sells at the top end of the market is likely to which sells at the top end of the market a work Today to maintain and ex of ways in order in a multiplicity be capitalized lens does nothing to refine our sense of the truth. It does though It does truth. of the our sense refine does nothing to lens of an emerging economy for artists to imagine the narrative us allow the key signifiers of a to become in which copies or simulacra were capitalization in the art and system of circulation market. Mark Waugh: Artists Rights in the Era of the Distributed Ledger / 278 near future.’ although 86 percent of those consulted expected this to happen in the long-awaited consolidation in theonline art markethasyettohappen business. The2017 at a tipping point that of will the be existing disruptive modes of online following other markets there isagrowing sensethatwe are Assalesslowlyopaque dealingsoftheartworld. begintomigrate and economicallycompellinginformationonthetraditionally thatseek to offer to theincreasingrobust value attributedtoservices poached from Tefaf Fair Art Basel toArt inJune 2016wastestimony the mosthighprofilemarket, Clare ontheart report McAndrew was auction prices andanecdotalinformation. The factthattheauthorof a composite of information in the public realm such as declared media.Muchand through nichearts ofthisstudyiscomposed market isincreasinglyThe art interrogated bothacademically isgrowing industry ininfluence. The businessof on theart reporting Multiple Data Streams Linked toOne Data Object beneficiaries orcollect revenues fordistribution. we wouldnot be ableto make accuratepaymentsto them of their willbeaffectednegatively because wethe market service thoseartists If oursystemscrashorcannolongeroperatewithinthevelocities of systems DACS is exchanging data with are vulnerable to obsolescence. often either by default orby design not transparent. In addition, the were aconsistentandpermanentprovenance record leadstothe market might increase sales onThat the artwork secondary if there cessible) ledger. provenanceboth watertight (networked andgloballyac and avirtual more information aboutawork theymightbuyremotely. Theywant like DACS butalsoisachallengeforthemarket ascollectorswant and donotreport theirsales.Thisisaproblem forcollectionsocieties are visibledealers andauctionhousesthere are thosewhodeal a systemwhichmakesallsalesconformtotransparent ledger. There professionals pliance with of currentarts legislation. We do not have market. The incomes a work is sold on the secondary rely on the com- ResaleArtist Rightsrevenues are when collectedonbehalfofanartist revenues forartists? Would andonlinesalesincrease aconsolidationofbricksandmortar

5 Hiscox Online Art Trade Report statesthat: ‘The - 279 / Mark Waugh: Artists Rights in the Era of the Distributed Ledger - - The casting of bronze is an historic process and has long been used and an historic process is The casting of bronze artists is technical, highly by unique editions. The process to make of models, moulds, and molten al the creation skilled, and involves The system would work based on consistency and building of reputa on consistency and building of based work The system would to Blockchain Bronze From has bronze is that and silver and gold bronze between The difference has been bronzes of provenance The process. no official hallmarking times modern expertby decided historically more and in opinion that an artist applies at the modelling with the assistance of signatures supplemented now often are signatures These production. of stage signed certificatesby the studio, galleryby managed or point of and material artiststhe size, edition date, title, name, Including sale. dimensions. A virtual enable artists would of sales ledger and moral their to exert and to when they would know because rights in works economic in that they the benefit is similar collectors was sold. For whom a work that the artist deter people of a sale, which would has visibility know works. unique or editioned fraudulent circulating from the course Of to other platforms such as EBay. tion in similar ways a physical object however linked to the virtual not directly ledger is that links objects to a ledger is possible. hash of complex data copper. of loys question: should such a permanent record be a legal condition of sales? condition be a legal record such a permanent should question: Mark Waugh: Artists Rights in the Era of the Distributed Ledger / 280 layer ofbronze toacastmadeofplastic. a process which involves merely painting or applying a thin surface complicated by the emergence of 3D printing and ‘cold-cast’ bronze, buyer. Thedifficultiesinauthenticating artworks bronze hasbeen duction insize thesemaynotbedetectable–especiallyby anonline be recast from the originaland although there may be a small re and oftenhave noviabledigitalrecord. Most obviously, abronze can and editionnumbersalsoare notregulated orrecorded likehallmarks DACS, working withMaurice Blik, islookinginto asystemthat can That thesecertificates

be copiedisofcourseaproblem. Signatures - 281 / Mark Waugh: Artists Rights in the Era of the Distributed Ledger - ‘The 6 I concluded

Adding: Adding: supportsArt360 artists of artist’s and refining estates in the that there is not anything strange with a single piece.’ that there For DACS the issue of authenticity, legacy and legitimacy have been legacy and legitimacy have the issue of authenticity, DACS For undertakenhas it called research action the through highlighted . Art360 Fake artworks have always haunted the art always haunted but the damage – artworks have market Fake authentication reputations – of cases involving both to finances and to suit recent case was the law issues is escalating. The most outrageous who claimed Fletcher, Mr. an ex prison worker by Doig against Peter jail for dealing in was Doig while of Doig’s painting a brought he him the artist himself and the (art)LSD. Since dealer who represents likely to value the art was never market say the painting is not a Doig, an Surprisingly issues. court but the the work, raised interesting case also occurred Lee Ufan by image case concerning works mirror almost evidence with the police and their in 2016. The artist disagreed The artist testimony. his dealer and forensic including a confession by indeed his, saying: ‘ were claimed he thought the works DACS believe that these advantages begin with lifting some of the these advantages that believe DACS of inventory management, but will extend in many directions burden artworksfake of risk growing the for solution a as operating including in the market. circulating - require imagines a system which is not a legislative DACS Therefore, to users: both advantage market ment but would perhaps offer some artists and the art professional. market There will be philosophical and ethical tensions arising from an art an arising from will be philosophical and ethical tensions There artists dedicated have Some blockchain. migration towards market Tino artists to a celebration of the ephemeral: themselves such as - contract to opposed explicitly is that work make example, for Sehgal to forms of contract that be particularlying, will no doubt resistant exist in perpetuity. Is Fake Art Fake News? Fake Art Fake Is ists with whom they work, linking an historic permanent system of system permanent historic linking an they work, whom ists with with the emergent used along a new to hallmark, one: the verification codes provenance a mode for proposes of the blockchain, technology value. that verifies in a way and readable permanently visible, that are would use a new hallmark for UK foundries linked to a blockchain to a blockchain linked foundries for UK use a newwould hallmark art and the foundries remaining the help protect could This ledger. use of breath, rhythm and colour were all my techniques.’ rhythm and colour were use of breath, Mark Waugh: Artists Rights in the Era of the Distributed Ledger / 282 market. Resalebe themethodofbringinga formofArtist RightstotheUS Hands?’ by AnnaLouieSussman explored how theblockchainmay A recent ‘CouldBlockchain article, Put Money Back inArtists’ andresourcecians, inwayswhichwouldberevolutionary efficient? the deficitin revenues received compared by visualartists tomusi Turing Institute, are asking is: how can blockchain be used to address ages work. One ofthequestionsDACS attheAlan andourpartners finitein relation tothelargervisualecologyinwhichim but stillvery the sale and reproduction of their works. This is a considerable sum DACS hasdistributedover forroyalties £85milliontoartists paidon ship oftheirimages.In theparenthesis oftimeelapsedsince1984 might have somemoralandeconomicrightsover theuseandowner Hamilton predicted ofthefuture that,likemusicians,visualartists includingSusan artists A few Hiller, Eduardo Paolozzi andRichard to blockchain offerstheopportunity reground thisaspectofpractice. ellipsis of emails that document – the origins of the work of art a break withthegravityofworld,agiddyflightintofilingor flows have even now themostmessyandphysicalartists experienced resist erasure. With a transition from analogue studios to digital work- could be safeguarded in most cases by a ledger of provenance that can even withoutmateriality. However, thisanarchic qualityofartworks world willandindeedshouldbecapricious,chaoticuntimely themselvesshould imaginethatthewaysartworks existinthe forrecompositionuted asabox ofseparateparts by thereader, we In thespiritofanother B.S.Johnson novel, circulation. these canalsobeentered ontheblockchainsecuringcontextof andgiftworks but willcontinuetobarter Of coursesomeartists would facilitatethisbutalsotracksales,shippingandothertasks. ficial catalogueraisonné. We are exploringblockchainsolutionswhich wantcontrol overartists theworks thatshouldbeincludedintheirof control aredigital toolsforinventory inhighdemand.In particular transform theirapproach to legacy management. We have found that andtheirestatestoconsiderhowest budgetforartists theymight their systemsandapproaches tolegacymanagement. We offeramod developed, ‘TheArtist’s RightsReserved Transfer and Sale Agreement’, and follow dealerSeth theexampleof1970sart Siegelaub who which suggestedsuch a method would buildon a shares-based model managementatNYU Steinhardt,assistant professor ofvisualarts 7 The article cited argumentsmade by Amy Thearticle Whitaker, an The , distrib- Unfortunates - - - - - 283 / Mark Waugh: Artists Rights in the Era of the Distributed Ledger - - - - - ‘We’ve ‘We’ve with the Berlin startupthe Berlin with Artimage Platform Artimage Artimage Platform im is linked to our existing Artimage The abstract for the project states: The abstract for the project In parallel with the actual design of our blockchain services parallel are In we Working framework. theoretical more a in implications the exploring and blockchain Meyer, Eric Director Institute Internet with Oxford agreed have we of Oxford, Lehdonvirta of the University Vili specialist as a test ecology to ask what kind of side effects will be to use DACS onto ledgers ownership migrating towards journey our by generated the blockchain. age repository and licensing platform. We want to use the blockchain We age repository licensing platform. and smart that define the conditions contracts to help transition towards of uses, and also images for a variety hi-resolution of licenses, release a been used by has already help us track infringements. Blockchain similar services.number of companies to deliver Distributed ledger technologies (DLTs) are said to have the po Distributed ledger technologies (DLTs) tential to radically transform industries and organizations, by tential to radically transform industries and collabora enabling new types of horizontal coordination shared custodians with and gatekeepers and by replacing tion, quite are DLTs applying at attempts many However, ledgers. the technology into a conservative: they attempt to introduce industry or an organization picture where the structure of an is taken as a given. Other attempts take the other extreme: they attempt to rebuild an industry such as financial services from scratch with computational primitives, ignoring the history and reasons behind the current practices. The proposed research project seeks to develop a path down the golden mid dle: a way of reimagining how an industry or an activity would rather were it built on top of DLTs be structured differently, DACS’ encounters with blockchain have been rudimentary so far. We We been rudimentary have encounters with blockchain DACS’ so far. and be mark, journeys for our bronze the basic user explored have Artimage Platform Artimage gun a collaboration on our on gun a collaboration that stipulated artists were entitled to 15 percent of the profits on any the profits of percent to 15 entitled artiststhat stipulated were as saying: is quoted Whitaker their work. of resale subsequent Our first iteration of Our BigchainDB whose founders combine a passion for visual arts whose founders with a BigchainDB utopian platform. of the blockchain as a scalable vision of the future democratized creativity, but we haven’t democratized ownership.’ democratized haven’t but we creativity, democratized Mark Waugh: Artists Rights in the Era of the Distributed Ledger / 284 systems andplatformsdevelopmentapplication. human behaviour in the financial services sector to feed into project isbasedonATI’s strategicprioritiesofunderstanding science to translate between theory and human behaviour. The on methodologiesfromfinancialanthropologyandsocialdata tions. Theproposedprojectfillsagapinthemiddle,drawing foundations, aswellappliedresearchonpracticalapplica- tion of computational and economic theoryon the theoretical tions. DLTs havesparkedawaveofresearchattheintersec the industry’s currentpracticesandotherboundarycondi than centralizeddatabases,basedonadeepappreciationof lie. Below are fragmentsoftheirresponses. wherechain Iaskedtwoofourpartners theyfeeltheethical tensions noteonDACSAs anepilogueandconclusion tothisshort andblock We Have Erased theQuestions butHere Are theAnswers visual artists. funding andinvestment inthegrowth ofblockchainsolutionsfor leading edgeofresearch andtherefore ideallypositionedtoattract We inthisresearch believe thatparticipation willplaceDACS atthe example by DACS. ment ofcomplexroyalty andestatesasdonefor payments toartists tion area willbe inpayments,andmore specifically, inthedisburse findings by focusingontwoconcrete applicationareas. One applica In this12-monthproject we willdevelop themethodologyandinitial with apresence inLondon. search willbeledby EdgeVerve’s R&DLab, headquartered inDublin reporting, andcapitalmarkets.regulatory Participation inthisre on DLT prototypes andpilotprojects inremittances, tradefinance, DLT customers framework, andisworking withitsfinancialservices they canmakethemostdifference. EdgeVerve hasdeveloped its own kets, leavingEdgeVerve well placedtodeliver DLT solutionswhere strong marketaccounts, withaparticularly share inemergingmar- suite ofbankingsolutionsandpowers onesixthoftheworld’s bank energy, retail, Finacle healthcare, andpublicservices. isEdgeVerve’s 200,000 employees manufacturing, working across financial services, product divisionofInfosys, aglobaltechnologycompanywithover In additiontoDACS theotherresearch isEdgeVerve partner the ------285 / Mark Waugh: Artists Rights in the Era of the Distributed Ledger

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Sussman, AnnaLouie.‘CouldBlockchainPutMoneyBackinArtists’Hands?’ Art Forum,July5,2016.http://artforum.com/news/id=61864 http://hiscox.co.uk/online-art-trade-report Baudrillard, Jean. http://jstchillin.org/artie/vierkant Baudrillard, Jean. B.S. Johnson,

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When art financial technologies engages closely with still-emerging cryptocurrencies,such as the blockchain, or smart contracts, there artist, links between established art opportunity to rethink is a great been contested and audience, and art links that have work, market; far the blockchain is so if not millennia. Since embattled for centuries, ownership models the transaction and reconfigure poised primarily to perhaps most impor to information and other digital goods, relating Roughly a decade after publication of Nakamoto’s white paper that a decade after publication of Nakamoto’s Roughly initiat startedbeyond blockchain, clear that the has become it all, it Everything You’ve Always Wanted to to Wanted Always You’ve Everything Know of art all its conflicted and (in of the ‘value’ tantly it is the concept as a central node that becomes available conflicting permutations) moment a At revolve. debate can rich and productive which around more are processes generative when algorithmic, computational, and thus can we before, ever than processes creative with enmeshed deeply an artWhat defines work? What is an author? (again): ask ourselves of art the (im-)material conditions of existence of a work as What are to define required and values, an embodiment of intangible qualities can How and ownership? authenticity, concepts such as originality, (but also: how and demands of the market the lure art-making resist new ques these are of can artists survive as part None of the market)? - one might hope that the blockchain, if it is as revo tions. However, some lutionary to be, will provide and radical at it has been promised at least, into close art onto the blockchain (or, new Moving answers. up all sorts seems a good way of opening of to it) therefore proximity discussions. interesting and important cure debate, is (of course!) not a miracle ing interesting anything, If for the many ailments of contemporary digital society. to be forms the blockchain indeed appears in many of its current on hear traded purely product’ akin to a snake oil – a ‘miracle more wild and harm than good. Despite and potentially doing more say, that is no indication there and predictions, wide-ranging promises issues with electoral for example, pressing the blockchain will resolve, any speech, or the environment labour exploitation, free processes, the art what about the inequities of Can the market? time soon. But areas counter-act blockchain serve critique, or even to productively Martin Zeilinger Martin (*But Were Afraid to Ask Mel Ramsden) to Ask Afraid (*But Were Martin Zeilinger: Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know About the Blockchain* (*But Were Afraid to Ask Mel Ramsden) / 288 tions andtheirmarkets. institu circuits theproperty-based ofdominant art hoped todisrupt to embodyanimmenselypowerful criticalpotential, withwhichthey of legal document. To this approach early conceptualappearedartists, aesthetic objecttonotarized statement, acontract,oranyotherkind work mightthus,forexample,betransferredart from atraditional gal, orsocialparatextualcomponents.Thecommercial value ofan stood infor(orchangedplaceswith)commercial, technological,le to manifestinformalexperimentation,whereby works conceptualart as philosophicalcontextsofitsmaterialexistence.Thisinterest tended the relationship objectandthesocio-economicaswell between theart developed andsustainedastrongmeant thatconceptualart interest in the ‘dematerialization’ work (Lippard). oftheart In combination,this stitutional critique was itself intimately tied to experimentation with gies (Buchloh 1990;Alberro andStimson 2009).Theproject ofin work, often drawingattentiontotheirlinkswith capitalist ideolo art and subversion that focusedoninstitutionalstructures framingthe to the notion of ‘institutional critique,’ i.e., practice-based analysis As iswell documented,acore wasrelated project ofconceptualart similarconcernsdecadesago.very whohave, Iwouldargue,voicedand writingofconceptualartists, maybebestunpacked by financialization ofart revisiting thework (see Zeilinger; andO’Dwyer inthisvolume). Thisconcernwiththe merely intoavehicle offinancialexchanges, butintoafinancialtool see Michalska). Such itselfnot developments mayultimatelyturnart (forauseful,ifnaïve, ofsuchplatforms, overview art contemporary erally amounttoaproblematic hyper-commodificationmodelof (such asthosedeveloped by companieslikeAscribeorBlockai) gen are more supposedtograntartists control over theirdigitalcreations tion. For tradingplatformsthat blockchain-basedart example,new extreme digital control measures and centralized wealth-accumula - technology has qualities that make it, unfortunately, an ideal tool for I don’t considermyselfablockchainalarmist,Idobelieve thatthe movement andtheconceptualart ofthe1960sand1970s. tory While Specifically, his talethat invokes art cautionary Iwanttotellashort stead, by lookingbackwards. seems tobethestandard wayofdiscussingtheblockchain),but,in address here, not in a speculative mode oflooking ahead (which still Itartists? isthislastissueofcommercial exploitationthatIwantto fairs andtrade of concern,suchasthetightlycontrolled accesstoprofessional art

auction platforms,orthecommercial exploitationof ------289 / Martin Zeilinger: Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know About the Blockchain* (*But Were Afraid to Ask Mel Ramsden) ------L.H.O.O.Q. century continued ; see Buchloh ; see Buchloh October th ‘fusion of the work with its site and con currency, etc.) into obsolescence. As I into obsolescence. etc.) fiat currency, ‘the definition of the aesthetic becomes on the one (1999, xvii). In these definitions, the contours of the these definitions, In (1999, xvii). describing the ‘expanded critique of the cohesiveness and materiality of the art object,’ art work itself simultaneously implode and expand. As Benjamin B. art itself simultaneously implode and expand. As Benjamin work noted, Buchloh (see Girst 1999), which could be displayed as an art work in its own own artan its as in displayed work be could which 1999), Girst (see and critical developments right, some of the most radical aesthetic of the mid-20 in the conceptual art movement Following Marcel Duchamp’s 1944 production of a notarized state- notarized a of production 1944 Duchamp’s Marcel Following ment asserting his 1919 readymade the authenticity of ing blockchain-based financial tools resonate greatly with the project project with the greatly resonate tools financial ing blockchain-based cryptocoins and other Bitcoin critique. of institutional to be continue interventionsradical as pitched regulated heavily centralized, the in es In corrupt) of traditional finance. institutions (and presumably - the material sub to expedite the power said to have are sence, they (banks, strate of finance art the blockchain (and with that engages with want to suggest here, rules, unalterable, self-enforcing and transparency, like forced features similar to conceptual art, can, structures) oc control decentralized amplify, could verycupy a position that continue, or even powerfully just like conceptual art of institutional critique. However, the project it, blockchain-based art acute danger of falling prey is also in before of hyper- of these experiments, in the form to unwanted implications financialization. commodification and I may be stating the obvious by suggesting that the ideologies underly ideologies that the suggesting by the obvious be stating I may text of display’ hand a matter of linguistic convention, and on the other the function dencies of dematerialization. An early key essay on the subject, by key essay on the subject, by dencies of dematerialization. An early discusses the ‘post-aesthetic’ Chandler, and John R. Lippard Lucy ambitions of contemporary to disintegrate art having the power as traditional forms and norms of art and art production objects, and, contemporaryallow to engage with ex art to directly consequently, and (1973). As Lippard including the economic tra-artistic spheres, trajectory this Chandler propose, the art ob might ultimately render such a development ject itself ‘wholly obsolete’ (263). Importantly, attention on critiquing the very artistic practice to refocus could allow and commer (e-)valuation, for the appreciation, institutions created by Alexander definition retrospective recent, cial trade of art. A more and associates conceptual art in the same direction, points Alberro with the efforts to dematerialize the art object. Even though there were some were though there Even efforts the art to dematerialize object. among critics and practitioners associated with heated disagreements and Buchloh conceptual art a dispute between (most prominently issues of several out across which played Kosuth, its ten 1991), virtuallyconceptual art all definitions of foregrounded Martin Zeilinger: Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know About the Blockchain* (*But Were Afraid to Ask Mel Ramsden) / 290 value anddictatesitsuse, consumption,andcirculation. Or, toagain tocontrol work, thework’s andwhichsimultaneously serves an art be leftisacontractualagreement thatconstitutes andauthenticates tendency is followed through to its logical conclusion, all that may (again, seeLippard and Chandler, andBuchloh 1990). When this insteadofart-as-art widely takentosignaltherise ofart-as-criticism, much-cited definition of digital art as much-cited definitionofdigitalart than merely object-based–resonate powerfully withChristianePaul’s asprocess and I thinkthatsuchdefinitions–ofart relation, rather circulation andreception. creative andproductive processes, work’s aswell ascontextsoftheart work canincorporateallkindsof conceptsoftheart 118), sothatnew dium ratherthananendinitself,’ uses thefeatures ofthese technologiesasamedium’ that iscreated, stored, anddistributedviadigitaltechnologies of bothalegalcontractandaninstitutionaldiscourse’ observed, an art work thatfollows anart thiskindofstructureobserved, rather thancomputationalnature). AsLippard andChandler have enforceable, executable code (although thiswasfrequently ofalegal, and frequentlyalgorithmic descriptionsandinstructions, represented computational terms:theyoftentooktheformoftext-based, quasi- documents. The role ofthesedocumentscanbe well describedin objects by descriptive placeholdersintheformofcontractsandother experiments that supplanted traditional art the emergence of artistic Significantly, conceptualart’s dematerializationdrive coincidedwith asaninsightfulprecedent. serve technologies critically. can Andagain,itstrikesmethat conceptualart shouldbeinagreatdigital artists positiontoengagetheseemerging againitappearsthat artists, introduced andoffered tocontemporary is alsothepredominant contextwithinwhichthesetechnologiesare and given thattheblockchain-basedregulation markets ofdigitalart plications continuetobedeployed primarilyasfinancialtechnologies, powerful aspectofthisdevelopment. Given thatblockchain-basedap circulatescircuits mightappeartobeaparticularly withinwhich art (see, for example, Scarlett).Critical engagementwiththeeconomic objectasanabstractcontainerofvalue to theimmaterialityofart us rethink questionsrelated bothtothematerialityofdigitaland assumptions ofmuchthisinfrastructure. Digital canthushelp art steps awayfrom thetraditionalemphasisonobjectsthatunderpin and socio-economicconditionsofitsexistence–precisely becauseit placed toengagecriticallywithtechnological,institutional,aesthetic, is,intheory, work,the dematerialized digitalart conceptualart well andthis‘becoming-medium’ was ‘digital-born, computableart ‘digital-born, (Buchloh 1990, (Paul 2). Like ‘is ame - - 291 / Martin Zeilinger: Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know About the Blockchain* (*But Were Afraid to Ask Mel Ramsden) - - - Artist’s Artist’s , terra0 , or, likewise, or, , Plantoid it was also meant to be made available for use by other artists, for use by and it was also meant to be made available highlighting the exploitation conditions contained many provocative of artists at the hands of gallerists, dealers, and collectors. Institutional intended became both object and subject of the work; critique here While Siegelaub’s contract functioned as an art work in its own right, contract functioned as an art in its own work While Siegelaub’s In conceptual art, examples of work that emphasizes its own circula its own conceptual art, that emphasizes of work examples In the self-owning forest (see entries on both in this volume). (see entries on both forest the self-owning in abundance – I will make brief refer available tion as its material are Siegelaub’s is Seth well-known Among the most ence to two. 1971 [below]. from Agreement and Sale Transfer Reserved Rights, ence, and circulation. In contemporary ledger In of decentralized terms and circulation. ence, by afforded to the possibilities sounds awfully similar this technology, smartblockchain-based an IRL example of such and a first contracts, art be the much-discussed might work think this approach forwardbe left that may all digital context, into a this approach think exist its creation, a few that regulate lines of code artof an are work Martin Zeilinger: Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know About the Blockchain* (*But Were Afraid to Ask Mel Ramsden) / 292 Museum ofModern Art]. Straight andBroken Lines #260, of Sol LeWitt’s wallmurals,suchas instruction-based others likeit)exist.For anotherexample,onemightlooktoany conditions ofownership andexchange withinwhichthiswork (and clauses itcontained,andindoingsomakevisibletheproblematic the contractwouldtheoretically undercut andchallengemanyofthe for exhibition, reproduction, commercial use, and legal purposes, ing FinTech systems. blockchain mightofferrich grounds for powerful critiquesofemerg thatexists on,isdistributedthrough, andiscontrolledtal art by the initsconflicted art relationship withsocio-economicstructures, digi- should beplainlyobvious. It mightseemthatjust likeconceptual contracts,ontheotherhand, nologies, suchasself-enforcing smart works linked to emerging decentralizedone hand,andart ledgertech work invokedculation ofthekindsconceptualart above, onthe Parallels between the methods of production, reproduction, and cir- valuable commodity. pression, ownable andtradeableaesthetic object,and,by extension, complex conditionsofexistenceassingularlyauthored creative ex sion, and in doing so provoke a rethinking of its unstable and highly reconceptualize work asuniquecreative theidentityofart expres Like theworks citedabove, LeWitt’s destabilize muralslikewise and Photo

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2.0) ; Wall Drawing Straight, Not - - - - 293 / Martin Zeilinger: Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know About the Blockchain* (*But Were Afraid to Ask Mel Ramsden) ------(in ‘The art- (1999), collects a range of com (Stimson xliii). Michael Baldwin, Baldwin, xliii). Michael (Stimson ) agreed that ) agreed Art-Language ). It is difficult to imagine a formulation is difficult (ibid.). It , xlvi). This viewpoint culminates in a statement by Mel by (ibid., xlvi). This viewpoint culminates in a statement The Promise of Conceptual Art of Conceptual Promise The ‘quaintly harmless (but essential) to the mode of operation of the plaints by conceptual artists, which document the movement’s critical conceptual artists,plaints by which document the movement’s the pre tool. In dematerialization as a subversive to realize failure a useful, cautionarysent context, this commentary context provides technologies. financial emerging in interest mounting art’s digital for representa importantby offered opinions following Consider the observed that Smithson Robert art of the conceptual tives movement: that would more sharply encapsulate an artist’s frustration with the sharply encapsulate an artist’s that would more the an ideological apparatus which co-optation of their practice by practice was meant to oppose. ist turned businessman and worse is one of the legacies of concep tual art’ Ramsden, a key figure of radical conceptual art-making, mentioned Ramsden, a key figure of conceptual Ramsden is both dismissive in the title of this essay. that it ended up conforming to critical potential, and insistent art’s His challenge. to sought it institutions the – reinforcing even or – Conceptual art, is as insightful as it is devastating: he writes, verdict is market-structure…’ ‘Because galleries and museums have been victims of ‘cut-backs’… ‘Because galleries and museums have to ‘ideas,’ and thus reduced – objects are they need a cheaper product we get ‘Conceptual Art’ as a result co-founder of the influential conceptual artco-founder of the influential conceptual Art collective & Language journal as of the group’s (as well ‘hopes that “conceptual art” would be able to avoid the general com would be able to avoid “conceptual art” ‘hopes that trally involved in shaping conceptual art in the ways described above art conceptual shaping in above described ways the in involved trally with the critical as disenchantment disillusioned, became quickly commercial of conceptual artpotential art alongside the grew form’s observed, Lippard 1969, as early As commodification. and success for the most part unfounded’ of modernism were mercialization… This, however, is the critical juncture at which one of the dark sides of sides dark the of one which at juncture critical the is however, This, artiststhe of cen most critics and Many emerges. dematerialization Many conceptual artists shared Lippard’s disappointment, and seemed disappointment, and seemed Lippard’s conceptual artists shared Many artstakes high the to anticipate inability mar own their by shocked Alberro and Stimson, 1999, 294). and Stimson, Alberro assimilating art capacity for been practices that had tremendous ket’s conceptual commodification. As it turned out, designed to challenge art of the art accelerated the capitalist tendencies amplified and mar that the movement the tendencies – precisely ket and its institutions dematerialized Soon, circumvent. even had sought to problematize, high-efficiency a as simply quite treated be to artconceptual appeared gloomily Stimson, Blake An essay by value. container for commercial titled Martin Zeilinger: Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know About the Blockchain* (*But Were Afraid to Ask Mel Ramsden) / 294 and many of their conceptual art peers. and manyoftheirconceptual art into commerce thatsodisappointedSmithson, Baldwin, Ramsden, ultra ofhyper-commodification, and continuetheassimilationofart artists.financially beneficial for Butitcouldalso represent a contracts to regulatesmart turn itscirculation,out to be may certainly to ‘restabilize’ objectas uniquely identifiable, orusing the digital art of thedigitalsubstratewithinwhichitisbound.Using theblockchain be uncollectableandthusunsellableduetotheinherent ‘instability’ markets. Indigital art isassumedto manysuchofferings,digitalart receiving, forexample intheformofproprietary, blockchain-based artists against theprofit-oriented offeringsofassistance are currently made. It thatthiswork continuesoutsideofand important iscrucially subversive already iscertainly being andcriticalblockchain-basedart Order, theFurtherfield exhibitionwhichthisbookfollows onfrom in artists As demonstratedby alloftheparticipating regimes, suggestsotherwise. and financialtechnologies,forexamplethrough intellectualproperty of art’sempower The history digitalartists. entanglements with capital lackofcriticality),are(sometimes withdisconcerting presumed to hubslikeRhizome, by e-flux,orDIS digitalart supported Magazine driven suchasAscribe,which, by commercially oriented services systems (e.g.,O’Connell).In contexts,similardevelopments are art ment proprietary, internallycontrolled blockchain-basedtransaction by largebanks,includingSantander andDeutsche Bank, toimple- forexample,inplans indications ofthisdevelopment canbeobserved, circuits into the property-based oflatecapitalism.Firstlation of art market –mayinsteadcontinue,andagainaccelerate, theassimi art theinequitiesoffinancial radically disrupt realm –includingthe Blockchain technologies, lauded as providing us with the ability to for them.My maybeabouttorepeat itself. history senseisthatart what usefulinsightsthedisillusionmentofRamsdenetalmighthold infrastructures offered rules-based new by theblockchaintoconsider workingI leave withinthe ittotheemergingcommunityofartists highly profitable market mechanism. etc., withunsurpassableeaseandefficiency!),wasassimilatedasa works dematerialized canbearchived, art instruction-based, traded, version waspromptly (arguably, intoacommercial converted virtue against whichtheysoughttopositionthemselves. Theintendedsub and bureaucracies ofcapitalismhadfailedtosubvert thesystem above ofthemechanisms,logic, allisthattheirinstrumentalization What thedisappointmentexpressed conveys by conceptualartists New World non-plus- - - 295 / Martin Zeilinger: Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know About the Blockchain* (*But Were Afraid to Ask Mel Ramsden)

Art

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g/stable/778941. g/stable/778941. , Siegelaub.’ xxxviii-lii.

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–1969: From the Aesthetic of Administration to the of Administration to the the Aesthetic –1969: From

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Zeilinger, M. ‘Digital Art as ‘Monetised Graphics’: Enforcing Intellectual Property on the Intellectual Property Enforcing M. ‘Digital Art as ‘Monetised Graphics’: Zeilinger, Blockchain.’ Philosophy and Technology Accessed 06.06.2017. http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13347-016-0243-1. image and B. Stimson, of Conceptual Art,’ in Eds. A. Alberro Stimson, B. ‘The Promise tual Art: A Critical Anthology Paul, Tout-fait: The Marcel Duchamp Studies Online Journal Duchamp Studies Online The Marcel , 1999. http://toutfait.com/issues/ Tout-fait: 06.06.2017. Accessed issue_1/Notes/Desperately. Corners from and Sides; Straight, Drawing #260, All Combinations of Arcs LeWitt, S. Wall Lines Not Straight and Broken 2008.) 1966 to 1972. the Art Object from The Dematerialization of Six Years: L. Lippard, 1973. Praeger, New York: behind Bitcoin could change technology how the revolutionary Michalska, J. ‘Blockchain: , Sept 29, 2016. http://theartnewspaper.com/market/ the art market,’ The Art Newspaper Accessed blockchain-how-the-revolutionary-technology-could-change-the-art-world. 06.06.2017. cash system.’ 2008. http://article.gmane. electronic Nakamoto S. ‘Bitcoin: a peer-to-peer Accessed 06.06.2017. org/gmane.comp.encryption.general/12588. Digital Currency.’ about to Launch a Blockchain Token O’Connell, J. ‘Four Big Banks Are Cryptocoinsnews.com, Aug 24, 2016. http://cryptocoinsnews.com/blockchain-token-four- big-banks. Accessed 06.19.2017. Vol. 57, 1991, pp. Vol. the Authenticity of ‘Desperately Seeking Elsie: Authenticating Girst, T. Buchloh, B. ‘Conceptual Art 1962 Buchloh, B. ‘Conceptual October Critique of Institutions.’ Accessed 06.06.2017. Buchloh, References . Cambridge, Anthology Art: A Critical Stimson. Conceptual A. and B. Alberro, 1999. Press, MA: MIT . Artists� Writings Critique: An Anthology of Institutional A. and B. Stimson. Alberro, 2009. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA: Scarlett, A. On the Matter of the Digital in Contemporary Media Art.’ PhD thesis, Scarlett, A. On the Matter of the Digital in Contemporary 2017. University of Toronto, and Sale Agreement Siegelaub, S. Artist’s Reserved Rights, Transfer Martin Zeilinger: Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know About the Blockchain* (*But Were Afraid to Ask Mel Ramsden) / 296 297 / Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods artificially scarce In addition, while the initial the while addition, In 1 There have been attempts to mitigate the reproduction of digital reproduction been attempts to mitigate the have There norms around to create industries work and creative artefacts. Cultural a copyright (such as the push in the UK to create online ‘piracy’ sees those Another approach education agenda for schoolchildren). law and to make copyright governments same industries lobbying it is often for technical reasons However, extensive. practice more to identify copyright infringement expensive) prohibitively difficult (or Digital technologies are a powerful challenge to artificial scarcity. challenge to artificial scarcity. a powerful technologies are Digital my every is also an act of reproduction, Where act of digital circulation it If else’s. someone inhibit doesn’t file MP3 an or GIF a of enjoyment to take the time to photocopy to steal a book or even was prohibitive every and new techniques, page of it, cheap consumer electronics, digi- of reproduction the make CD, a ripping to copy-and-paste from sophisticated of straightforward. development The relatively files tal it possible to compress codecs for audio and visual content makes and transmission of large files large multimedia files, making storage all bandwidth networks, When coupled to high straightforward. more content and offers and circulate easy to store of this makes it relatively culture, industries. Digital a unique set of challenges to the cultural wants to be free. might say, we production costs of these cultural goods – making a film, a music costs of these cultural goods production and reproducing of costs the high, relatively are – painting a or record an economy of cultural goods, In low. relatively sharing the goods are to make these goods to be employed techniques have These techniques include easy reproduction. and to challenge their different many controls one company vertical(where integration of copyright (legal approaches development the stages of production), goods), and limiting access to otherwise reproducible to exclude freely development the regulating (by access to the means of reproduction photocopiers, presses, of or access to technologies such as printing copper plates and so on). Cultural goods such as music, art or ideas are what economists what goods such as music, art or ideas are Cultural or use, enjoyment person’s meaning that one to as ‘non-rival’, refer another’s. inhibit not does consumption Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? to be Free? Want Digital Culture Does the Transforming are How Blockchains Goods of Cultural Economy Rachel O’Dwyer Rachel Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods / 298 purchased booksin2009; or becausetheapproaches taken–Amazon Kindlecovertly deleting have foundhacksandwaysofworking around thetechnicalcontrol too have beenlargelyunsuccessful, eitherbecauseinnovative users to automaticallycircumvent thereproduction ofdigitalfiles.These embedded watermarks, securitycodesandalgorithmiccopyprotection called, includesthedevelopment ofregion specificcodecs, rootkits, easy reproduction ofdigitalfiles.‘Digital rightsmanagement’, asit’s proposal, then,involves developingtechnicalfixes new toprevent the online ortoseekrecourse againstindividualinfringers.Another on users’ deviceswithouttheirknowledge in2005 value mytokenworthless? tual token has not also kept a copy forherself, rendering the exchange concern. How doIknow thatsomebodywhohaspaidmewitha vir digital money(i.e.duplicatingatokenandspending ittwice)isabig is alsoanactofreproduction thepotentialfordoublespendingwith ing butintangiblebitsofinformation. actofcirculationWhere every other waysofmanagingscarcity where the‘token’ inquestionisnoth- Central Bank intheEuropean Union. Adigitalcurrency hastofind suchastheFederalintermediary Reserve intheUnited States orthe managedthroughscarcity theintersticesofsomecentral is artificially case withthegoldstandard priorto1971). With fiatcurrencies this to a scarce and valuable good such as a precious metal (as was the issuance. With hard currencies orcommoditymoney, supplyislinked proof. With any form of money comes the need to control supply and also produces thefirstformofdigitalscarcity usingcryptographic The technicaldesign of Bitcoin, by creating digital currency, atruly Digital scarcity cultural production. rights fordigitalculture andinturnwhatthismeansforthefuture of ask whether the blockchain will lead to stronger or weaker property companies toidentifythekeybusinesspropositions and putforward earlystages,Ianalyzeare patentsandsomefledgling stillinthevery authenticate andcommodifydigitalculture. While theseproposals records andverifies Bitcoin transactions,asamechanismtosecure, recent proposals to use the blockchain, the underlying database that Following onfrom theseapproaches, thischapterconcernsitselfwith deemed tooinvasive bodiesalike. by usersandregulatory 2 Sony Corporation installing root software

3 –have been - 299 / Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods - - - and this allows these and this allows 5

4 Bitcoin produces a form produces of artificial scar Bitcoin file can be encoded in a cryptographic hash The blockchain database facilitates the development of limited of development facilitates the database blockchain The about a particular digital editions of digital goods. Information Limited editions Limited There are several proposed business models for the monetization of monetization models for the business proposed several are There digital goods using the blockchain. New business models for digital New business models culture Notions of ownership and authenticity would be delegated not to an of ownership Notions artefacta cryptographic or a specific codec, but to hash that details its marks This cryptographic innovation origins and transaction history. a scarce of authenticity in cultural goods from a shift in the nature a implies also innovation an such Arguably, code. to object, ‘original’ modern forms of property built and the cultural economy shift from and economies of cultural them to newup around property relations goods. fore, and focused on solving questions of supply and repartition of repartition of supply and questions solving and focused on fore, that prevents infrastructure a networked also produces funds, Bitcoin be – from nominally reproducible and therefore something digital – circulated. ing duplicated and Bitcoin solves this ‘double spend’ problem with cryptographic proof. with cryptographic problem proof. spend’ this ‘double solves Bitcoin to keep blockchain called the ledger) (or digital database uses a It or be spent cannot that tokens so all transactions of and verify track a block and encoded in is verified, Each transaction twice. transferred transactions. of blocks such other of chain time-stamped a to added running all computers across distributed the this ledger are Copies of can or or entity has control no one individual so that software Bitcoin there monetary, application was While the initial falsify the record. Instead of a block encoding the transfer and possession of monetary of a block encoding Instead and document the provenance instead record tokens, a block might digital cultural goods metals or indeed precious of assets such as land, is sometimes called smartsuch as music or images. This process and about who owns agreements and the software-based property, smart called contracts. uses it are . city in the digital realm Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods / 300 Bruce Pon outlinedthecompany’s businessmodelinthree parts: Speaking atMoneylab inAmsterdam, founderandCEOofAscribe providing totheartist. theseservices work spreads. Ascribe’s business modelcomesfrom extractingafeefor alsoprovides dataaboutwhere withnew istry andhow artists their right holder. Alongsideidentifyingcopyright infringement,thereg copyright infringement,andseekretribution onbehalfofthecopy oforiginalstotrackreproduction,and thenusethisregistry identify Ascribe can register ‘original’ or‘authentic’ files on the blockchain, Monegraph –withmachinelearninganddataanalytics.Thismeans This approach combines the registration of authentic files – as in ‘an ownership layer fortheInternet’ usingblockchaintechnologies. tefacts is Ascribe, whose whitepaper describes the development of Another companythatspecializes inthemonetizationofdigitalar themselves beinfinitelynumerous. copy uniqueandtherefore limited inrelation toanyreplicas thatcan copyofadigitalfile–makingone authenticate aparticular ‘original’ of digitalrightsmanagement(DRM),butinsteadmakesitpossibleto controlling the ability to copy or reproduce these as with other forms objectsby thecirculationno attempttocontrol ofdigitalart orcurtail fans andcollectors.’ It’s notingthatMonegraph’s worth systemmakes sponsorship, licensing,salesandsubscriptions,ordirect from support a numberofpotentialbusinessmodels,including‘advertising and tent forcommercial andeditorialuse.Themissionstatementdetails on theBlockchain, allowing andphotographerstolicensecon artists Monegraph creates for specifying use rights a user-friendly interface collectorsorlicensedtomediaoutlets. images thatmightbesoldtoart businessmodelforthelicensingofallkindsdigital articulated Monegraphinto thepoliticaleconomyofdigitalart, isnow awell- approach. criticalprovocationWhile initiallydeveloped asapartly by Kevin McCoy inassociationwithRhizome, hasemployed this on theblockchain.Monegraph, acompany foundedanddeveloped ‘objects’, aswell astheirprovenance andownership, toberecorded where theworkscomefrom. artist tofollowtheirworks’ journey, andforbuyersto understand work inproviding atraceablehistoryoftheartworks forboththe second awaytosecure legalities,andthird avisibilitytool.These Ascribe

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301 / Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods - Ascribe 8 authenticate digital They also create a private passcode, passcode, a private create They also 9 Ascribe uses the distributed blockchain uses the distributed Ascribe 7 . Both, in effect, create limited edi- infringement. Both, in effect, create copyright Ascribe’s 2014 patent describes a step-by-step process where the artist where process describes a step-by-step 2014 patent Ascribe’s a new Bitcoin creates a new and then she or her agent work creates and a unique (public) which is both the genesis address address, artwork.identifier for the view the blockchain as a technology that allows them to overlay a new them to overlay view that allows the blockchain as a technology infrastructure. meta-data onto the existing network of ownership layer Along with stronger copyright, the blockchain can also be used to copyright, the blockchain can also be Along with stronger funding, pay what you facilitate new payment models such as crowd might be able a buyer example, For or micropayments. want, rental Secondly, Ascribe make use of Internet wide searches, searching the searching wide searches, Ascribe make use of Internet Secondly, etc.) designs 3D (images, works digital recorded the of copies for web copies or works similar works, and using machine learning to identify in the global registry and reporting that infringe on those recorded Ascribe this way, In owners. their existence and location to registered not only to Monegraph in that it aims differs from ‘vis artists partners and their business can use Ascribe as a Thirdly, Models Payment New which is associated with this work. From this point, the artist this or her From with this work. which is associated with the is in possession of the passcode associated representative a new hash with accompanying is sold or transferred, the work If work. The transfer of of the work. passcode becomes the public identifier and verified be monitored can then to address address from ownership which is public. consulting the blockchain, by artefacts use the blockchain as a method for but also to eventually identifying form of digital files. tions within the technically unlimited their work new that produces data metrics about how ibility tool’ This includes details it is spread. and how online and where circulates that can be potentially and circulated purchased tracks are about how to artists, and advertisers. valuable to marketers Firstly, Ascribe consists of a global registry of a global consists Ascribe with straightforward coupled Firstly, with associated licenses rights and kinds of set out the that contracts users looking and for artefactthe digital owners is clear for a way that in to blockchain is used the goods. Here use, or transfer the to collect, later to impossible are that transactions ownership record ‘securely or manipulate’. repudiate database and a unique cryptographicdatabase and to associate (ID) in order hash authorship with a particular and file. details of ownership Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods / 302 blockchain paymentsforfilesandstreaming, While there are anumberofmusic platformsexperimentingwith complex subdivisionsandtheassociatedcostsare notanissue. contracts. Furthermore,smart the legalities required to create such with conventional contracts,suchsubdivisionscanbeautomatedwith arranged percentage whenarecording issold. While thiscanoccur of aband’s single)canallbeautomaticallyremunerated by somepre coverengineers, soundvideo artists, andgraphicartists, (such asthesessionmusicians,songwriters,mixingandmastering ers, where thosewhohave contributedtoanyaspectofadigitalwork from fans). A blockchain also allows divisions of stakehold- for new generated $3millioninrevenue from ‘pay what you want’ payments tal modelusedby Radiohead’s album (similartotheexperimen- to tiporpayamicropayment toan artist anything theownership-sales framework. in relationships more akintothehistoricmodelofpatronage than production, exhibition and reception of model toreproduce works ofculture, fundingthe‘governance, In thisway, threshold isreached, thefundsare usedtocommissionaselectedartist. instantiation ofthe potential patrons donateBitcoin proposal foramaterial toanartistic Usingfor artists. acrowdfunding model,audiencemembersand formsofpatronageplatform tofacilitatenew andremuneration creators, dealerandagent.For art thefunctionalitiesofartist, performs the itself withinthemarket, actingasapiecethat,onceactivated, also propagating thatusesblockchaintechnologytoreproduce artwork of the blockchain well. Okhaos illustratesboth thecopyrightandremuneration possibilities to a cultural good – some of whom are collaborators, some of whom toremunerateopportunity numerous actorswhohave contributed consumer. Because contractsprovide someoftheproposed smart the tion ofsingleitemsto users inonedirection from producer to arrangements more diverse inscopethanthetraditionaldistribu more fine-grainedlicensingofcontent.These allow for ownership funding and micropayments, blockchain-based contracts facilitate well as providing flexible paymentand revenue modelssuchascrowd Proponents ofthis‘new kinds of payments’ approach argue that as cultural goodsinthefuture. businessmodelsfor funded illustratesthepossibilityforradicalnew micro-tipping modelusedby Plantoid isnotanextensionofDRM,butratheropen Plantoid makesuseofaself-propagating micro-funding artwork and when a particular financial Plantoid andwhenaparticular artwork Plantoid (profiled in this volume) is a self- to keep a particular artwork artwork Plantoid tokeepaparticular In Rainbows in2008which in a virtuous circle’Plantoids in a virtuous 11 According toOkhaos, the 10 arecent by artwork - - - 303 / Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods - - - - - blockchain. Ujo is 12

Finally, a record of every a record Finally, 13 transaction made is instantly captured, catalogued and available as a catalogued and available transaction made is instantly captured, and potentially use to gain insight analyze for the artistreport to view, track ‘Tiny Human’ for sale on the Ethereum Human’ track ‘Tiny A third business model focuses not on revenue from sales or crowd from revenue on not focuses model business third A Data Monetization Data a visibility tool for data analytics, a number as Ascribe provides Just a heavily In data visibility. of other companies also emphasize a new detailed under startup Ujo (previously move, publicized the released has Heap, artist alongside Imogen Mycelia), name the ready been proposed in legal frameworks such as the Peer Production Production as the Peer such in legal frameworks been proposed ready fit-for- a have they blockchain the in but Copyfarleft and License execute to automatically that is designed infrastructure purpose legal in the smart contract. on monetizing data associated with blockchain- funding but instead goods the sale of digital shifts from the focus Here based transactions. or collec fans how to respect with data of monetization the towards what else files circulate, use the content, how tors engage with and with other be aggregated can also data on. This and so purchase users what they are, data concerning who fans network media and social able to track user say on social media. Being and what they purchase too, having data ana monetary So behaviours is a powerful stream. over or works tracks and sharing of an artist’s lytics about streaming worthoverall of the artist can offer indications about the the Internet circu data about the outside of traditional monetary channels. Here becomes a likes and shares popularity, overall and its lation of work valuable than the in fact be more and may value for financial proxy cultural good itself. will be fans or investors – the argument is that aspects of the artworkthe of aspects that is argument the – investors or fans be will and identified be can now to the market external previously that were the blockchain makes This same structure. the within compensated al models have Such licensing. culture free platform for a powerful an open-source rights database and payment infrastructure headed rights database and payment infrastructure an open-source recent for Radiohead’s a consultant also responsible Barry, Phil by contains a number Human’ sale of ‘Tiny digital sales strategies. Ujo’s to the new payment and ownership some of which relate of features, stems of the it is possible to purchase First models discussed above. Second the smart as individual parts song, as well of the final mix. with associated compensation and ownership of details with contract streaming well as the price for actions such as download, the file, as visible for all to see. and licensing, are Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods / 304 embroiled inthelegalities ofthesaleanddistribution oftheirworks contracts;they don’tembroiled inthetechnicsofsmart want to be that empowers donotnecessarilywant tobe butartists artists, blockchain platforms.Blockchains are beingpresented asasolution away atanartist’s fees,somuch asreplace legacy industrieswithnew The blockchainmaynotdo awaywithintermediaries,allnibbling But there are anumberofcriticismstothisidealisticperspective. tive content. associated withthesale,distributionandcopyrightprotection ofcrea copyright framework,cuttingoutmiddlementhateatinto thefees their work andremoving theconstraintsassociatedwithlegacy remuneration system willempower allowing artists, themtolicense agencies. Theargumentisthatablockchain-basedauthentication and ies such as record companies, galleries, publishers, and legal support blockchain technologiescouldimplyafuture free ofintermediar the work, whilealsogainingdirect insightintofan-basebehaviour, generate trust-free gatheringof interested stakeholdersintimatewith where cantheoretically artists licenseanddistributetheirwork, and working inadigitalspace.By producing adecentralized platform For sometheblockchainpresents thepossibilitytoempower artists Some criticisms valuable forthird parties. about theirfansandhow theyinteractwiththeirproducts mightbe alternatively, gather thedatathattheyorplatformintermediary their brandbeyond more figures straightforward like record sales. Or, social mediaandnetwork databecomesametricforthepopularityof gain sponsorshiporgigsandotherformsofremuneration because sociated withtheiruseandcirculation. In otherwords, can artists duction ofscarce goodstowards insteadfinancializingdataas artists a possibleshiftinthemonetizationofculture from thesaleandpro models andformsofremuneration, however, italsopointstowards right framework. Ujo’s payment platformnotonlyfacilitatesnew difficult tolegislateornegotiateunderalegacy record labelandcopy- and between Heap inwaysthatmighthave been andotherartists also encouragesotherformsofcollaborationandremix between fans kindsofdigitalgoodssuchaslimitededitiontracks.Ittion andnew The platformfacilitatesfine-grainedformsofpaymentand remunera into how fansare interactingwithandusinghermusic. - - - - - 305 / Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods - - - - - be readily identified, traced should be readily can and Furthermore, by proposing micro-monetization structures for cultural structures micro-monetization proposing by Furthermore, also seem to suggest that all contri- goods, blockchain developments butions to a cultural good We can also argue that the development of smart can also argue that the development on the contracts We particularly- those focused on the licensing and commodi Blockchain, kinds of diverse only more goods, suggest not ‘non-rival’ fication of commons type contracts but also such as creative legal arrangements new Aside from interme digital goods. property rights over stronger to make use pie, the proposal of the revenue diaries taking a slice of sale and licensing of digital content is in the of the Blockchain form of DRM. Certainly, extensive ten couched as a new and more seems to for the Internet’ layer ownership for ‘an proposal Ascribe’s only not of use that makes a model sentiment, proposing this embody also but contracts, self-executing of the development for platform a cop- identifying for learning machine and tools algorithmic of use the link structure exploring a bi-directional yright infringement, and even reproduction. unauthorized that automatically vetoes unless they have to. Because these smart contracts are mediated and and mediated these smart Because are contracts to. they have unless Ujo, new and Monegraph as Ascribe, such platforms by negotiated start-upsblockchain new become than doing rather intermediaries This is particularly the case the intermediaryaway with altogether. (blockchains blockchains ‘permissioned’ towards trend with the than an open users rather privileged authenticated by and controlled large by of the technology and the adoption of peers) access network industry players. and remunerated. Aspects of cultural goods that were previously ex previously Aspects of cultural goods that were and remunerated. A new ownership layer? A new ownership ternal to the economy would be drawn inside the market and artists inside the market ternal to the economy would be drawn the this view not acknowledge does But would be fairly remunerated. and collabora remix appropriation, complexity of social production, of cultural goods, par in the making and circulation tion involved does this business model seem to only ticularly in digital spaces. Not by developed model distribution free and source contradict the open digital artists,many a quantified economic it also attempts to impose not measurable organic, was previously onto something that standard irreverence art digital around convenes Much and socially produced. of art digital works Indeed, and intellectual property. for ownership – featuring complicated referential often deliberately irreverent are mash-ups to art historical and digital culture. Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods / 306 imagined model,itpresumes aradicalreorganization ofthehyperlink companies like Ascribe have developed patentsbasedaround suchan use by thathardware-owner. While thisistheoretically possible,and hardware thatwillonlyaccessthecontentisowned orlicensedfor digital files),andinturnthiscollectionwouldhave tobecoupled for example,ormore ofall ambitiouslyaninternet-widerepository that encompasses a collection of work (the catalogue of a record label control ofownership thesewouldhave toberecorded onablockchain the creation In ofhashesfordigitalartefacts. order tobeaneffective (on theInternet inotherwords). Theblockchainmodelhingeson prevent thereproduction outsideofthissystem ofdigitalartefacts ofworks, noinfrastructurefoundation ofarepository existsto while itauthenticatesdigitalgoods,untilisthesoleordominant its current inceptionisnotaneffective platformforDRMbecause, Blockchainform ofDRMthatactuallyworks seemsfarfetched. in At anyratetheclaimthatblockchainwillimplementapowerful structures underlyingtheInternet. of value canbeextracted through the monetizationofdataassociated circulation more freely available. Platforms are interested inwhat kinds about revenue streams thatcanbeminedfrom makingaccessand around exclusion through devicessuchasDRMorcopyrightandmore of culture. Today itlookslikebusiness modelsmaybestructured less models forculturalgoodspoint towards kindofmonetization anew relations,property we could speculatehere thattheseproposed business still tooimmature tomakeanysweeping claimsaboutthefuture of While thespeculative developments onblockchain-based contractsare rounding the behaviourofitsconsumersandproducers. with leveraging theuntappedwealth ofculture: datametricssur rightstoaidinthesaleofdigitalgoodsthanoneconcerned property a digitaldatabase might belessa question of instantiating stronger to ascribeownership andrecording rightstoadigitalartefact theseon and around culturalcirculation. Using hashfunction acryptographic might beimplementedtoproduceformsoffinancializationfrom new blockchain. More significantare thewaysinwhichthistechnology It seemsunlikelythatDRMwillbeaviablebusinessmodelforthe digital culture atpresent. to reproduce andcirculate digitalcontentforittobeworkable for relativelyAirbnb apartment effectively, there are stilltoomanyways systemsmightbeusedtosecureproperty acarorthedoortoan outside oftheremit oftheblockchaininfrastructure. While smart the mostextreme measures would prevent contentfrom circulating

14 Also,itisunlikelythateven - 307 / Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods

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in the world of blockchains in the world tool that will abolish the exploitation of artistsbut of exploitation business, big the abolish will that tool by the no longer where property rights and legalities are because stronger money is at. http://furtherfield.org/features/reviews/plantoid-blockchain-based-art-makes-itself and transfer ownership of artworks.’ 10 11 9 McConaghy, and 2014. 8 the digital is generated ensuring the origin of each bit can be traced. Those who receive copy is an original, by comparing a cryptographic that the artwork will be able to prove one on the Bitcoin blockchain. If they match, with a correspondent hash of the picture limited edition proofs. it is one of the people can be assured 6 7 McConaghy, 5 June 24, 2015. Internet.’ Ascribe GMBH, Whitepaper, transactions primarily to be a platform for smart applications and the rules to support them. This is contract and to facilitate their transfer ownership rights used to record the blockchain. They are between owners. As Josh Stark explains it: have unique characteristics compared Because these programs are run on a blockchain, they recorded on the blockchain, which gives to other types of software. First, the program itself is Second, the program characteristic permanence and censorship resistance. it a blockchain’s can itself control blockchain assets – i.e., it can store and transfer amounts of cryptocurrency. and Third, the program is executed by the blockchain, meaning it will always execute as written no one can interfere with its operation. (http://coindesk.com/making-sense-smart-contracts) transferring first with the Blockchain to support all have expanded the scripting languages associated Ethereum, languages. complete programming kinds of transactions supported by Turing to handle not only monetary for example, have extended the Bitcoin scripting language 3 4 and supports the kinds of transactional arrangement necessary for straightforward 1 2 Notes While it is too soon to say with the blockchain, other platform other platform with the blockchain, is too soon to say While it copyright through content not monetize models that specific business info about collecting advertising or through but through enforcement usage, data with the use of digital content, and through financial speculation on speculation financial through and digital content, the use of with it may pose. insights any analytic data and use of this the future and freedom Network Cultures, Dec 2016 http://vimeo.com/148159485 Network Cultures, Rachel O’Dwyer: Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How Blockchains Are Transforming the Economy of Cultural Goods / 308 analytics. ID givestheoptionofmonetizingcontentthrough advertisingorthrough data copyrighted content.Insteadofsimplyremoving videosthatinfringecopyright,Content 15 Such 14 buying-music-on-the-blockchain-and-why-blockchain-for-music-a85eaeaca7ad 13 12

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project attempts to explore the blockchain from a the blockchain from attempts to explore project Aphantasia could take would be would take could Is it possible to use and abuse blockchain in a reversed Is verted We propose blockchain as a handle for an art blockchain as propose object, a We intent Artistic Aphantasia – Blockchain as Medium as – Blockchain Aphantasia for Art empty, aphantasia. The being@time is considered which is in a state of form (an impossible metaphor), content, a pure a thought without blind, an intuition as aphantasia is considered while its condition calling for are We impossible metaphor). without concept (another feel since we these implications an art given be furthered which can to an art come, in a sense, have its tether. and a mind at the end of we Bjørn Magnhildøen, Noemata Magnhildøen, Bjørn At the end of this text you will find a call for works that respond to the that will find a call for works the end of this text you At and of Aphantasia concept Let us begin with two tales of other older ‘chains’ – the mythological, and the obsolete signal device for trains chain ‘Gleipnir’, unbreakable containing a ‘bat chain’. to the approach taken in the area of intellectual property, which ap property, of intellectual in the area taken to the approach art, serving re-commodify to only pears its and markets the solely agents. experimental forms the medium an exhibition exploring the different makes possible to transgress. of the blockchain makes possible, and more conceptual point of view. We want to explore if blockchain can can blockchain if explore want to We view. of conceptual point more to distinguish it from ‘medium’, emphasize We be a medium for art. to art, tool in relation the blockchain is being used as a where projects intellectual property. to protect for instance The artart,net like formats, traditional outside models (post-)conceptual art, land art, performative, descriptive, or others. Bjørn Magnhildøen, Noemata: Aphantasia – Blockchain as Medium for Art / 310 Blockchain puller Ragnarok (thefinalapocalypse). is asthinsilkit’sstronger thanachain.Thechainwillholduntil bear’s tendons,afish’sbreath, andthespitofbirds. Even if Gleipnir the soundofacat’spaws,woman’sbeard, roots ofamountain, chain whichwasimpossibletobreak. Theyusedsiximpossiblethings: which bindstheFenris wolf. toforgea The Gods askedthedwarfs In Norse Mythology, Impossible metaphor / lines: ing trainaccording totrackstatusreports received by telegraph. The bat chainpullerwastheperson whosetthesignalsforapproach tion ofthetrackahead,orwhether thetraincouldproceed, etc.The different batshaddifferent colourstosignalthetraindriver thecondi train line.Thesignaldevicethatwaspulleddown wascalledabatand A batchainrefers tothechainthathangsdown from asignalposton They guildgoldsawdustintodust. In zonesofrust That blisterandbreakinagony Pulled byrubberdolphinswithgoldyawningmouths With twinklinglightsandgreensashes Caught ingreyblisters Their veryremainsandbelongings…infaultycircles, This trainwithgreytubesthathousespeople’s thoughts, It whistleslikearootsnatchedfromdryearth… And vanishintodarkness Bulbs shootfromitssnoot A winghangslimpandretrieves… That trailsbehindontracks,andthumps On itsslicksmoothtrunk That glistenslikeoilbeads A chainwithyellowlights

Their veryremains andbelongings…’ – ExtractsfromCaptainBeefheart,BatChainPuller (1976) ‘This trainwithgreytubes thathousespeople’s thoughts, Gleipnir (Old Norse ‘the open’) is the chain containapoetic imageof - - 311 / Bjørn Magnhildøen, Noemata: Aphantasia – Blockchain as Medium for Art . ------can also can also confirmed by anybody confirmed

Bat Chain Puller Puller Chain Bat postmodern art.

being@time formulation then one being@time formulation partially detaches art a ‘blockchain puller’ is metaphorically metaphorically is puller’ ‘blockchain a Aphantasia being@time type of object makes existence a non- It might be seen as old-fashionable nonsense to bring quantum me might be seen It tion, witness, a quality of being ‘written in stone’, that contrasts or of being ‘written tion, witness, a quality potential gets maximized. expressive could suppose a corresponding its objec The properties of the art (what it is) is detached from work blockchain). of by time (which is taken care status as a being in tive also the And perhaps sificatory is commonly used, but is instead the division, as the word of objects in general – that is, condition of the (epistemic) possibility if our Whereby, in particular. any and all objects, not specific objects as a possible and provable system of abstraction includes ‘existence’ them. isn’t essential to property or category of objects, then ‘existence’ a words, other In part Or its formulation. of propertyessential since existence is already existence, as from its produce again, an existential medium detaches can be said to not be attached to for instance life. As living beings, we since death will wrong are then we are we think existence, and if we of living us – existence is just a condition of the possibility disprove in particular. beings in general, not of specific lives (don’t) understand it, exist chanics into the argument, but as far as we ence appears to be just a condition of a statistical possibility in general, (neither particles entities in ‘superposition’ not of specific quantum-real In what sense could art be made on or of the blockchain? Since the sense could art what on or of the blockchain? Since be made In blockchain format is this minimal un- of concept pure a category, a becomes Existence existence. from a category is not a clas Such derstanding, akin to Kant’s philosophy. combats the given immateriality of late immateriality combats the given tered on the blockchain can be easily verified tered seems important existence’ for our use, as documenta ‘confirm To what the blockchain technology seems to promise people; and for our and for people; to promise seems technology the blockchain what if they even and things, thoughts hold both it would that purposes, The text invisible. empty and be both should The format of the blockchain is a timestamp and a hash-reference of blockchain is a timestamp and a hash-reference The format of the - regis being@time formulation. Everything the content, i.e. a kind of Art medium? Art be interpreted as referring to the fact that this job is obsolete in an au this job is obsolete to the fact that referring as be interpreted In world. tomated interveningplayful, a as between middle-man and layer reintroduced new ‘obsolete’ technology and the of blockchain world the brave signs, symbols and meaning. world of human-mediated Bjørn Magnhildøen, Noemata: Aphantasia – Blockchain as Medium for Art / 312 object ofconsciousnessingeneral, includingthetechnologicalsimu rated. ismeanttobeunderstoodandelabo statement whichnevertheless Another meaningofnoemata isasarhetoricalfigure ofanobscure immaterial: if conceptual art detached the material object from art, we detachedthematerialobjectfrom art, immaterial: ifconceptualart isnoteven is.One couldsaywiththisthat art questions aboutwhatart Such anexistentialorquantumapproach touchesonfundamental pear, basedontheexperimental-contextualsetupofbeing@time. to aquantummeasurement leap, existencetoap forcing aparticular chain makesthispossible,asanagentforprovability, behavingsimilar objectsinparticular.in general,notofspecificart We believe block being@time, seeingitasmerely objects aconditionofpossibilityart metaphorical way, we’re disengagingexistencefrom theformalismof cal form–theSchrödinger equation ofthewavefunction. In asimilar, reality, as existence, except than describing its behaviour in mathemati no senseindiscussingwhatthequantumentitysuperpositionis nor waves). AsfarasaCopenhageninterpretation ofthisgoes,there’s lacrum cloud ofunknowing being@time objectisorrefers to. We couldlikenittoaphenomenological experience?There’s aboutwhatthis and art a fundamental uncertainty ogy, Husserl in particular and Heidegger, as a way to understand art toreconsiderCould thisapproach beanopportunity phenomenol ingeneral. art of contemporary butrathera‘historical-ontological’condition isn’t aspecialtypeofart theoristPeterArt Osborne makesapointthatpost-conceptualart something tangibleanddocumentable,attestable,experienced. concept also. But even under these conditions, we are usually left with are consideringatypeofpost thought orintentional theproject isthusrelatedart, tophenomenologyanditsobjectsof In additiontoseeing one’s subjective orcontextualintentionsandintentionality. andleavesfrom itforusas‘meantandexperienced’according art to detachesobjectandexistence being@time asaformofblockchainart object’sphysical or to allotherquestionsabouttheart allows inaddition us toputasidequestionsabout theexistenceofart understanding, anddescribingappearances. To putinparenthesis whether somethingexists,orcanexist,asafirststepin recognizing, to holdbackjudgement,aprocedure where we refrain from judging in parenthesis) couldreveal toushow theobjectconstitutesitself: Aphantasia as a conditionofpossibleintentional considersart

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313 / Bjørn Magnhildøen, Noemata: Aphantasia – Blockchain as Medium for Art

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being@time, written in t inundated by it. Not that art that it. Not by �t inundated These forms of media possess very possess media of forms These little 3 es some imagination and fantasy on the client on the client and fantasy es some imagination ‘As the lady said, “Well, if it isn’t art, then I like it.”’ art, it isn’t if ‘As the lady said, “Well, /object requir

There is a given ‘thing’, verifiable. We could call it fact, the state of verifiable. ‘thing’, is a given There Synergy? Gimmick? (Where art becomes a ‘hot’ medium, overheated and untouchable, untouchable, and (Whereart overheated medium, ‘hot’ a becomes naming something ‘art’). just by information and consequently require from the audience a higher from require information and consequently to engage to receive have We of participation and imagination. degree Rauschenberg’s to Robert Cage stated in relation back, or as John art:assemblage Imagine the conceptual artist me Kawara using blockchain as On Imagine the documenta through A lot of conceptual art can only be known stone, a fact… Kawara, 5.8.2017’. This makes it On dium, writing ‘I am still alive. is no necessary form and content in between clear that there relation died in 2014). The blockchain Kawara (On the blockchain record only its form. The the semantic content of the record, verify doesn’t – without a ‘synaptic’ remains content and form between relation gap rather than as a creative connection, and is better utilized fixed inverse: relation is on the contrary, The to impose any authenticity. of fictionalization, dis the degree imposing authenticity will increase inter it seems the ‘blockchain puller’ simulation, and exploitation. So deal with it. way we in whichever ‘in faulty circles’ venes divided tion which itself isn’t the art. artist Land Smithson Robert into ‘site’ and ‘non-site’ as a sorthis work of solution to the fiction alization of art via documentation. The integrity implemented in the trustlessa para- both in documentation, ensures format blockchain a documentation which is independent meanings of the word: doxical trustless secondly, and trustedthe blockchain); of than (other sources in the sense of not worthy false. of trust; faithless; unreliable; things, truth, and other terms. Put into system, as register things, truth, and other terms. Put chain as to in the unbreakable referred A work work for all arts, which might be common and which has side, a threshold isn that the world as a consequence in McLuhan’s keep it a cold medium, elitist, but rather to should be . of low-definition one – sense Against the backdrop of blockchain technology we might perceive perceive might we technology of blockchain the backdrop Against the simulacrum of a proof- extensions as elements fictionalizing and – that the protocol puzzle form of client another system, or of-work Bjørn Magnhildøen, Noemata: Aphantasia – Blockchain as Medium for Art / 314 nally crossed mymindand Isettoworkstraightaway.’ in life. For some time I had been no good at anything. I am forty ‘I too,wondered whetherIcouldnotsellsomethingandsucceed ciological study. andprecarityOn aso theotherside,conceptualart couldbeworth It’s aformofplay. Lightenupandhavefunwithit.’ ‘Your workisn’t ahighstakes,nail-bitingprofessional challenge. hold orshow anybeliefofwhatitis. a blind thing in the sense that without such representation it doesn’t self – its medium. It’s aninvisiblethinginthesense thatitdoesn’tmirror it Aphantasia object is theintentional art was shocked.’ could checked withhisfour-year olddaughter. Iaskedherwhethershe take for granted – our imagination. He thought it was a joke, so he prompted scientiststore-examine anexperiencethatwesooften an intellectualconcept,ratherthanamentalpicture. Thishas ‘When hethinksaboutaface,itcomestohimasan idea,as mental imagerywasunknowntothem.’ ‘To myastonishment,Ifoundthatthegreat majorityprotested that Aphantasia ‘Let’s roll!’ ‘Art isart’ consciousness (whatever thisis). the technologycouldberedefined forhuman ratherasasimulacrum Experimentally andfindwaysthat onecouldusealltheseproperties to built-infunctionalityforprovenance The blockchain register hasa relevance asacatalogue. In addition ‘From years

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as medium or format is a highly abstract en format is medium or being@time as tity, in that it is without ‘mental imagery’, it is cryptographic, tity, it is not even conceptual; and since conceptual art often relies on mental imagery to complete itself, the any formal, consistent system there will be true statements system there will be true statements any formal, consistent within the system that are unprovable ceptual art. It is certainly structured by information, but in an aphantastic way – it is ‘invisible and blind’ as a medium. However, if understood with a certain if understood might license we poetical However, theorems incompleteness two Gödel’s as relation, the of sense make that of mathematical logic, expresses stated in the language prove its own consistency Gödel’s theorem, Gödel’s The relation between between relation The ceiver, us, even as an impossible belief as an impossible us, even ceiver, it is – a itself out of what – as if it throws oppose or put before, throw contradiction. the method that cryptographically own using the blockchain’s proves makes Virilio the object. Paul without producing existence of an object to relation in and existence provability between distinction similar a This doesn’t prevent the thing from existing, on the contrary, to the contrary, on the existing, from the thing doesn’t prevent This per to the object an becomes it in parenthesis itself it puts extent This chain provides the basic handle, and which at the same time chain provides the basic handle, and serves as verifiable documentation. could rather be considered a type of (post-) is: Aphantasia what is meant by summarize, To a where art of notion A empty, intuitions without concepts are blind.’ are intuitions without concepts empty, In other words, we say that we words, other In is cryptographically provable within the system. As stated earlier, if within the system. As stated earlier, is cryptographically provable is a property existence of an object in the blockchain, then proven non-essential since it’s existence isn’t essential to it; existence becomes part of its formulation; an existential medium like blockchain already existence. from detaches its produce with Kant so restating and empty, is say that Aphantasia represents these blind, unprovable truths within these blind, unprovable represents say that Aphantasia via imagination even a system – they exist without being producible, the impossibility stating imaginary, – being outside it, being not even the other hand, the On imagination, of metaphor. of Bjørn Magnhildøen, Noemata: Aphantasia – Blockchain as Medium for Art / 316 developed here. The other part is what the records inthe catalogue ative doubtisimpliedinconceptual artandcouldbesaidtofurther which partly is the art itself and partly the documentation of it. The cre- The dissemination is two-part. Blockchain functions as a catalogue Exhibition ‛epoche’ (bracketing)andaproductive unknowing. lessness. Materialisatheme,andthemematerial.The methodis tal materialities. The project ratherlooksathowblockchainartcould artistic production intheblockchainmediumshouldbelimitedtodigi anddecentralized networksitdoesnotmeanan sible bytheinternet (including ‘existence’asproperty)andaparadoxical The combinationofanexistencedetachedfromproperties requiring an‘actofconsciousness’(anoeticsimulacrum). aptic’ reference(hash)cannotbebridged,itremainscoded, troubled aspect of conceptual art finds a solution. Still, the ‘syn- Since itcannotexistwithoutbeingdocumented,partsofthe melt downaform state Our current material is experimental research aboutart and object Theme Open callforworks of itstether’, sense we’vecometo the endof rope, a‘mindattheend thought, ablindintuition–animpossiblemetaphor. Ina from existenceandconcepts.Itcanbelikenedtoanempty handle toanartobject. This object is provable but disentangled Stated shortandsweet;blockchain’s being@timeprovidesa nation aside,oratleastdisengagefromthem. be whenweleavethespectacle,objects,concepts,andimagi field foranexplorationofwhatisart,anditpossiblycan lated relationtoimageryandmetaphorsmakesitacritical these implicationsofblockchainasamedium. We arelookingforsolutionsinhowartcan befurtheredgiven being@time, itsconceptsblindedtoastateofaphantasia.

experience. Evenifblockchainisadigitaltechnologymade pos

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317 / Bjørn Magnhildøen, Noemata: Aphantasia – Blockchain as Medium for Art - - - ) being@time ‛site’. Non-site is an abstraction

3 & 51.

Anywhere Or Not At All: Philosophy of Contemporary Art. London: Or Not At All: Philosophy Anywhere Peter Osborne.

Notes 1 2013, pp. Books, Verso The project is open-ended and doesn’t operate with a formal deadline. operate with a formal is open-ended and doesn’t The project that something chain, unbreakable an as blockchain the on Reflecting of consciousness – two likens it to our notion of time or as a stream – it seems only natural other types of trustless chains in two meanings itself. chain the by done is closure any since open-ended it leave to of consciousness would mean… Imagine what closing the stream imagine it. In trying to formulate an art as trustless exist we couldn’t Please send proposals to: [email protected] Please send proposals info: http://noemata.net/aphantasia More devoid, or beyond imagination (as a mirror ence, independent from, as an also realized is the project known appearance), and of trusted chain without closure. unbreakable tended object (content object tended Robert Smithson’s distinction between ‛site’ and ‛non-site’ can useful. Call the catalogue-part of the blockchain ‛non-site’ and the - in be refers refers to, the content (traditionally seen). There doesn�t seem to a play with rather be it’s genre-wise, the content delineate to any reason art is. of what and understanding contexts We are looking for works that challenge notions about art, either looking for works that challenge are We mate conceptual means, or through formal, philosophical, through and (impossible) metaphor for site. The two terms are used here in used here for site. The two terms are and (impossible) metaphor between blockchain and form to the relation a sense that is similar online and leads to an exhibition which is both lessness. The division an exhi- to leads project the Specifically terms). of pair similar (a offline to can refer of blockchain art, and which bition of an online catalogue offline content (directly or metaphorically), which again is made- avail allows it. the material able to the degree in exploring how particularly interested are rial, media, application. We of properties the pondering from emerge can expression of forms new and onto the impossible, the invisible the blockchain. An art bordering gap the in out played cognition, and imagery mental of limits the blind, technol- consciousness, and code formlessness, and form between ogy and fiction. A metaphor for the unbreakable chain made up from , in both meanings. impossible things – a trustless existence Bjørn Magnhildøen, Noemata: Aphantasia – Blockchain as Medium for Art / 318 Cambridge, Massachusetts:MITPress, 1991. http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/galton/imagery 2014. http://text.no-art.info/en/milman_pop.pdf 14th century. anonymous workofChristianmysticismwritteninMiddleEnglishthelatterhalf http://gutenberg.org/ebooks/4280 6 5 4 3 Press, 2007,p. Cunningham, 2 15 Kant, 14 p. 13 12 last-week 11 Galton, 10 Van 9 Kosuth, 8 Kosuth, 7

174.

Compton, Michael. Marzona, Daniel. Milman, Estera.Pop, McLuhan, Marshall. Wells, H.G. Sokal, AlanandJeanBricmont. Virilio, Paul. http://bbc.com/futurestory/20160524-this-man-had-no-idea-his-mind-is-blind-until-

der

Immanuel.

Weyden 1991. Joseph.

Francis

339. Seealso: MindAtTheEndOfItsTether. Heinemann,1945.

The LostDimension Candler

(Bernard Art AfterPhilosophyandAfter, CollectedWritings (19 Conceptual Art

Critique ofPure Reason.Gutenberg project, 2003[1781]. Marcel Broodthaers

Understanding Media July Junk Culture, Assemblage,andtheNewVulgarians , 2004.

(Ed.).

1880).

The CloudofUnknowing(TheCloudeUnknowyng)an Pruvost).

Veritas –Transcendence andPhenomenology.CSM

‘Statistics . Cologne:Taschen, 2006,p. Fashionable Nonsense.London:Picador, 1998, .

New

Li’l Quinquin.BluRay. Directed byBrunoDumont.

. London:Tate Publishing,1980,p. York:

. NewYork: McGraw-Hill,1964,p. of

Mental

Semiotext(e),

Imagery.’

1991,

21.

Mind

p. 1966 ,

5 pp. 5, , 66.

–1990.

13. 301

22.

–

318.

319 / Marc Garrett: Interview with Holly Herndon & Mat Dryhurst - ) we had be ) we Home Chorus and Platform ( , released with Holly Herndon in 2015, is in 2015, Herndon Holly with Platform, released One of many interesting and experimental things and experimental things of many interesting One To put it in pretty boring terms, it has become a core boring terms, it has become a core put it in pretty To

part of our mission to be pretty candid about what we do. Holly had Holly do. candid about what we part of our mission to be pretty earlythe then during and herself, by touring and been making albums experiments that later became Mat Dryhurst the decision to break away from the perspective of singular genius, the perspective away from the decision to break Spencer of collaborators. This included artist a variety and involve design studio and Dutch Tech), Tactical (of Tolan Longo, Claire page it says that it ‘underscores release 4AD press the On Metahaven. the Under action.’ the need for new fantasies and strategic collective all became a kind of you along with Holly, Herndon, name of Holly to and Holly you What inspired construction. collective cooperative, assemblage of or body, be seen as a decentralized what could explore working describe your would you how Or individuals as a collective? identity and the importance of this move? occupying this tiny apartment in San were as we together, gun working onestuff in net concrete weird on this I was working and Francisco, and I think both of in the other, was writing for voice and Holly room, well really the ambient sound that the two worked us picked up from Marc Garrett Marc the album about Photo by Suzy Poling Interview with Holly Herndon with Holly Interview & Mat Dryhurst Marc Garrett Marc Marc Garrett: Interview with Holly Herndon & Mat Dryhurst / 320 and ultimatelyit’spower tobeaforce intheworld. connectivity, anddisseminationofmusic, canchangetheconstruction personally interested inhow decentralized practices, collaborationand feels likesomanysonicexperimentshave beendonetodeath–I’m fields. It’s alsojustaninterestingrun inmusicwhenit experimentto tangiblecollaborativeand alsocreates connectionsbetween thesevery contributions. It makes for better results, I feel, better general feeling, and exciting ofanyindividual without diminishingtheimportance Working more fun thiswayhaschangedmylife,andmadeeverything interests, andapoliticized wayofworking andacknowledging others. ture political tomakeapointoftheproject beingalignedwithcertain asapoliticalges necessary italsofeltvery with thevisionforPlatform be transparent andcelebrated.Beyond that,whenwe were comingup ontheworldthatthis ofouridealisticview and Ithinkit’sjustpart Basically highlevel production iscollaborative, ata certain mostart who we’d beenintouchwithforsometimeoutofalignedinterests. of puttingthatvideotogether, andsothensoughtoutMetahaven, Akihiko artist Taniguchi, andreally enjoyed thecollaborative process together! For videowe hadseenthework theChorus oftheJapanese HH MG unplug andseetheworldaround usalittlemore. puters, whichcanbelonely, soworking withotherpeoplehelpsusto and nottheego. Not tomentionthatwe spendalotoftimeoncom confidence, however ultimatelythework itselfis themostimportant, Releasing step in building my my debut album solo was an important and not feel threatened if someone else’s idea is better than my own. aspect (Itendtomicromanage), tohearotheropinions,letgo, It’s single forme;learningtonotcontrol every beenalearningcurve toourselves, thenthepracticeshouldreflectto betrue thatconcern. mentality. We realized how problematic thisis,andifwe are going largelyparrots this planet andsocialhealth,themusicindustry for themselves’. We promote hyper-individualismat the costof Holly Herndon ing with,oreven justreferencing. Thosethatunderstood thegesture andthinkersthatIwascollaborat to writeabouttheotherartists ing press around therecord, itwasdifficulttogetsomejournalists ous, creative intention? in theworld(presuming theyhave) cometotermswiththisadventur collaboration. How didtheaudience,music industry, andothers thevalues ofindividualityaboveports community, orpeerto

It wasvaried, butoverwhelmingly positive. When we were do In aworldthattraditionally, economicallyandpolitically, sup

It sometimesfeelslikeoursocietyis‘every person ------321 / Marc Garrett: Interview with Holly Herndon & Mat Dryhurst - - was received really well. Holly opening up Holly well. really Platform was received I think that

MD It’s really noticeable live, where the audiences have been really sup been really the audiences have where live, noticeable really It’s There are a few a industry are is project the There example, for complications; birth under my still at the centre so in some ways I am name, released but also necessity, professional is a problematic orbit, which of the as in a way a lot, Horse Trojan idea of the used the We helps somehow. served singular presence my easily understood as a gateway into this dif various in act, as balancing a It’s of people. whole other universe what the industry expectations as to feel different scenarios you ferent and of my face, narrative they want a simple wants; on a pop level gender and mundane characteristics such as my tend to focus on often has opened up see that the experiment you other levels education. On record the in people’s interest where potential, narrative different a of their choosing. off into the direction and it’s cast forks experience all kinds of people who come you portive. After the shows Mat has on stage – were people who along, hanging out with different who often and the same with Colin Self, audience somehow, his own the and allowing of opening up the process tours with us. As a result a little more to shine through and approaches interests of full breadth talk people come up to we have shows at different than is standard, out about cryptocurrencies and ICO’s, to us about the music, or nerd We feels meaningful, and gratifying for that. It or Chelsea Manning. the visual or whether through the location of the show, always address special privilege a and trysound, It’s be alert to always responsive. and comes concept the that think I and people, with time that share to situation as each individual serves in a live a quite effectively across very in constructing purpose experience. the collective different really embraced the idea, and that successfully provided a platform to to a platform provided that successfully idea, and the embraced really work. everyone’s highlight her practice didn’t diminish her signature on the artworks, and I thinkher practice didn’t diminish her signature at our shows feel can think you I over. people of lot won a really has it that do, and I think it has maybe what we principle to a greater have that we experiments and of their own made a lot of space for people to conceive being ambitious on a conceptual level maybe not be concerned at how Naturally there will affect the ability for the art in the world. to travel where industry, effect within aspects of the creative is also a throttling record, the around ideas bigger the with deal to want didn’t they maybe in those enough to kind of live that the music is strong I feel however storythe were people think I knowing without it. Overall behind circles wholethe of transparency and idea, the by encouraged and refreshed room is more my mind, there it is a way of being. In us now thing. For Marc Garrett: Interview with Holly Herndon & Mat Dryhurst / 322 environments, sochannellingthatlegacyisimportant. Zero. Allofourtalentsandideashave beenincubatedincommunity the communityfirst. Without communityliterallynoneofthisexists. history, etc.there software, isreally crypto nootheroptionbuttoput something positive. Particularly given ourinterests insubculturalmusic and harness that for for complexity of information – so we want to try people canandwanttodigdeeper, andperhapshave agreater capacity of having a simplermarket narrative, and yet we live in a time when has omittedsomanypeople’s ideasandcontributionsforthepurpose and ideaswillberespected history andcelebrated.Thecanonofartistic for individualitytoshinewhenyou canguaranteethatsomeone’s work communities to educateourselves andanticipatethebest options. proposition, a genuinelynew butitisourjobasmembersofmarginal new, soyou kindofhave toread thesmallprinttodistinguish whatis There are alsoalotofoldideasmasqueradingassomethingshiny and chain techemergingoffersclues astohow we cangetthere quickly. tion. There issomuchmore thatcouldbedone,andalotofthe block interactionsaroundnew collaboration,augmentationand live interac the DRMeraofcopyrighttakedowns, butinsteadbuildmarkets and attribution thatdonotconsolidate ment. Iwantsystemsofvirtuous ideas forfree –mirroring greater society, itisawinnertakesallenviron to privilegethosewhoappropriate andcurateotherscreative work and understand thattheweb muchdesigned asitstandscurrently isvery ing thequestionofattributionandcollaboration,aswe have grown to exploring.It’s muchworth the mediumvery also fascinatingregard surroundings online,whichIthinkisawholeotherproposition for ity toversion work, fork inreal it,andhave itperform timetoit’s dimensionaddedtomedia withtheabil this wholeotherperformative capacity canmeanforthemediumofmusicitself. With interestedparticularly inwhatthisarchitectural already beenexploringinourwork thatit’s thelogicalnextstep. I’m community issosynonymouswiththemodelsofcollectivitywe have blockchain initsnextiteration.Alotofthespiritbehindcrypto ples asthe years,framework forthepastfew thatshares alotofthesameprinci blockchain, I’ve beendeveloping myown decentralized publishing work shewasdoingatStanford.telematic performance Regarding the MD MG Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs)? as toolsthatchangepractice.So, whatwasinteresting toyou about interested inshiftsbetween theuseoftechnologiesasmetaphorand

I’ll letHolly talkmore aboutwhere DAO camefrom, withthe On On youPlatform released thetrackcalledDAO. Iamalways Ethereum logic,andI’m lookingtohave itinteractwiththe

infrastructural ne infrastructural Saga you have w w ------323 / Marc Garrett: Interview with Holly Herndon & Mat Dryhurst - - - - - ession of the , the Interface Crossing e two dimensions to this. First, I encourage art two dimensions to this. First, e Do you have any plans to formalize any part of your creative any part creative any plans to formalize of your have you Do OK. Last question, in light of the current suppr OK. Last question, in light of the current Holly and I are starting finish this next al after we a studio and I are Holly IMHO, there ar IMHO, there DAO came out of a piece that I wrote called that I wrote out of a piece came DAO

The vocal work that Amanda delivered while workshopping that per while workshopping that Amanda delivered vocal work The with a libretto by Reza Negarestani. The piece was my first venture venture first was my piece The Negarestani. Reza by a libretto with was DeBoer) (Amanda a soprano performance,telematic into where could hear her phys but the audience geographic location, in another I wanted using ambisonics. the space throughout moving ical body in ways human, moving and physically super present, her to be hyper the in multiple places in to be able to be to a human body, impossible separate, stalking and her body her voice at once, as eventually room tryingwas I room. the clearly so something make to way a find to and embodied at the same personal extremely highly mediated, feel as it exists in the concept for the DAO time, which seems appropriate that is complex and distributed network world – this simultaneously intent. with collective and moves also hyper intimate I used some of those outtakes for the so great, formance was really the instrumental trying I was simply just With in DAO. work vocal stereo wide of lots with energy heavy a atmosphere, an capture to because he sings with Colin, fun to play live also really It’s movement. a nice contrast of which creates processing, the soprano line with live taking the alien vocals, expressive extremely with heavy electronics gender spectrum and contortingentire it into a circle. ists to become familiar with the language and potential of blockchain of opportunities a lot to attempt to re-engineer are as there technology, bum to more formally develop work and devices that exist in this new work develop formally bum to more instrumentalso been has it as past the for discussions our in frontier, to task are as if we deliberately, few I describe it as a frontier years. then it feels al with actually experimenting with our work ourselves already have We most like a duty to get our hands dirty in these areas. to tell hard started but it’s in this domain, new on two work projects to people, and what shape they will to show when they will be ready take. eventually MD spirit of humanity by despots, and the rich buying up democracy for despots, and the rich buying up democracy spirit of humanity by ends, what part see artists do you playing in the world oftheir own bankrupt system? of an already blockchain, to disrupt the regurgitation MG MD MG the blockchain? on collaboration to work HH Marc Garrett: Interview with Holly Herndon & Mat Dryhurst / 324 http://furtherfield.org/features/articles/crypto-20-and-dawcs http://furtherfield.org/features/reviews/plantoid-blockchain-based-art-makes-itself http://furtherfield.org/features/articles/conceptual-art-cryptocurrency-and-beyond http://wired.co.uk/article/holly-herndon-music-to-troll-by http://hollyherndon.com hollyherndontoreleaseplatforminmayinterferencevideopremieres http://4ad.com/news/10/3/2015/ queen-of-tech-topia-electronic-music-paradise-politics http://theguardian.com/music/2015/apr/26/holly-herndon-platform-interview- http://maskmagazine.com/the-asylum-issue/work/holly-herndon-mat-dryhurst References lot offuntothinkabout. areas ofinterest more dynamicandpotentiallytransformative. It’s a menting, andabreast ofwhere things maybegoing,there are fewer erly stress testedatscale.Irrespective, if your mandate is to be experi technology isinherently flawed andinfeasibleonceithasbeenprop- I shouldsaythatthethird wildcard possibility isthatblockchain of thegreater publicawareness. worst casescenarioofpower outside consolidatingitselfeven further we needcriticalvoices active withintheseconversations the toavert forthebetter.the blockchaintochangemusicandarts Alternately, The bestcasescenarioisthat we candevelop our own systemsalong andwhoultimatelyitwillbenefit. this nextinternetruns, and beingvocal, there tointercept plansforhow isanopportunity the courseofitsdevelopment andmaturity. By gettinginvolved early, rate crowd, whoare increasingly flexingtheirmusclesandinfluencing cal voices guarding thecommunityfrom thebusiness-as-usualcorpo ecosystem, forexactlythereason and criti thatthere needstobewary todevelop somefluencyaroundI alsoencourageartists theblockchain usingtheselogics. faith thatbettersystemscanandwillbeconstructed communitywhoinvest there isalotofgoodwillamongstthecrypto of centralized traditionalchannels.Real moneyisbeingmade,and how we experience,transactandgrow outside communityinthearts - - - 325 / Marc Garrett: Interview with Holly Herndon & Mat Dryhurst Biographies / 326 327 / Biographies - http:// ero Kline and Coma, Centrespace gallery Kline and Coma, Centrespace ero works on projects that span technology, culture culture technology, span that projects on works publications include: Futures: Poetry of the Greek the Greek of Poetry Futures: publications include: is an artist working with installation, sculpture and is an artist sculpture with installation, working is an artist, with emancipa- and curator working writer Brekke is an artist whose practice is informed by, and investigates, and investigates, is an artist by, whose practice is informed

/curated works at X /curated works

Klara

the increasingly performative and language in conditions of code the increasingly a Repeater; of Banner founder also is She culture. hyper-networked and project Publishing of Artists’ with a public Archive room reading train for others, on a working space, opening up an experimental space that come of publishing, distribution, station platform, London. Ideas analysis of post-digital artand dissemination, that lead to a critical in her practice as an artist and inform the shared are production, BA teaches at Goldsmiths She Repeater. of Banner remit working the UK, with and across MFA, Martins Saint crit studies, Central FA has recently She culture. a focus on post-digital strategies in network exhibited Chopo – Del Museo Arts Centre, Wysing ICA, London, Dundee, SA – Group collaborated with Cuss Gallery, Hayward City, Mexico Gallery Council connect_ZA), Arts Roberts (British David Ithuba Japan. Container, The Arts Camden Centre, Foundation, Ami Clarke Theodoros Chiotis Theodoros Ruth Catlow , @jayapapaya http://jayapapaya.net , http://distributingchains.info Jaya Biographies tant questions through artworks, labs and debates. tant questions through tory network cultures, practices and poetics. She is co-founding co- torypoetics. She practices and cultures, network of life to all walks people from with working of Furtherfield, director impor to today’s responses and extend critical and aesthetic explore and political economy. She is based between London, Athens and Athens London, between is based She economy. and political is writing a she Department where Geography University Durham to blockchain technology. relation in and power on authority PhD Simon Denny amiclarke.com video. He studied at the Elam School of Fine Arts at the University Arts at the University School of Fine studied at the Elam He video. Frankfurt. and at the Städelschule, Zealand New of Auckland, (2017); Hammer Shenzhen solo exhibitions include: OCAT, Selected WIELS Contemporary Los Angeles (2017); Art Centre, Museum, Crisis (Penned in the Margins, 2015), Screen (in collaboration with 2015), Screen in the Margins, (Penned Crisis Books, 2017) and Tigers Paper Ventourakis; photographer Nikolas lives He 2017). (Litmus, sick the of assembly an towards limit.less: Archive of the Cavafy Manager as the Project and works in Athens Foundation). (Onassis Biographies / 328 funded research project AfterMoney. exchange inthedigitaleconomywhichsheexplores intheESRC Digital Fabrication, Data Engagement throughforms ofvalue tonew Informatics. Her background andresearch interests rangefrom the 56th Venice Biennale (2015). Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna (2015). Denny represented New Zealand at Foundation,K11 Art Hong Kong (2016)andPolitical Populism, NewArt, York (2017); The 9th Berlin Biennale (2016); Hack Space, shows include:Unfinished Conversations, The Museumof Modern New York (2015)andPortikus, Frankfurt (2014).Selected group Brussels (2016);Serpentine Galleries, London(2015);MoMA PS1, *Bettina Nissen *Dave Murray-Rust http://hadi.link, http://abertay.ac.uk *Hadi Mehrpouya http://rorygianni.me.uk The DesignInformaticsResearch Centre* MSc programmes. and data ethics, as well as the PhD, MA/MFA and MSc Advanced geography, software engineering,socialcomputing,healthinformatics of researchers working across thefieldsofinteractiondesign,human *Rory Gianni *Shaune Oosthuizen http://data-things.com the PETRAS Internet ofThings Research Hub. programming, civic technology, andopen data. He iscurrently of part the advantages of digital technology, delivering trainingon Creative Technologist whoispassionateaboutsharingandadvocating offer amore holisticunderstandingofthe financialsector. is currently conductingresearch inhow technologycanmediateand nology, datavisualization,socialenterpriseand innovation. He Abertay University. He isinterested inthesocialapplicationoftech Virtual Reality. physical computing toimmersive experienceswith Augmented and of things.His research interests and rangefrom cryptocurrencies a Digital Creative, builder ofinteractive installationsandmaker new technologiestofindoutwherenew humanitymeetscomputation. puters thatcometogetheraround commontasks.He tinkersaround cusses onSocial Machines –largescaleassemblagesofpeopleandcom isaResearch AssociateinDesign Informatics and http://shaune.rocks isadesignerandResearch AssociateinDesign isalecturer inComputerGames Technology at http://designinformatics.org isaLecturer inDesign Informatics whosework fo isaResearch AssociateonAfterMoney and http://aftermoney.design, ishometoacombination https://petrashub.org, - - - 329 / Biographies - /vocalist) /vocalist)

ISMAR2015

/composer

http://chrisspeed.net is an artist and researcher focused of is an artist and researcher is a Permanent Researcher at the National National the at Researcher Permanent a is http://escuderoandaluz.com is a human geographer and Post-Doctoral Research Research and Post-Doctoral is a human geographer is Chair of Design Informatics at the University of at the University Informatics of Design is Chair is an artist and collaborates on audiovisual projects with with projects is an artist and collaborates on audiovisual can be described as 28.3% man, 14.1% artist can be described as and 8.4% http://oxchain.uk http://maxdovey.com Symons

Edinburgh where his research focuses upon the Network Society, Society, Network upon the focuses research his where Edinburgh has Things. Chris Internet of and The Technology, Art and Digital technology informs a critical enquirysustained network into how practices. and cultural social, economic Center of Scientific Research (CNRS) in Paris, a Faculty Associate Paris, a (CNRS) in Research Center of Scientific at Harvard & Society Center for Internet at the Berkman-Klein Associate at the Edinburgh College of Art, where she is researching she is researching College of Art,Associate at the Edinburgh where might mean for technologies exchange digital value what novel in southern include neoliberalism interests research Oxfam. Her politics and geographies of nature the Africa, especially Mozambique, developing in conservation,and exchange newand value of forms countries. César Escudero Andaluz César Escudero Primavera De Filippi Holly Herndon under the name Kairo, and last year started and last year a gradu under the name Kairo, Herndon Holly his partner (and RVNG Intl-signed producer Intl-signed his partner (and RVNG (jp), WRO2015 (pl), NODE(de), TRANSNUMERIQUES (fr), TRANSNUMERIQUES (pl), NODE(de), WRO2015 (jp), FESTIAL MEDIA ART (es), KIKK (be), ROME HANGAR. ORG (it), ADAF (gr). ZKM (de), ARS ELECTRONICA CENTER (at), ZKM (de), ARS ELECTRONICA ate program at UCLA. He has lived in Salwa, London, Berlin, LA London, Berlin, and in Salwa, has lived at UCLA.ate program He he has been since 2008. – where Oakland *Kate *Chris Speed *Chris Max Dovey Mat Dryhurst Mat Human-Computer Interaction, interface criticism, digital culture and interface culture digital criticism, Interaction, Human-Computer sculpture, spans image-making, His work its social and political effects. media robotics, IoT, culture, videogame, installation, networked Linz in at the Kunstuniversität 2011 he is researching Since archaeology. in international been shown artworks have LAB. His Culture Interface including museums, galleries and conferences electronic-art events, successful. He is also an artist, researcher and lecturer specialising in specialising and lecturer an artist, is also researcher successful. He affiliated is an He the politics of data and algorithmic governance. writes for Open and Cultures of Network at the Institute researcher performed been has work His Furtherfield. & Imperica Democracy, & many U.K based music Art Rotterdam Festival, at Ars Electronica festivals. Biographies / 330 aligned technologyforlocalpower andkeepsbees. B9lab. He isbasedinLondonandCatalunyawhere heworks onnon- Juhee Hahm development ofnarrative films. andproductionand ensemblepracticesacross inthe performance is developing asystemforimprovising cinema, usingimprovisation work usingmovingtransdisciplinary image.His doctoralresearch Elias Haase abled platformsandthepoieticnature ofautonomoustechnologies. His research involves unraveling thepoliticsofcryptographically-en recently spenttime researching attheInstitute ofNetwork Cultures. holds anMAinPhilosophy from theUniversity ofAmsterdam, and ally andinternationally. Media exhibitions,publications,projectscontemporary nation Arts andLabinLondon(Finsbury Park),lery UK.Co-curatingvarious therfield, onlinesince1996,andin2004the Gal Furtherfield co-director Ruth withartist Catlow of theInternet collective Fur arts - Marc Garrett http://okhaos.com/plantoids http://cyber.harvard.edu/people/pdefilippi, Advanced Studies attheEuropean University Institute. University, anda Visiting Fellow attheRobert SchumanCentre for http://kimberleyterheerdt.com, http://nikkiloef.com filmdocumentedinthebook. speculative short brought themtogetherandresultedership ofsmart-contracts intheir terests inexploringthepossiblefunctionality, specificationand own University in Arnhem, the Netherlands. of the Arts Their shared in- Kimberley http://cargocollective.com/interspersed-wjth, http://terra0.org Max Hampshire http://juheehahm.com Pete Gomes the surface, therefore,the surface, sheconnectsdiverse scaleandsubjectstogether. playful manner. She believes thatthereal issueishiddenunderneath reactions between theinteractionsofhumanityinanempathicand through stories, asa result of societal researches. She materializes the

ter isoneofthefoundersblockchaineducationprovider is a London based artist andfilmmakerwhomakes isaLondonbasedartist is an artist, writer, isanartist, activistandcurator. Cofounderand speculatesthrough drawings, she designs experience

Heerdt isaresearcher livingandworking inAmsterdam. He and Nikki Loef http://petegomes.net are bothstudents attheArtEZ http://b9lab.com - - - - 331 / Biographies - t and Design. He is He t and Design. http://alittlenathan.co.uk http://paulkolling.de, http://terra0.org has been involved with network cultures since cultures with network has been involved is a curator and writer based at Res., gallery is a curator and writer based at Res., and is an American composer, musician, and sound artist and sound musician, composer, American is an /writing at Liverpool School of Ar School of /writing at Liverpool

http://beingres.org is an artist and researcher based in Liverpool, UK. He UK. He based in Liverpool, is an artist researcher and is an artist and designer currently living in Berlin. living in Berlin. is an artist and designer currently is a Leipzig-based collective artist, 44% complete. Her artist, is a Leipzig-based collective 44% complete. Her http://ellikurush.com Kaplinsky Magnhildøen

Kolling

/MSP to create custom instruments and vocal processes. She has She instrumentsprocesses. custom vocal and create to /MSP

Kuruş

He studied at the University of the Arts Berlin and works at the the Arts of and works Berlin studied at the University He media artand industrial design. His intersection of design research, (new)materials, interaction between the to explore strives projects objects and new technologies. practice spans artistic and curatorial approaches that converge into practice spans artistic that converge approaches and curatorial performances. Investigating installations, videos, drawings and lecture critically examines the she her, the agency of the things around as material the present reading and technology, of media development history. based in San Francisco, California. She is currently a doctoral student doctoral a is currently She California. Francisco, in San based is primar work composition. Her studying University at Stanford language programming visual the uses often and computer-based ily workspace in Deptford, London. Her projects consider collections projects London. Her in Deptford, workspace she has years recent in the age of digital sharing. In and archives London South Whitechapel Gallery, at contributed to programmes The (London), ICA Festival, International Glasgow Gallery, (Britain Tate and (Liverpool) GalleryPhotographers (London) FACT and Modern). the 80s. He is interested in procedural, virtual, unstable technology, virtual, in procedural, unstable technology, is interested the 80s. He He abject and precarious. formless, the negations, and areas border site for digital and netbased art, a production affiliated runs Noemata, art for electronic in Norway). network with PNEK (production http://noemata.net Bjørn Elli Paul Helen and teaches art newthe and media performance Editions, Torque of co-founder also forthcoming is Jug from Happy The play posthuman His Mercy. agency as audio CD and illustrated book. Entr’acte Nathan Jones Max most recent and 4AD. Her Intl. on the labels RVNG music released 19, 2015. on May was released full-length album Platform Holly HerndonHolly writes and collaborates frequently on intersections of poetry on intersections frequently writes and collaborates and new of London, University Holloway student at Royal is PhD media. He Biographies / 332 in fintech. She isthe curatorofthefestival andconference Dublin. Her research markets focusesonthe politics of new emerging places. Prague, Kunsthaus Rhenania Köln, MOMA New York amongst other been featured at Guggenheim New York, V2 Rotterdam, Futura HDK Gothenburg, Impakt festival Utrecht et al.Theirwork have New Museum New York, Arnhem,Jan ArtEZ van Eyck Academie, Unstable Media inRotterdam. PWRhave lectured atRhizome & are recent fellows atJan van Eyck Academie and V2 –Institute for designandimagemanipulation.PWR digital development, interface systems. Additionally, provider PWRisaservice intheareas of speculative investigations intopresent andfuture communication Nilsson andRasmusSvensson. PWRisoccupiedwithpracticaland Martin Nadal http://keybase.org/robmyers Paul Seidler technologically mediatedworld. Vancouver, Canada.He’s tomakesenseofanincreasingly justtrying Rob Myers PWR Edward Picot http://tcd.academia.edu/RachelODwyer http://openhere.data.ie videos aboutanNHSdoctor, in2010. Film Festival amongstothers.He Dr started Hairy, aseriesofcomedy- TrAce, Furtherfield, HZ,andTheLondon-Worldwide Comedy Short ager. His criticismandcreative work have appeared inPNReview, Rachel O’Dwyer Plattform. research facilities,includingtheDesign Research LabandtheHybrid of Prof. Joachim Sauter. During his studies,heworked invarious Berlin. Since 2013hestudiedattheUniversity intheclass ofArts ZKM(de), ADAF(gr),NODE(de). Ars Electronica (at),AMRO Festival (at), Settimana dellaScienza(it), cinematography. His works have been shown at Medialab Prado (es), related andtechnology. toart He isalsointerested inillustrationand collaborated inavariety ofprojects andtaughtsomeworkshops Interface Cultures program atKunstUni. In thepastyears hehas isastudioforResearch, Design andDevelopment by Hanna run http://pwr.site http://plsdlr.net, http://terra0.org is an artist, hackerandwriterfrom theUKnow isanartist, basedin is an artist/interaction designerlivingandworking in isanartist/interaction is an artist/developer basedinLinzandstudyingthe isanartist/developer lives inKent andworks fortheNHSasaPractice Man isaresearch fellow inCONNECT, Trinity College . Writing andtalkscanbefoundat http://robmyers.org, http://spectrum.muimota.net - 333 / Biographies - - http:// http://samskinner.net http://surfatial.com is a PhD candidate at the Centre for Interdisciplinary for Interdisciplinary candidate at the Centre is a PhD is a video, Internet, and installation artist. She stud and installation artist. She is a video, Internet, is an artist and curator. Current projects include: include: projects Current artist is an and curator. is a German filmmaker, visual artist, writer, and inno visual artist, writer, filmmaker, is a German . is neither dead nor alive. It is always at home, devising its is always at home, devising It alive. is neither dead nor ied Graphic Design at the School of Graphic Arts and Creative Studies Studies Arts and Creative Graphic at the School of Design ied Graphic Arts, the National from in Fine a BA degree received She in Athens. has participated inter- in numerous Arts, She Athens. School of Fine national contemporary art exhibitions, among them: the 8th Istanbul ‘The Joannou Collection’, Dakis The to Now: ‘Monument Biennial, Of Museum in the Macedonian LibraryVisual in Progress’ A Gesture. New Center The Contemporary ArtQuarter, and at of Thessaloniki, . the gorges of the Balkan’ ‘In of Contemporary Art in Florence, next play. Surfatial comprises of three roles - Surface, Mirror and Mirror - Surface, roles of three comprises Surfatial next play. performs that musical collective collaborative a is Surfatial Perspective. and philosophical They form perspectives and scholarly activity. observed, on narratives founded imagined phenomena, emerging and experiences. They have of individual exchange upon a self-reflective on the state of the contemporary essays written numerous Internet that combines spoken an album called Phil-K also released and have Rajnarayan, Prayas is Malavika and sound in new ways. Surfatial word Gummuluri. Satya Abhinav, Torque Editions; co-curation of The New Observatory at FACT, FACT, ObservatoryNew at The of co-curation Editions; Torque Human the and Coding of Ethics the on associate research Liverpool; School of Art; at Kingston Condition project Algorithmic and chair Materialism. New on Action the EU COST of 1 group working of London. in Thamesmead, and works lives He Pablo R. Velasco http://linatheodorou.com Surfatial Sam Skinner Sam vator of the essay documentary. Her principal topics of interest are are interest principal topics of Her of the essay documentary. vator holds Steyerl images. of circulation global the and technology, media, is She Vienna. Arts of Fine the Academy from in Philosophy a PhD the of Art University at the Berlin Media of New a professor currently Politics, Center for Proxy she co-founded the Research Arts, where and Boaz Levin. Tollmann Vera together with pablov.me Hito Steyerl Hito Lina Theodorou Methodologies (CIM), University of Warwick. His research explores explores research His Warwick. of (CIM), University Methodologies relations the interwoven design and in the rationale behind Blockchain space, politics, and Cryptocurrencies’ distribution authority, between can be found at academic (and non-acamic) work His of power. Biographies / 334 publications, cataloguesandmagazinesincludingco-editingwith curated numerous group and solo exhibitions and contributed to Mark Waugh Ben Vickers http://marjz.net, http://twitter.com/mrtnzlngr Martin Zeilinger DevelopmentArt Agency. her DPhil andisChairoftheLive onthedocumentationoflive art environmental changeandorganizationalbehaviour. Ceciliawrote to investigate economic systems, relationships with technology, anddesignpractices visualart experimental sound,performance, Communication, Royal London.Ceciliaworks with CollegeofArt, novels, Bubble Entendre andCome. Thomas Frank; We Love You Cecilia Wee the open-source monasticorder unMonastery. He is CTO at the Serpentine Galleries in London and an initiatorof Art ResearchArt Group (DARG) atCambridgeUniversity. tor Game &New Media Festival Art andco-convener oftheDigital tioner. He asco-curatoroftheannual alsoserves Toronto-based Vec- versity, mediaresearcher, isaLondon-basednew curator, andpracti- is a curator, writer, explorer, technologistandluddite. isacurator isheadofResearch andInnovation atDACS. He has , Senior Lecturer inMedia atAngliaRuskin Uni http://ceciliawee.com

/resear

On A cher and Tutor in the Schoolof udiences. He isalsoauthorofthe http://dacs.org.uk

- 335 / Biographies 337 / Index 322

–

284,

290 242, 269, 270 64, 142, 91, 93,

271 – 31,

– 269 –

– –

289, 298 84,

29, 34 270

– 289

266 – 270

–

294 264,

– 314

– 73 255,

310 66

288 227 129, 239, –

269 270 302

282, 283, 319 265

237

299, 300, 305 10, 26, 63 64, –

234 10, 28

263

84,

– 145 142, 224, 234, 251 –

– 75

– 94, 130, 146, 239, 242

14, 263 134, 266, 239, 244, 246 301

269, 63 247 250 247, 235

130 25, 47, 76, 82, 143, 146, 76, 82, 143, 25, 47, 14, 18, 228, 239, 294

73 61, 93, 21, 29, 31, 34, 104, 266, – – – 233

–

246,

149 49

130, 171, 256, 258 11, 17, 25, 27, 30 11, 17, 25, 27,

61,

–

– 129, 223, 147

24 –

268 242 246

234, 257 234, 172, 224, 227, 237, 283 227, 237, 172, 224, 298 294, 52 129, 141 239

tragedy of tragedy undercommons infringement (see also Property>Intellectual) art of of music DAO of of companies of Commons (CC) Creative and institutions and conceptual art and Platform Chain Puller Bat creative (See also Energy consumption) also Energy (See Cryptography Key Public anarcho- mining Michael Connor, copyright Crimp, Douglas Crowd-funding Cybersyn cyberpunk cypherpunk colonialism Commons, the Captain Beefheart case modding Coinbase collaboration borders bot Benjamin Bratton, Brexit Empire British Marcel Broodthaers, Buchloh, Benjamin B. Vitalik Buterin, capitalism banks Bitcoin 281, 290,

–

– 288 293

224,

245 306 314

228, 277,

49, 63, –

– 288 – –

309 –

–

229, 289,

263

262, 264, – –

– 46, 51, 59, 130

243 297 277, 279

–

270,

11, 149, 230, 144, 149 227 288 –

242

262 77, 28, 95, 102, 130, 28, 95,

73, 225, 240

309, 312 292, –

149, 227

11, 24, 26, 47, 75, 82, 145

–

9, 92, 94, 145, 9, 92, 94, 145,

224, 298, 305 169, 226, 14, 22, 36, 142, 249,

– 76

–

277 21, 27, 35, 84, 93, 101,

294, 245

239

239 27, 149, 261, 270, 304 22, 25, 241 28, 41, 44 14, 77, 149, 223 – 249, 269

143

269, 288, 294, 300, 306 288, 161, 30, 149, 228, 278 47, 63, 298

223

14, 30, 33, 35, 264,

78, 82, 103, 129, 130, 224, 68,

– – – – 11, 13, 26, 46, 48 11, 13, 26, 46,

146

– –

228, 268, 269, 278, 281, 287 281, 290 288 312 268, 271, 277, 290, 297, 305 240, 249, 263, 268, 280 299 287,

227, 272, 284 268 305 164, 234 164, 73 240, 245, 249, 268, 270, 287 160 65 226, 236, 269 51 percent art as complementary sale (and resale) of sale (and resale) world altcoins galleries market net.art digital (born-digital) fan art conceptual contemporary circulation of circulation and authenticity Socialist Afrosheen Crypto-

attention economy Augur automation asset management attack Ascribe currency alternative

art Anderson, Hurvin anonymization Amazon anarchism algorithm agency Alberro, Alexander Acceleration(ism) Manifesto #Accelerate accountability Index Index / 338 cryptography cryptocurrency Duchamp, Marcel Doig, Peter Dogecoin Digital Rights Management digital determinism democracy dematerialization datacenter databrokers database data Darwinism DAPPS DAO, The DAO’s t360 Corporation) DACS (Decentralized Autonomous

Technology ‘democratised creativity’ Hack of and Distributed Ledger hallmarking Artimage Platform DACS Copyright (Design andArtists proof-of-work proof-of-stake altcoin L.H.O.O.Q. (see alsoScarcity>digital) (andborn-digital) (see alsoArt>digital files Ar

287, 323 293 283, 298 253, 262,265,269 300 283, 266 263, 255, 186, 199,230,240,247 129 46 322 107 Society) 250, 252 287, 321 224, 230,237,240 33, 44,46 241, 244 305 300,

12, 15,19,23,29,32,43,

258 73 –

297

– – – –

22, 26,30 49,

26, 103,146,260

–

24, 27,69,160,240,242, 294 130, 323 128,

22, 25,241,243 74, 83,242,248,254 11, 19,36,103,187

142, 146,148,234 129

281 13, 93,235 –

22, 177,201,246,257, 69

59 281

270

– – – –

298,

9, 95

– 25, 93,141,148,242, 64 306 299, 301,303,306 307 133 257 142, 253, 269,299,315 14,

–

283 –

280

289 47, 63,73,75 11, 16,23,25,28,

70, 60

– 36, 75 17, 25,36,

– 15, 288 15,

301, 306 301,

– 275 – 72

272,

31, 54,64,103, 134, 83, 93 83, 282

–

– – –

–

286

272, 276, 241, 243, 275

236, 246,

258, 163

–

– 282

289,

– 94, 15, 298, –

– 248, –

279, –

168,

– 77,

235 104,

290, 198, governance Gödel, Kurt SeedGlobal Vault Gleipnir (Norse) Glaton, Francis Foucault, Michel Vilém Flusser, FinTech(Financial Technologies) financial markets financialization financial crisis feasibility fascism Europe Ethereum Ether encryption environment energy consumption Electronic Superhighway Krawisz, Daniel Kawara, On Kantchev, Linda Internet ofThings (IoT) immutability incentive identity Holly Herndon Heap, Imogen grey market

alternative workers critique of Gamer Case Blockchain Future State Fintech of blockchain sharing principleswith market value of Frontier fork Enterprise Etherium Alliance Classic by Public Key Cryptography systems cultural Platform Mycelia (see also,Democracy) surveillance by 298 268 258 264, 321

293

256 70, 224,

236, 244,258

31, 224 68,82,194,230,242,269,

130, 167,183,188,247,

55, 59 55,

– 236, 258

32, 63,129,141,234,257 267, 304 234 94

241

263 43, 224,228,253,256, 257

319 141, 144,163,171,173

141

315 313

18, 19,21,73,75,287 292 30, 92,129,223,236,

148, 234,246,253,

147

93, 223

– 145, 289 –

314

– 76 324

143

262

310 225, 228,239 – 46, 294 262, 266

61,

131 237

66 33, 36,75,83

277 77, 80,257 322

242 237 103,

339 / Index 178,

–

267

–

171 313 267,

– –

265

266 –

239 302 294 311

288 266

299

–

– 302

– 169 264

299, 306 299,

erndon’s erndon’s 227, 306 14 – 47, 239, 243,

298 285 301 293

314

14, 246, 262, 60 226, 248, 256 145 280

17, 71, 261

264

17, 25, 269, 297 67 141

144, 264, 131, 294, 300 224, 298

268, 270, 276, 294, 297,

43, 61, 224, 243 148, 159

– 236, 253, 257

245, 253, 256 253, 245,

322 143

267 309 233 277, 283, 306 277, 283,

In Rainbows In artificial digital cryptocurrency) institutional intellectual (see also Copyright; DRM) material smart-property Platform) anarcho-capitalism libertarianism right wing institutional cryptocurrency) internet-based platforms music platforms trading (see also capitalism>platform capitalism) H (see also Holly Wages Wages for Facebook sharing economy Ramsden, Mel Reddit Ad Reinhardt, Rhizome Risk Rosamond, Emily Saga scarcity Karl Schröder, Scott, Brett Tino Sehgal, Serpentine proof-of-work (see under proof-of-work property Laurel Ptak, quantum mechanics Radiohead political operating systems scheme Ponzi post-human privacy privatization (see under proof-of-stake platforms politics 45

72 69, –

–

43 25, 269 300

anagement) 305 101 131 –

eative (CC)) eative

293

–

299 46, 75 313 142, 240, 246 321 16, 144, 301 75 67, 276, 281, 297 267 45, 130, 268, 301,

288 267 291, 302 320

312 142

–

304 –

290 312

287

47, 223, 226, 277 27, –

228

27, 149, 299, 300

61,

145

– 52 129 owd Funding) owd

16, 43, 49, 64, 67 131 – 30, 268, 292, 314

– 266 305

319 61, 267, 284

71, 75, 245, 253, 278,

303 239 26

303

227

256, 263, 271, 283 256, 263, 271,

–

43, 48 227 83 276

294

301 284 305 legal

money double payment, problem micropayments royalties (see also, Cr of artists of Ampliative Art Ampliative of data exhibition) 55, 57, (Furtherfield (see also Commons, Cr Rights M (see also Digital law free informal wage exploitation Plantoid permanance permissioned blockchains phenomenology Archive World Arctic Piql, Paul, Christine Paul, peer-to-peer

Osborne, Peter Osborne, payments Rachel O’Dwyer, Adrian Onoco, Order World New Masters, Blythe Blythe Masters, Tree Merkle Monegraph monetization neo-liberalism nonce non-human Nakamoto, Satoshi Nakamoto, Agency (USA) Security National Natural Language Processing market logic market Gregory Maxwell, Marshall McLuhan, Metahaven Live Action Role-Playing Action Live machine learning Chelsea Manning, Lippard, Lucy R. ledgers Sol LeWitt, licensing law labour Index / 340 contracts smart Skynet simulacra simulacrum, Silicon Valley Silk Road Siegelaub, Seth trust Trump transparency totalitarianism time Thomson, Helen txtblock Terranova, Tiziana Tao TeChing Szabo, Nick Sussman, AnnaLouie Stimson, Blake Staehle, Wolfgang Srnicek, Nick Srinivasan, Balaji social media social contract Robert Smithson, token timestamp timeline being@time The Thing and Alex Williams platforms language of examples of Sale Agreement Artist’s Reserved Rights, Transfer and trust-free, trustless engendering mistrust distrust, Cats YouCan Trust and reputation

not transparent 226, 262,265,289,321 303 302 299, 252 67

11, 23,25,46,164,179,201,

317 240 298 149, 172 262, 311 267, 282 –

– 236 102, 129,147

70, 99,134,160,172, 129

66, 69 254,

– –

129

241, 299

–

63 304 164, 223,264,277,285, 271

9, 141,148,159

133, 244 133,

131 142, 225,264 261, 287, 291 287, 261, 305 266 235 18

108

94, 244

130 – 309

94 293 – 291 –

73, 241,245, 247

–

131 71, 103,144, 314

142 265

313

305

–

93, 147

25, 27,52,63,

128, 255,257, – 318 277 304, 313, 130 102

282 – 248,

– 227, 313 227,

314

245, 261

– 248,

292, –

– 169,

–

262

314 Woods, Gavin Woods, whistleblowing VVORK Virilio, Paul Vierkant, Artie Vastari value truth Wikileaks Snowden post-truth collective

277, 280,287 227, 229,262,267,268 71, 75,144,159 258, 277,313,315

163, 165,168,178,223,247, 23, 25,28,41,44

264, 271 264, 270

266 130 315 76, 242

129

– 63

271 277

–

– –

272

289, 306 64

–

169, 182,223,

–

49, 52,60,

–

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