Bored Ape Yacht Club: Is democracy dead?

Good evening (because it's always evening somewhere!). It’s Wednesday October 5th, 2022, and you're reading "To The Moon", the only newsletter that will make you call your parents and name then councillors. Have feedback? Great, we don't want you to keep us in the dark! Send all of your thoughts to [email protected].

• Democracy is dead. Long live Democracy!

• Generative Art platform Art Blocks regenerates

• Half Moons

• Shooting Star

• Dark Side of the Meme

To the Moon index

Democracy is dead. Long live Democracy!

Yuga Labs, one of the most successful brands of Web3, finally got a community council! They picked seven lucky Apes (aka members) who will be representatives of the BAYC (Bored Ape Yacht Club) and MAYC (Mutant Ape Yacht Club) NFT collections.

Community Councils are like Boards of Directors or City Councils. Their members represent the community and receive direct feedback from it. They also have voting rights for strategic decisions.

As in any situation in which the councils are non-elected, complaints are bound to arise. Rebooting "Where's Waldo?" for the NFT ecosystem, some members of the Ape community questioned the legitimacy of the council and wished other representatives had been included. Got bad news for you, though: democracy doesn’t exist.

Yet Yuga Labs affirms their choices have a proven track record of “proactively and positively contributing to the club since the start.” 

I think positively was the hint there. Our newsletter's new format is only in its third edition, and the feedback from our community has been incredible: my parents called me and congratulated me.I’ve unilaterally named them as the two founding members of my Family Council.

Generative Art platform Art Blocks regenerates

In just two years, Art Blocks established itself as the undisputed generative art pioneer, garnered worldwide attention, and was invited to participate in the 2022 Venice Biennale (a 127-year-old event).

Art Blocks iconic collections include Tyler Hobbs’ Fidenza (below), Dmitri Cherniak’s Ringers, or Snowfro’s Squiggle. Snowfro being Erick Calderon, Art Blocks’ founder and CEO.

Pioneers, however, cannot rest if they want to remain relevant. Every second must be spent with innovation, adapting to your community and your competitors. Blockbuster, Kodak, Nokia, and the like are famous examples of companies that failed at innovation and saw their business models disappear. 

Notice something? Starts with N and finishes with W.

• New “Presents” collection will showcase projects that are recognized by the internal Art Blocks team. Previous collections Factory and Playground will receive a special “Heritage” capsule subset under Presents projects.

• New “Explorations” collection: a place for wild ideas and commissioned experiments.

• New “Curated” collection: frontier-pushing projects selected by the Art Blocks Curatorial Board.

• “New Collaborations” collection: unique go-to-market partnerships.

That’s it? Nope.

• New smart contract reducing gas fees by 65% for artists and collectors.

• New website, more stable, more scalable, more consistent and more inclusive.

That’s it? Nope.

I think Snowfro got a new look.

Half Moons 🌓

• Hugo Partners With Imaginary Ones In An NFT Fashion First [NFTEvening]

• American Express drops an Art POAP for Austin City Limits [NFTEvening]

• About the BAYC-themed metaverse experience in the Sandbox [NFTEvening]

• PhotoVogue to drop debut photography NFTs on voice marketplace [NFTEvening]

• LG webOS Smart Signage is integrating NFT technology [NFTEvening]

Shooting Stars 🌠

Raylivez

Ray Mercado is an NYC-based street photographer who captures the city's iconic monuments, buildings, and streets to give them an even more dramatic and cinematic feel to an already epic city. You can follow Raylivez on Twitter by clicking the link above and his art is available on Foundation. His prices range from 0.50 ETH to 3.6 ETH.

Lady Liberty Up, Up & Away (2021)

State of Mind (2022)

Dark Side of the Meme 🌚