Demystifying NFTs

The Workshop Series

The Demystifying NFTs have relaunched for the Fall season! You can now sign up for these free online sessions below, taking place between now and November 17, 2022.

Demystifying NFTs is a two-part workshop series and award program where artists, performers, writers, and cultural workers can learn how to create eco-responsible NFTs.

While NFTs have disrupted the art world, many of us cannot explain how this technology functions. The conversation is often characterized by inaccessible jargon, which is further complicated by the fact that blockchains have become increasingly known for their negative environmental impact—making many hesitant to enter the space.

For this reason, NYFA partnered with artist/technologist Laura Ó Reilly, who developed this program as part of her new Technology Gap initiative in an effort to ground crypto back to earth. Demystifying NFTs presents an accessible, environmentally conscious alternative to creating and stewarding NFTs.

We invite all interested parties with an internet connection to join us for this two-part workshop series, free for qualifying artists and cultural workers through the generous support of Rockefeller Brothers Fund.

This program is designed especially for those who are too often excluded from this space: mature artists across marginalized communities, as well as those who would never consider themselves “tech-savvy.” We are also especially interested in working with non-visual artists who don’t yet know how to turn their creative work—such as a poem or a performance—into an NFT.

Upon successful completion of both workshops, NYC-based artists across all disciplines and mediums (including, but not limited to: performing artists, visual artists, filmmakers, musicians, designers, and writers) will be eligible to apply for the Demystifying NFTs Award. The application link, along with more details, will be provided after NYC-based participants complete the workshops.

Please click here for details on the workshop series and here for the program FAQs.

ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR
Laura Ó Reilly is an artist and technologist, focused on creating frameworks for regenerative communities and somatic art experiences. Her current project, Technology Gap, is an initiative that aims to make learning about technology accessible, by teaching through the lens of nature, and working with the nervous system. Ó Reilly is an alumna of The New Museum’s creative tech incubator, NEW INC, where she built and led Wallplay Network. From 2013-2020, Wallplay grew to repurpose over 30 storefronts, hosted hundreds of art exhibitions, and built a thriving community of creatives who pioneered new formats for digital art and experiential storytelling. Ó Reilly’s most recent art project, SUN IN THE MACHINE: Experiments In Embodied Ecology, a six part somatic art film, NFT series, and podcast, will launch this summer.

For more information visit: technologygap.earth | @technologygap

JOIN THE SUPPORT NETWORK
Demystifying NFTs is part of Technology Gap, funded by the Culpeper Arts & Culture Grant through Rockefeller Brothers Fund to create an intergenerational community where knowledge can be exchanged, integrated and applied. This initiative is actively fundraising to expand its resource exchange platform and award program. If you would like to make a tax deductible donation, please click here. To learn more about sponsorship opportunities please contact, partnerships@technologygap.earth.