Pseudonymous conceptual artist SHL0MS has announced that they have blown up a Lamborghini Huracan in an undisclosed desert location for a groundbreaking NFT art project. 999 fragments of the car have been meticulously categorized, documented, and filmed in stunning rotating videos — highlighting the striking stochastically-generated abstract forms produced by the wreckage. Through the act of defiling the stereotypical objet de désir of the crypto space and positioning the charred wreckage as fine art, the artist delivers a smoldering critique of zero-sum, extractive practices in the crypto industry while postulating a way forward that centers around long-termism and a focus on using technology for broader societal value rather than self-enrichment.
Each individual video piece will then be sold as an NFT via a unique custom auction mechanism that incorporates novel game theory and restricts the ability of crypto “whales” to buy up significant portions of the collection in the primary sale, democratizing access to the work. The project will also be carbon negative as SHL0MS has engaged environmental consultants to estimate the impact of the project (including the physical logistics as well as Ethereum network usage). They will use auction proceeds to purchase a sum of high-quality carbon credits far outweighing the estimated climate impact.
The public spectacle generated by displaying charred supercar pieces as fine art could redefine stereotypical perceptions of the oft-misunderstood crypto art sector. “The supercar-related memes are funny, but they also implicitly symbolize the popular association of cryptocurrency to short-sighted profit seeking and zero-sum behavior,” said SHL0MS about the project; “this project is intended to serve as a reminder of the revolutionary potential of the underlying technology — if we wield it correctly instead of solely for personal gain.” The artist will neither confirm nor deny whether their intention to detonate the car also has anything to do with the recent spate of DMCA takedown requests issued by Lamborghini to various NFT artists.
$CAR is a continuation of SHL0MS’ first foray into physical art, “$FNTN”, which introduced physical analogues to cryptoart tropes (“physical fractionalization” as well as “entropically generative” digital art) via a ritually destroyed, contemporary rendition of Duchamp’s Fountain. In addition, the piece was a rumination on and continuation of Duchamp’s philosophy on pseudonymity, fungibility, and banality, as well as a comparison of the artist’s sentiments towards the current NFT art boom to the “Dadaist disgust” that led to some of the most significant works of the 20th century. $FNTN did roughly $1.5m in primary and secondary sales while breaking the NFT auction platform it was hosted on for two days due to record site traffic, canonizing SHL0MS’ work in cryptoart history.
$CAR is also linked to OBELISK, an obscure art organization newly formed by SHL0MS, whose purpose has not yet been made public.
SHL0MS looks to deliver a smoldering critique of crypto greed and speculation while advancing a new movement focused on leveraging emerging tech in the digital world through their latest work and future projects. The project was announced today on the artist’s twitter account; the $CAR auction will go live February 24th on car.shl0ms.com
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