Environmentalist Degenerates is a collection of digital pictures in form of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), each made of an Art masterpiece (from masters such Van Gogh, Monet, etc) smeared and vandalised by food, paint, or dirt.
The context of this provocation was born in May 2022, when a climate activist threw a cake at the glass of the Monalisa in Paris, once again using Art as the most effective tool of communication. Seeing such a masterpiece vandalised so brutally was an incredibly powerful image.
From there, Giacaramis embraces the powerful contrast between Art masterpieces and mere dirt, to transmit a sense of provocation, distress, scandal, and rebellion.
"I want to recreate the act of rebellion that challenges the notion of Art by provoking and challenging it while elevating and eulogizing it. Breaking-into and vandalising the historical legacy of the Masters of Art while, at the same time, paying tribute to them.
Notice how each piece (with its dirt) re-creates a new dialogue and new narratives within a collection that already generates so many narratives per se. In each piece, you see that within the equilibrium formed by the two extremes (Beauty and mere Dirt), Art prevails."
Giacaramis
Giacaramis uses art as a tool for activism and activists as Muse for Art.
The provocative approach challenges traditional notions of artistic purity and reverence while aiming to spark conversations about environmental issues, art, and the urgent need for action in both.
The collection delves into the impact on the art world and society at large, looking at how it opens up a dialogue on the relationship between art, rebellion, and activism. Here, the artist believes that scandal has the power to coexist with art and that, in some cases, it may even be necessary for art to have an impact.
The collection is far from being only a reflection of our current environmental crisis instead it is a commentary on the power of scandal in art - challenging the notion that art prevails on scandal and how it creates a new space for dialogue and action.
NFT as medium
The main reason for choosing NFT is its alignment with the collection's message of challenging the traditional, Art status quo. NFTs are challenging the Art market, breaking down barriers to access for re-evaluation of art, in the same way that there is a re-evaluation on the vandalic act of throwing soup at a painting.
Just as Giacaramis challenges and eulogises the historical legacy of art masters by vandalizing their masterpieces, the use of NFTs challenges the traditional notion of owning and displaying art. It pushes the boundaries of what is considered acceptable in the art world disrupting it and echoing the collection’s theme of rebellion and norms challenging.
It serves as a strategic tool to challenge what is traditional, break down barriers to access, and empower artists to take control of their own work in the same way in which each spectator and viewer is empowered to make his/her own narrative from picture to picture and holistically on the collection, its rationale and aim.
Curate Collection
Smart contract: 0x8ef9d136096067808b8cd2d5aeec610fd20cd7ad
The curated collection is what is currently being displayed in the world tour and sold via auction and galleries. However, it bears a different meaning from the Randomly Generated initiative.
Here, each piece is manually curated by Giacaramis, from the selection of the base piece and dirt to the position of the dirt on the base – believing that each piece has a specific dirt that fits, emphasize and create new rhythm and dialogue with the original image, starting from the colour, the texture, the size, the splatter and the “allegoric” meaning of the dirt in contrast with the painting.
Randomly Generated Collection
Smart contract: 0xead685523448B5df2124aA4a8f4e40e8Fec391F4
The randomly generated collection is a collection of 4253 pieces of the collection randomly generated via an algorithm and two database of art masterpieces and dirt/food/paint stain.
Here, Giacaramis purpose was to recreate the absolute randomness of dirt splattering on the canvas. While in the curated collection each piece and dirt are meticulously selected, in the random collection, the dirt assumes a ‘divine’ meaning which stand above and beyond the artist decision and the painting ‘destiny’. The same way in which no one could have predicted that dirt and food would end up on a masterpiece, we cannot predict in which way the piece responds to the abuse of the dirt – which in some cases conversates with the painting itself, but in others ruins it. Overall resembling life events as art narratives.
E Q U I L I B R I U M | An upcoming collection.
Follow the line.
CROSS FOR SALE
Nothing made sense without God.
Nothing makes sense without Money.
The collection emerges as a testament to the prevailing influence of money and materialism on our deepest beliefs - aiming to ignite a dialogue about the shifting paradigms of faith and its intersection with commercialism.
At the heart of this collection lies the captivating image of Jesus on the cross, a profound and timeless icon central to Christian theology. Giacaramis introduces a dissonant twist that both mesmerizes and unsettles viewers: the subtle intrusion of discount commercial scripts, incongruously juxtaposed against the sacred imagery.
A cacophony of phrases, proclaiming "Only at 9.99$!" or "Special offer today, 50% discount!", infiltrate the corner of each composition, mercilessly penetrating the sanctity of the divine scene.
By effectively "discounting" the divine presence, CROSS FOR SALE forces us to confront the stark reality of our consumer-driven world, where the acquisition of goods and the pursuit of financial gain often overshadow matters of the soul.
"And without realising, we discounted God"
