VAULTED Art Collector Profile #12 - Nina Roehrs
Vaulted is a series where prominent collectors in the Tezos ecosystem are interviewed and highlighted.
Vaulted #12 with Nina Roehrs
Vinciane Jones: Can you tell us how your Web3 collecting journey began?
Nina Roehrs: It all started in 2018 with the Jonas Lund Token, which I received in return for completing a Jonas Lund Token bounty—specifically, inviting Jonas Lund to participate in a group exhibition at our gallery, Roehrs & Boetsch in Zurich.
In 2020, we explored blockchain in a different context, collaborating with Lorna Mills on a minted advent calendar—a tokenized collection of GIFs presented both as an advent calendar and as a solo exhibition unfolding on the blockchain. It was a playful and experimental project that brought digital art and distribution onto the chain in a new way. Each day from December 1st to 24th, a new work was minted and released, combining Lorna’s unmistakable GIF aesthetic with the ritual format of the advent calendar.
Then came the unexpected intensity of 2021, which opened up entirely new dynamics around digital collecting. I’ve always been interested in the shifting relationships between artists, audiences, and systems of distribution - and the NFT space offered a fascinating new terrain to explore: conceptually, curatorially, and as a collector.
Vinciane: Can you share a story about acquiring one of your favorite pieces or any interesting moment in your collecting journey?
Nina: There would be too many stories to choose from. I’ve only ever seen collecting partly as a way of owning things—it feels more like following a path, sometimes with intention, sometimes by chance. Some works stay with me not just for what they are, but because of the context they carry—the moment they appeared, the story around them, the connection they sparked. Over time, collecting has also become a way of paying attention, of staying open to those encounters.
Vinciane: What sets Art on Tezos apart in your eyes compared to other NFT ecosystems?
What continues to set Art on Tezos apart for me is the spirit that defined the early days of Hic et Nunc (HEN) in 2021. It was a time shaped by accessibility, affordability, and a sense of experimentation that drew in artists from a wide range of backgrounds and disciplines. Many took their very first artistic steps within this ecosystem— enabled by its openness—and some of them have since become widely recognized names in the digital art space.
This welcoming atmosphere sparked a deeply engaged, grassroots community—one that felt less commercially driven and more concerned with artistic exploration and mutual support.
Another important aspect is the comparatively low price point of many works on Tezos, which keeps collecting accessible and even playful to this day. Combined with the network’s extremely low transaction costs, this has encouraged a collecting culture that is driven more by curiosity and genuine appreciation than by speculation.
In addition, Tezos adopted highly flexible token standards early on, which made it particularly appealing for live-code-based works. It also allowed for shared authorship, split revenues, and royalties—features that are still far from standard in other ecosystems. Much of this infrastructure was pioneered by what is today the leading platform in the space: objkt.com.
That combination of community spirit, affordability, and technical foresight continues to make Tezos uniquely relevant in the world of digital art.
Vinciane: Who are your three favorite artists on Tezos from your collection, and what makes their work stand out to you?
Nina: This is impossible to say definitively—there are just too many artists whose works resonate with me in very different ways. The appeal often depends on context, mood, or simply the moment I encountered the work. That’s one of the joys of collecting on Tezos: it’s not about ranking, but about ongoing relationships with artworks. The diversity, the surprises, the sense of discovery—all of that keeps it engaging.
But if I had to pick, I’d mention Rick Silva for his Antlers Wifi series, Albertine Meunier for her HyperChips series, and CRYPTOPUNK #2317 BURN FOOTAGE by ROBNESS_V2—not as a definitive top three, but as artists/works I return to often. Their practices have a kind of presence that continues to stay with me, even beyond the moment of collecting.
CRYPTOPUNK #2317 BURN FOOTAGE - ROBNESS
Vinciane: Which three emerging artists on Tezos do you think are worth keeping an eye on, and why?
I struggle with categories like young or emerging in such a young and fast-moving space. Things shift so quickly, and visibility doesn’t always follow quality or depth. But here are three artists / artist collaborations I’ve had on my radar lately:
Alexandra Crouwers with her Tools series
Salawaki – not only recognized for her work, but also humorously honored with the title Mother of the Broth by the Church of the Smoking Chicken Fish – a satirical meme-coin project
Rosalind – GAN Twins Series by a fusion of Rose Jackson's GAN generated felt textures and Linda Dounia's GAN generated acrylic texture - two datasets blending to create a new digital expression and cross-cultural language.
03 New Beginnings - Rosalind, Linda Dounia and Rose Forsyth Jackson