VAULTED Art Collector Profile #9 - ICON
Vaulted is a series where prominent collectors in the Tezos ecosystem are interviewed and highlighted.
This latest episode takes place with collector ICON, known to friends as Ibi.
Aleksandra: Can you tell us how your collecting journey began?
Ibi: I collected my first piece of contemporary art at the age of 9—though I’ll admit, my aunt owned the gallery, so let’s just say I got a ‘family discount.’ That kicked off a lifelong obsession with collecting art and, well, shiny things. It’s been a passion, a hobby, and my favorite form of escape ever since.
How did I get into digital art? That’s all thanks to my brother @nftbagzy, who was earlier into crypto and Web3. We had launched our startup, and I was keen to experiment with decentralized org structures (think Teal, Holacracy, Sociocracy 2.0). He saw the parallels between my interests and DAOs and practically shoved me into the space. At first, I was totally put off by Bored Ape Twitter Spaces, but then I stumbled upon a 2019 Casey REAS video, Sketching with Code, and that opened my eyes. I was hooked.
“Art on Tezos is raw, experimental, and boundary-pushing. It feels renegade, punk, anti-establishment—all things I naturally gravitate toward.”
I went full degen in summer 2021, desperately trying (and mostly failing) to mint Art Blocks drops, constantly losing to gas wars. Then I realized—wait, some of these same artists are selling art on Hic Et Nunc for a fraction of the price, without the gas chaos! HEN felt raw, experimental, like a playground for artists, and I loved it. This realization was cemented during a Sofia Garcia / Artxcode event in London, December 2021, where I met Matt DesLauriers. Matt mentioned he would be minting on Tezos due to the low costs for artists vs Ethereum.
Fun fact #1: The first two pieces of digital art I collected on Tezos were by Iskra Velitchkova (a k a Pointline) and Marcelo Soria-Rodríguez—before I even knew they were a couple! Coincidence? Maybe. But I like to think it was fate. Not only are they two of my favourite artists, but they have since become good friends, and they’re humans I care deeply about.
Aleksandra: Can you share a story about acquiring one of your favorite pieces or any interesting moment in your collecting journey?
Ibi: One that stands out is Art Basel Miami Beach 2022. That’s where I met the fx(hash) team and, more importantly, Ciphrd himself. Over a few drinks, it became clear to me that Ciphrd wasn’t just any old artist; I had the feeling that he was the future, a bit of a visionary.
One night over beers, the team told me a story that sounded like it would become folklore for generative art: while testing the RGB collection, Ciphrd was so blown away by one particular random RGB output that he decided to mint it, then to honour the randomness, he sent it to a completely at random wallet! A true 1/1, never to be repeated.
At that point, I had already resolved to collect more Ciphrd art. But knowing there was a Ciphrd 1/1 out there, born from pure randomness, I had to find it. As luck would have it, the owner had it listed, and I wasted no time. The moment I got home, I made it mine.
I still pinch myself thinking about it. Owning that piece (there aren’t many Ciphrd 1/1s), knowing its story, knowing the artist behind it—it’s one of the most meaningful pieces in my collection. And with that, my nine RGBs became a perfect ten.
Fruit of randomness - ciphrd
Aleksandra: What sets Art on Tezos apart in your eyes compared to other NFT ecosystems?
Ibi: The price? 🙂 No seriously—Art on Tezos is raw, experimental, and boundary-pushing. It feels renegade, punk, anti-establishment—all things I naturally gravitate toward. But beyond the art, it’s the people. Anyone who knows me knows I love to collect friends as much as I do art. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: we are living through an important moment in art history—one we won’t fully grasp until years from now. And I know this because I’ve seen it before.
Art is in my family’s DNA. My cousin’s (who are more like brothers and sisters to me) grandmother—Henrietta Moraes— was an icon of Soho’s 50s-60s bohemian art scene, a muse to Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud. Bacon painted her 20 times! She was wild, to be honest—too many drugs and too much debauchery but an undeniable force in that era. Then there’s my aunt, Kitty Bowler, who set up and ran Crucial Gallery on London’s Portobello Road in the 80s, an anti-traditional, experimental art space that provided a platform for “junk art” and creative salvage design, at a time when these were far from the art-world norm. Crucial also fought for emerging, young artists, and launched the careers of many that decades later are recognized as important British artists.
What ties these moments in my family’s history to the Tezos art ecosystem? Anti-establishment energy. I grew up in it. It’s hard-coded into my blood (excuse the pun). And to anyone collecting art on Tezos—get out to Tezos art events. Make new friends. Because guess what? My aunt, now in her 60s, is still best friends with the artists and gallerists from her moment. THIS IS OUR MOMENT!
Fun Fact #2: Bridget Riley donated works of art to help my aunt’s contemporary art auctions. I think that makes my aunt the ultimate OG of all OG's!!!
Aleksandra: Can you share with us three artists/artworks on Tezos from your collection and what makes their work stand out to you?
Ibi: As I have already mentioned Iskra & Marcelo, I will spread the love a bit here. It's so tough to choose just three though. Can I cheat and go with AGH (Asendorf, Gysin, Herzog) as one? No, damn!
Ok, first, I have to go back to the original source for me: Casey REAS. His impact on digital art is undeniable, shaping an entire movement and inspiring a generation of artists to explore art with code. One piece that stands out from my Tezos collection is CSRNT-DAAI-093-of128, released under his caesuras pseudonym. I completely missed these at launch, but thanks to Conrad House (a.k.a. nemocake) of Le Random, who knew about my obsession, I managed to pick one up. It’s a piece I get lost in—layered, intricate, and infinitely explorable.
There’s something about the way REAS constructs visual complexity that makes his work feel alive. I love to escape in art. Maybe I lack imagination but this normally means that art I collect needs to be animated, interactive, or so complex and detailed that a human could not make it on their own.
I really am in love with AGH, but perhaps I will pick Kim as he was the first of the three that I collected. To start with, I wanted to collect Kim's art after having a blast with him in Tokyo. We share a love of the same music, were born in the same year, and I just connected with him as a human being. He’s a deep thinker that also knows how to have a very good time. My kind of person! When I began to explore his art (shout out to Josh @delta_alpha_ohm for helping me), I was mesmerized. Unfortunately, I don't own a Monogrid (yet!). For me that is still some of his best work. From my Tezos collection, i'll go with Reading a book #878. You have to see it to believe it! It's an ever-evolving carnival of pixel movement. The piece is hypnotic, almost meditative—it pulls you in, keeps you spellbound, and occasionally requires someone to remind you to blink. It’s an instant mood-lifter, and I return to it often.
Now I think about it, I know I already mentioned Marcelo earlier, but I just cannot leave out his Toccata series with Andreas Rau.
Toccata #179 has absolutely everything I love about digital art in it. It's time-based, a piece about decay, about the impermanent. It's interactive. It's audio-visual. Seriously, if you have not experienced this art you are missing out in life! Toccata moves me. Maybe I am too emotional, but I really get worked up by watching and listening to this art. I cannot do it justice in words, please, if you do nothing else today, check this out - your day will be better for it!
Aleksandra: Which three emerging artists on Tezos do you think are worth keeping an eye on, and why?
Ibi: While I am not sure if we can still call them emerging artists (I hope they don't mind me referring to them this way) - I'm going for Junior aka Fingacode, Linda Dounia, and Juan Rodríguez García.
You'll notice sometimes that my focus is on the artist as a person, as much as their art. Maybe this is wrong from a purely curatorial standpoint but this is me, and I can't change now. Fingacode is a force for joy in the world. I have a lot of love for this man. He's a fellow countryman and all-around top bloke. I'm following his artistic journey closely and hope that he continues to thrive. POLKAWAVE #120 stands out from my collection for sentimental reasons. It was early in his journey and he was accepting any bids. He let me pick this up for 2 XTZ!!!
I met Linda Dounia in Paris, we'd both lost things (long story). Her smile lit up the room there and I could sense her huge positive energy. Unfortunately, I fumbled the piece I collected from her in Paris (worst day of collecting for me) but was able to pick up a Melted blue ice edition on objkt.com. Something about Linda's style stands out. The word that springs to mind is pure. Her use of colour really impacts me positively. Of course, flowers feature heavily in her work, which tends to be fairly uplifting, but I just loved the composition of this piece. I really hope to collect more of her art in years to come.
Finally, and again probably a little further on than 'emerging' now, I will go with Juan Rodríguez García and Reflejos #7. This was developed using p5.js library created by Lauren Lee McCarthy (another artist and educator that I admire) and, as an fx(hash) Params piece, I got to play a very small part in its creation. Reflejos very subtly moves, like it's slowly melting in front of your eyes. The palette options were so striking I only wish I could have minted more.
Ibi and his web3 family around the world