Behind The Blocks #2: Rostok
Michal Rostocki, alias: Rostok, is RareCandy3D’s first code artist with whom we are very excited to collaborate on his first NFT release. The publication, entitled “Soon”, consists of 5 different tweetcarts that share similar colors and style. For those who do not know, tweetcarts are PICO-8 doodles that fit into a single tweet. That means that each of these pieces is not longer than 280 chars (bytes).
As he expressed to RC3, the Warsawian-born video game designer has been experimenting with code since he got his first computer as a child during the 80s. More so, he defines his style as one filled with “sci-fi nostalgia” from those years. In this sense, Pico-8 seems to be the ideal tool for these designs; launched in 2016 by Lexxalofle Games as a game engine, Pico-8 mimics early fantasy video game consoles from those same years. The software is limited to only 16 colors (from a 32 color palette) and a 128x128 pixel screen.
“In general my PICO tweetcarts are about angst, the uncertainty of the future, and doubt about the direction of humanity. I would like people to think on this.” tells Rostok to RC3.
In this way, the description for his pieces seem to be addressing a reality in which artificial and human life seem to be merged in new hybridized forms of existence.
“You watch the synthoid melt. A cold, hard metal now hot and liquid. You wonder about its hardcoded sacrifice and remind yourself once again that the machine is only an item. Its programming seems trivial but is biochemistry any better?” reads the description on “101 Signing Out”.
The narrator speaking (here and in the descriptions on the other pieces), seems to be reflecting about the possibilities and limitations of machine-like life forms. However, we cannot tell; is the POV human or machine?
“Art via NFT is one of those ‘the future is now’ things, and I’d like to be a part of this” the code artist expresses to close off his talk with RC3.
Each one of the pieces comes with an unlockable function eligible to token holders that grants access to the source code of the digital animations. New *UNLOCKABLE traits are now visible alongside each NFT that carries encrypted files, accessible by the specific owner of the token.
RC3-B7 “Soon” was our final release for Season B, while more code-art publications by Rostok, and other devs are in the cooks for the future.
Love Rostok’s work so much as we do? Drop a follow on his Twitter account, and keep up to date with all of his moves.
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