UNDRGRND - UNDRGRND DIGS 027

UNDRGRND DIGS 027

Etta Tottie — May 31, 2022

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MAY 31ST, 2022

5 Artists From the UNDRGRND Collection 

UNDRGRND DIGS is a periodical feature showcasing artists that the UNDRGRND curators dig. We sift through the social media and NFT platforms to find the best artists waiting to be discovered. UNDRGRND believes in the artists we feature and we will purchase NFTs from each artist featured. Purchases will be airdropped to reward UNDRGRND community members.

View the Tezos UNDRGRND Collection

SonicChimes

Dilek Atimtay, aka SonicChimes is an illustrator and tattoo artist. Her illustrations are flowy and emotional, inspired by the Old Masters, comic books and Sci-Fi. Homesick  asks, ‘Will we ever find our way back home?’ Artworks like The Flow portray a dreamlike CypherPunk feel with a contrasting palette of peach and violet that manages to be both easy on the eye and stimulating at the same time.

In a departure from these fantastic dreamscapes, Dilek also uses her degree in interior architecture to experiment with VR and generative abstract monochrome artworks that appear photographic in their sharply structural nature. ABSTRACT SCULPTURE VIIII, which resembles a pearl in a shell casting dark shadows, is an opulent sculptural piece with a beautiful sense of symmetry. She loves to make things move and glow, using sensors and innovative light solutions.

Kate Philipson

Kate Philipson, a self-taught artist from London aka LeopardsLunch, draws beautiful, empowered, iconic women with a story to tell. Comic books and pop art inspire her work. She blends sharply focused facial features with the blurred lines of 3D in a kaleidoscope of shades which look like they need retro 3D glass to leap off the screen. She likes to imagine them as characters in her own graphic novel. Monochrome with a splash of red lips, light and shade dancing on the faces of her subjects. She’s Electric takes inspiration from the song of the same name by indie Brit-Pop band Oasis. In a nod to the Matrix, Don’t Look Back evokes red pill/blue pill revelations, reminding us there are some things you can never unsee. Kate has a special place in her heart for dogs, evident in her Wild Ones Tezos collection. Protection is dedicated to Riley, her loyal soldier. It symbolizes fierce loyalty and fearless, unconditional love in a silent agreement; I protect you. You protect me.

Maro

Maro from the Netherlands creates artworks about death, disease and sexuality and boobs! I first became aware of Maro when The Conqueror, a woman with a breast removed, was airdropped into my wallet. ‘Being diagnosed with cancer is devastating. When the doctor says, “I wish I had better news for you, but….” Imagine a slap to the face from your best friend; or an angry shove from your spouse. It is that shocking.’ She is philosophical, ‘When death comes screaming at you out of the darkness, and you manage to swerve out of its path, you realize the simple sweetness of waking up each morning to a new day.’ Red hues and black ‘Xs’ are a common theme in her art. Signalling danger ahead: no entry. In A Darkened Room, a woman sits alone on a sofa, her face obscured by darkness, inviting us to join her. Troubling thoughts are tackled again in the animated work Disturbing Insomnia, where serpent-like fingers agitate the mind stealing our sleep like a monstrous Medusa.

Kalen Iwamoto

Argentinian artist Cardalian makes nostalgic illustrations of self-help guides on VHS videotape, such as Why did I buy all this $hit? Step-by-step instructions on purchasing pointless nonsense followed by regretting having no savings. Ironically, the tapes themselves are obsolete as we no longer have the hardware to play them. Maybe VHS will have a renaissance like vinyl records. But then again, some things are best left in the past. We don’t regret the stuff we didn’t buy, but the places we didn’t go. Inspired by quarantine, many illustrations are in social settings like the Adrenalina series, which explores parties as rituals. Enjoyable devilish scenarios where adrenaline-possessed revellers dance, drink and cavort. Other artworks created in the style of coloured pencils display the tedious frustration of socializing and human un-interactions. Looking longingly into someone’s eyes only to find Silence is an answer. When words aren’t enough, be quiet. Our focus is on the foreground, but the silent one in the artwork prefers staring into the distance of the dimly lit bar. He says, ‘I love drawing bar scenarios. They allow me to work on a lot of little details.’ In another scene, “She’s busy, bro” (But I hope he can salt his fries before they get cold), we see a loop with the fleeting appearance of a waitress as she rushes past to serve other tables. A reminder that unless we grasp it, life will pass us by.

COMMUNITY DIGS: Rainbowie

UNDRGRND community members we refer to as “diggers”, nominate their favorite undiscovered artists to be featured in weekly DIGS. UNDRGRND empowers its community to dig for bold, innovative, under valued NFT artists.

The illustrations of Rainbowie depict colorful, sensitive alien scenes all experiencing familiar events to us humans. Often using a set color palette on a set of works, Rainbowie begins to create a theme of collections through her use of colors. She addresses issues of love and heartache with honesty and maturity but depicted in accessible, cartoonish settings that any viewer is drawn too. Much like how we slip into (and out of) new love so easily, onlookers slip into the distant alien, but familiar, world Rainbowie is creating. - Bored Calvin (BAYC #8855)

Each UNDRGRND DIGS will feature artists our curators have purchased for the UNDRGRND Collection. UNDRGRND will airdrop pieces from our collection to community members via giveaways.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter for more information: #UNDRGRND

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