UNDRGRND DIGS ZERO ONE
SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2023
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.
The blockchain symbol appearing next to the artist’s name indicates which UNDRGRND collection.
View the Tezos UNDRGRND Collection
The pixels are the main attraction in the glitch art of Ernesto Asch. Even when the motion remains subtle the impact is distinct. The meticulous arrangement of individual pixels creates a striking defined impression. By manipulating contrast and employing negative effects, he manages to produce mesmerizingly abstract glitch portraits that possess a sense of depth, extending far beyond the mere foreground subject.
Mlibty, aka Marko Zubak, is an unknown-known personified. Known by those artists in NFTs since 2018 before the boom, unknown to the majority of those who have since left the space. Yet anyone who sees the work of Mlibty recognizes the talent immediately. Mario’s work on OBJKT features moving sketches of ghostly figures and his subtle suggestion that he sees something in the background. On Zero One, the background is also a focus where the dangerous lives of paper dolls are on full display. Now that the market has slowed, a revisit to artists that sparked this century’s renaissance should welcome a rejuvenated interest in artists like Mlibty.
The prevalent static throughout 6ENERATOR’s work communicates the buried irritants we all have but attempt to control and hide from the world. A perfect example of this comes from ⅂0ꓤꓕN0Ͻ ⅄ꓕƎᴉ¡ᴉXN∀ where the static is contained into a triangle in the background in an abstract mess of sharp edges and bold lines. Even when it is controlled our world view is often affected and changed beyond our control.
The aliens have landed and Julia K. Ponsford is communicating with them, or are they communicating through her? These portraits of beings that aren’t quite human but resemble living things, blend glitches, AI, audio, and motion. This creates not quite a collage but more an array of content, like distant radio signals from the cosmos being interpreted and communicated back and forth between these alien beings.
We’ll leave the debate of whether PFP NFTs helped elevate the toon portraits of graffiti-style artists or diminished the appeal to others. A staple in many street artist repertoires (e.g., Greg Mike, fnnch, Mekazoo, Mahendra Nazaar, Dr.Robo7, DRMN BG) the cartoon portrait gives the abstract freedom of street artists a focal point and constraints to explore their personal style. These characters become their calling card, their intellectual property, and perhaps their alternate persona. Bujang’s Copymouse will become another in a line of immediately recognizable characters from extremely talented artists.
