Genesis Collection / 13

Do you remember the excitement of getting on a plane for the first time? The sensation of acceleration on the runway… the view of the city as you took off… the excitement of being so high among the clouds... Now imagine the excitement of traveling to the New World in the 16th century… discovering new people… new cultures… and new landscapes. Tales of monsters and treasure, strange men and women, new foods, new tastes, new smells, new animals, and new plants. Now imagine the excitement of traveling to entirely new planets and moons, perhaps even new star systems. Imagine the views… the smells, imagine discovering the human cities there, the taste of the food, the culture there… Imagine feeling different levels of gravity, jumping in the air over 10 feet high. It would be a whole new level of experience. This amazing opportunity is now before us, as we enter a new age of space exploration, spearheaded by Elon Musk’s SpaceX. To travel among the stars, to explore planets and moons, to build entire new civilizations, to terraform planets, to create new architecture, new technologies, new forms of government, engineer life on a planetary scale, and so much more; these are some of the most exciting things we can look forward to as human beings. There is so much to explore, to discover and to create. Let’s work towards this exciting goal, and “live among the stars”, as Elon said. It’s time to become solar explorers! Creative Process Mars is the friendliest known location outside of Earth that can support human life, for that reason it was selected as the location for this artwork. It will probably be the first or second place we settle in the solar system. Mars is being explored in this artwork at different scales. We see a Research Laboratory, with vehicles and aircraft, and we see a couple of people exploring a cave. Inside this cave, there is a mysterious blue luminance. What is this light? What’s causing it? Is this a natural occurrence, or something humanoid made? What will we find inside this cave? Does the cave go deep underground? Caves are symbols for the unknown. They are usually dark, but this particular cave contains light, symbolizing the treasures, experiences, and wonders that await successful explorers that journey into the unkown. These explorers display both curiosity and caution. The cave ignites their interest, but also their fear. They leave their vehicle running, in case they need to make a quick escape. In theory the cave should be safe, but they cannot be sure, their instinct compels them to be weary. Many hazards could exist, but they venture on. We cannot explore unless we conquer our fear of the unknown. All of these themes are contained in this artwork.

Thomas Edison is credited as the person who most contributed to the creation of the lightbulb. To make the lightbulb generally accessible, he made them cheap and long lasting. He also created a manufacturing process to scale production. Since there was no readily available electricity at the time, the lightbulb also required an electricity distribution network with generators, wires, meters, fuses, circuit breakers, connectors, sockets, and switches. Edison contributed heavily to all of these areas, creating several companies in the process, including Edison Electric Light Company, Edison Manufacturing Company, Edison Illuminating Company, and Edison General Electric, among others. This whole process was not easy, Edison himself said that he "failed" around 10,000 times. Indeed, he tested over 6,000 materials for the lightbulb filament alone, including hair, metals, cork, silk, woods, and countless other materials. This rapid research and prototyping was done in the Menlo Park Laboratory that he founded, the first laboratory of its kind in the world. To test many thousands of things until something works is an incredible act of perseverance. I know of nobody who has failed after 10,000 attempts on the same goal. With this artwork we celebrate Edison’s incredible perseverance, seeking to inspire and be inspired by his superhuman ability to persevere. Creating this artwork was an act of perseverance in itself. We took 100 of Edisons lightbulb patents, drew all of them individually in perfect high resolution detail, then slightly modified each 5 times, for a total of 500 unique designs. We then color flipped the 500 from black to white, giving 1,000 unique lightbulbs in total. For each patent, there are 10 unique variations. Edison tested 10x the number of lights you see in this artwork, for a total of over 10,000 experiments. If we try and fail as many times as he did, there is little we couldn’t achieve. Most goals and obstacles would fall under the power of our perseverance. What will you decide? Will you persevere? Creative Process When thinking about Thomas Edison’s perseverance when creating the lightbulb, an image identical to the completed artwork spontaneously flashed in my mind. I did not create this artwork, it simply came to me as a visible image, in a single black and white flash. The lightbulbs were arranged in a square grid, and it had a space in the middle for a larger light. The quote about failing 1,000 times came to mind, and I thought it would be awesome to paint 1,000 lights. Conveniently, Edison got around 100 patents of various lightbulbs, which is a multiple of 1,000. I was then very curious to see if 1,000 lights could be mathematically arranged in an evenly squared grid with a large square in the center. As I began to sketch and multiply, I found out that yes, it could be done with a 35x35 grid, with an empty space of 15x15 squares in the middle, so 1,225 – 225 = 1,000 unique lights. The file would become so large and unwieldy, that we decided to give each lightbulb one unique filename to work with. We then tried to manually stich the 1,000 images together in Photoshop, but it was a disaster. Tiny pixel errors would accumulate and became significant over time. This problem was solved by stitching the 1,000 images into 4 sections using the Linux command line, 350 on the top, 350 on the bottom, 150 left and 150 lights to the right. Once we had 4 images perfectly stitched together, we imported them into Photoshop, achieving pixel perfect accuracy. When the grid and the lights were complete, it became clear that the artwork was a great inspiration for perseverance. It then occurred to me to add some of Edison’s most popular quotes, to make it an even deeper symbol of perseverance. I chose 19 quotes and fitted them in a way that was aesthetically balanced. The large central lightbulb corresponds to patent 223,898, the world’s first commercially successful lightbulb, made by Edison. I want to thank Viktor Karazhov for painting the 100 lights, and the 1,000 variations, one by one, file by file. We used zero AI for this. He displayed a tremendous amount of perseverance to do this, all while his Ukrainian mother suffered in real time the consequences of the conflict he called the “terrible war”. The money I paid him to make this artwork went directly to his mother, so she could escape Ukraine. This was in fact the most expensive artwork to develop from the entire Genesis Collection, and rightly so, as it required the most amount of effort of all. It is one thing to persevere in good times, but quite another to do so amidst difficulty and suffering. My respect and admiration for you, my dear friend.

The Statue of Liberty is perhaps the most iconic symbol of freedom in the world. Donated to America by the friendly French, its original name is “Liberty Enlightening the World”, or “La Liberté Éclairant le Monde”. Imagine living in a land without freedom, a land of little opportunity. You gather your courage and decide to relocate. You embark on a long journey, leaving everything behind. What awaits you in this new land, the land of the free? As your ship arrives at New York Harbor, the Statue of Liberty greets you, resplendent. It is a bittersweet moment. Your old life ends, and a new one begins. Inside its pedestal, we find a poem by Emma Lazarus: “Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she with silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free. The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me. I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”. At the feet of the Statue of Liberty are broken chains, celebrating the end of slavery achieved in 1865. In her left hand is a tablet, with the date of the Declaration of Independence in roman numerals. July 4th, 1776. Both of these events were incremental steps towards freedom. Creative Process I imagined this incarnation of the goddess Libertas, shrouded by mist and clouds. New York City is hidden, because Liberty is not restricted to this city. Liberty is an idea that applies to the entire country, and further. In a way Liberty was dedicated to the entire world. “Liberty Enlightening the World”, she is called. With the city faded, Liberty can be anywhere and anytime. I intentionally requested her smaller in the frame, to showcase the power of the beams of light emanating from her torch. She may seem small, but she is very powerful, and her influence reaches far and wide. It may appear that clouds can block rays of light, but this is a mistake of perception. The light shines through the clouds. The light of freedom can never be taken away, it can only be willingly surrendered. It is always ours, if we will hold it. And if it is ever surrendered, it can be taken back, with the speed of a thunderbolt, as quick as thought.

When we see wealth, it’s not immediately obvious how it came to be. People don’t usually understand what wealth is, they think it’s money, but it’s not, wealth is goods and services. You could starve and die poor on an island all by yourself, with all the money in the world. Once we understand that wealth is goods and services, we can see that all these goods and services come from the human mind. From complex machines to simple manual labor like picking berries, all wealth generation is first staged in the mind. That is why many of the world’s greatest fortunes belong to geniuses like Elon Musk or Steve Jobs. Intelligence correlates to wealth because wealth first comes from the human mind. What makes the mind more productive? What makes the mind a better generator of wealth? That would have to be our values, beliefs, habits, culture, our world view, knowledge, customs, etc. If our mindset is poor, we will also be poor. Poseidon and Athena were the 2 main gods that competed to be the patron of the great city of Athens. As gods they served many purposes, one of which was to anchor a set of ideas that would define the culture of Athens. The mind is the source of wealth… then comes culture, which focuses the mind in a specific way, over an extended period of time. This is one reason why some cultures are much more prosperous than others, different cultures have different ideas and values, and some ideas are more effective than others. Both Poseidon and Athena represented specific ideas, they were powerful mental anchors that strengthened the culture of Athens, contributing to its wealth. Let’s explore how. Athenians had a religious and ceremonial connection to olives, which were gifts from the goddess Athena. This allowed them to build a strong industry around olives, exporting them across the Mediterranean. Olives from Athens were considered to be the best in the world. The cultural significance of the olive greatly strengthened the economy of Athens. Athena was also associated with crafts, including pottery, metalwork, and weaving. This cultural connection with Athena boosted these sectors, creating products that further boosted the economy of Athens. Athena was also a goddess of wisdom, represented by the owl, and warfare, represented by her spear and shield. These qualities pointed the minds of Athenians towards this domain, which helped them keep a strong military, with great strategic focus. Thus, the worship of Athena strengthened the military of Athens, helping her secure her trade routes, contributing again to their wealth. Poseidon on the other hand was the God of the Sea. This influenced the culture of Athenians to make them especially focused on the sea. This cultural focus gave Athens many economic benefits, including shipbuilding, fisheries, and maritime trading. Poseidon was also strongly related to horses; so much so that he is the father of the winged horse Pegasus. This relationship to horses encouraged the Athenians to breed them. Horses were used for transportation, reconnaissance, commerce, in festivals, for competitions, and a bit for military purposes. The wealth that Athens achieved, including their intellectual wealth, is in many ways directly linked to Poseidon and Athena. Their minds and culture were thus pointed in a direction that contributed to their prosperity. There is an important connection between the mind, the culture, and the wealth of nations. This connection is also found at the individual level. If you want to be richer, nurture your mind and your culture. Creative Process This artwork is unique among the Genesis Collection. Firstly, it is the only artwork in the collection that was made physically by hand on paper, it is a non-digital watercolor made in Vietnam, by Diem Nguyen. Secondly, Artchemy was conceived during the sketching of this artwork, in August of 2020. This artwork was originally created for the Decred cryptocurrency. Decred has a proposal system, I was about to propose an explainer promotional website for the cryptocurrency, using art as a cornerstone. This specific artwork was originally intended to illustrate the Decred Treasury. However, as I continued to work on my proposal, I realized that many other valuable ideas could be explored besides just Decred, and as I started to expand my vision, I fully committed to Artchemy. Regarding the artwork, the scene is under the ocean. On the left side is a statue of Poseidon, on the right one of Athena. They stand over gazebos full of gold and silver. The symbol at their feet is the astrological symbol of Neptune for Poseidon, and the symbol of Pallas Athena for Athena. Athena is holding her spear, and a shield with a depiction of the Gorgoneion. Poseidon is holding a trident and a horn. The horn is an arbitrary symbol given to him by us, representing communication, a tool to rally people around. Above the horn is “Stakey”, the mascot of Decred. Stakey himself holds a small trident like Poseidon, and a small shield like Athena. Both statues have swirls rising below them, representing their power over the elements of nature. A female mermaid is seen directing a male merman, symbolizing how the female Athena won patronage over the male Poseidon. The animals are depicted transporting treasure to the local acropolis, towards a temple with a Parthenon like design. This temple has Doric like columns. On the left are 3 banners for Poseidon, and on the right 3 banners for Athena. Poseidon has a bull, Pegasus, and a dolphin; while Athena has an olive branch, a snake, and an owl. These 6 were chosen as their main symbols. This temple combines Poseidon and Athena, and originally symbolized the Decred Treasury. Whales guard the temple treasury, symbolizing cryptocurrency whales protecting the price of Decred. Each whale has a different design of armor, representing their uniqueness as people, as they come from different countries all over the world. This Athenian theme was chosen for the Decred Treasury, as Decred itself is heavily inspired by the Athenian ideals of democracy and citizenship, so much so that they called their proposal system Politeia. This artwork was included in the Artchemy Genesis Collection as it was during its creation that Artchemy was conceived, it is an important part of our origin story. It went from being called “The Decred Treasury” to “The Treasury of Poseidon and Athena”. I find it amazing that this artwork was so easily reinterpreted from Decred to Artchemy. It communicates the central idea of Artchemy very well: culture is important, it has a direct impact in our lives, so we must nurture and treasure it. I continue to hold a friendly view towards Decred and encourage everyone to check them out. This artwork and Artchemy are not officially related to Decred, and we are not endorsed or sponsored by them. Decred is a registered wordmark of Company 0, LLC.

How extensive is the law in the USA? In the case of criminal offenses, there are so many that the federal government has been unable to precisely count them. In 1983, the Department of Justice tried to count all criminal offenses. They could not produce a concrete number, but concluded there were “over 3,000”. Nearly 4 decades have passed since then, and that number is now closer to 5,000 criminal laws. How much legislation has Congress passed? Since 1789, there have been over 30,000 statutes passed. Each statute can be between 1 and over 1,000 pages long. The 111th United States Congress, for example, passed a total of 383 statutes in 2 years. One of these statutes was the Affordable Care Act, over 1,000 pages / 300,000 words long. These are a few examples. We are not even counting the amount of legislation from each State, executive orders, etc. The law is so complex, that not even the Department of Justice understands it fully, much less citizens. Even lawyers, who dedicate themselves to the study of the law, specialize in specific areas of the law, since no single lawyer can specialize in all of them. It’s that complex. Hundreds of billions of dollars and countless hours are spent each year navigating the law. A great amount of wealth could be recovered by simplifying the law. Excessive regulation makes nations poorer. Furthermore, the amount of laws is so excessive, that a situation could arise in which virtually everyone is guilty of something. This could lead to the abuse of power, in which a citizen is targeted, and a crime is “found” to convict them. Whoever studies history knows that this is no exaggeration. Finally, excessive rules undermine our freedoms. In some places, you can’t freely collect rainwater, tend a garden and do other essential human activities. Laws are essential for a functioning and civilized society. The law should exist to bring harmony and justice, not to diminish our wealth and our freedoms. The law should be simplified, for the benefit of you, me, and all. Creative Process The best symbol I could think of, representing the main source of legislation, is the United States Congress. “Red tape” is a term that defines rules and regulations that are excessive. These 2 concepts were combined, the artist patiently drawing excessive amounts of red tape emanating from Congress. Grey clouds were added, diminishing light, to portray the diminishing effect that excessive legislation has on society. Green trees are present, representing the beneficial effects that Congress has actualized upon society. The color palette is intentionally reduced, to create a very dramatic, powerful, and memorable effect upon the viewing consciousness.

An Errata Journal is a journal of mistakes, errors, failures, and limitations. It is a powerful method to understand why we are making mistakes and correct them. To change a negative situation into a beneficial situation. To become better and to live a better life. Our brain has limited ability. By grounding our thoughts into paper or screen, we enhance our ability to understand the topic we are thinking of. People can go their entire lives without understanding their own behavior, without understanding how to improve. We should understand what to do and not do, and why. If we can enhance and quicken this understanding and improvement cycle, we can make great progress in our life. A habit of journaling dramatically strengthens our clarity, development, commitment, and success. Why am I not the best version I can be? What mistakes am I making? Why did I make them? What triggered them? How can I change my environment to create less errata? What rules must I adhere to? What poisons must I renounce? What do I have to say no to, in order to make more progress? How can I be better? Et cetera. The number of questions we can journal on the road to self-development are abundant. What questions come to your mind? What are your replies? What further questions arise from those replies? The deeper the roots of your inquiry, the taller the tree of your wisdom. Creative Process The tree represents the thinking process used in journaling and self-inquiry. It has its roots deep in the earth. This earth is full of mistakes, which nourish the roots of this self-inquiry tree. The tree creates a space to house wisdom, represented by the owl. This owl of wisdom radiates light, making things clear and seen. The owl of wisdom can see in the dark. The scene is placed at night, when the unconscious is more open. The moon is crescent but not full, meaning that there is more wisdom and light yet to be attained. Other life forms decorate the scene, representing the interconnectedness of all life. Your mistakes and successes affect all life around you. The tree of self-inquiry gives fruit in the form of apples. These apples are nourishing in themselves. The errata journal itself is hued in the color of transmutation. The fireflies emit their own light, representing the innate wisdom found in all of nature.

I see many mountains that I could climb. Some mountains look climbable, while others intimidate with imposing, colossal height. As I stand there analyzing these mountains, I realize I’m not making any progress towards any of them. Analyzing is not doing. To climb a mountain, I must first decide to climb it. To decide to climb it, I must first believe that I can climb it. To believe I can climb it, I must be a capable climber. To be a capable climber, I must climb. To climb, I must take steps. To take steps, I must take the first step. But the entire path is not clear. Should I not fully understand the path, before walking it? As I ponder this question… I realize that’s impossible. Parts of the path are seen, but most of it is hidden. This is the nature of the path. I can see were the path starts. The further the path goes, the less of it I can see. But as I take more steps, more of the path is revealed. To see the entire path, I must walk it fully. After engaging in self-reflection, I embark upon a mountain that I believe I can climb. The mountain will be taller than I expected, but by requiring more steps, I will become stronger than I imagined. The person starting the journey can’t complete the journey. The person completing the journey, is not the same person who started. You become suitable as you walk. The unfortunate man makes no contribution. He never decides to climb anything. So he dies underdeveloped and unfulfilled. But this is not my fate. I have decided it so. I have my mountain defined. Creative Process I chose a mountain to represent a goal, a journey. A hand is pointed at this journey, at this goal. The hand comes from the perspective of the viewer, so it can be anybody’s hand. The skin color is unclear at night, it could be anyone. I use the right hand, since most people are right handed. Part of the path is visible, part of it is not. The further the path, the less of it you see. The viewer appears on the path, self-visualizing along the path, playing inside the mind the next steps along the journey. “Artchemy #5: Self Reflection” is present in this artwork. It means that self-reflection is an essential part of defining any goal. There is a shooting star near the mountain, representing the mysterious forces that may conspire to make your wish come true. Colorful aurora borealis decorate the mountain. They can represent many things, from beauty, to intelligent guidance, to feelings. There are red stars around the mountain, representing our fears related to the goal. The scene starts at night. By the time you arrive at the summit, it will be day. You and your environment will have become more luminous. The artist drew 33 birds, but I did not request any specific number of birds. I just requested birds. 33 is a number of mastery, the mastery that is achieved when a mountain is climbed. This was spontaneous! I was happy to see it. From my perspective, spirit has co-created this artwork with me.