Thread by @sershokunin

1/12 Why did I spend millions on an NFT when I could have just downloaded the JPEG? @DCLBlogger

Mental model #2: Alway bet on scenius.

Thread 🧵:

2/12 What is scenius? From Brian Eno: “The intelligence and the intuition of a whole cultural scene. It is the communal form of the concept of the genius.”

@kevin2kelly explains the concept and its importance here: kk.org/thetechnium/sc…

3/12 His examples include The Inklings, Paris in the 20s, Soho, and Burning Man. More recently we have punk in NYC, and street art in the UK / France. But also Y Combinator. So the question, then, is whether or not NFTs are a scenius.

Let’s go through KK’s criteria.

4/12 Mutual appreciation: yes, in droves! And not just from collectors pumping their own collections. Look at top artists in the space, like @dmitricherniak -- more time promoting up-and-comers than talking about their own work. And this seems to be the rule, not the exception.

5/12 Rapid exchange of tools / techniques: very much so. Tons of YouTube tutorials. If you go through upcoming drops on rarity.tools, you’ll see that even many of the folks doing derivative projects as blatant cash grabs are executing at a shockingly high level.

6/12 Network effects of success: supercharged by opensea data, twitter feeds, and ongoing secondary for artists. And for the first time ever, folks can see what their favorite collectors are purchasing in real time. Each purchase attracts more talented artists. A virtuous circle.

7/12 Local tolerance for novelties: Even folks pushing the boundaries of art are getting called out for not simultaneously innovating on tech, marketing, business models, IP licensing, community building, etc.:

https://twitter.com/punk6529/status/1441813351890182144

@punk6529

8/12 I said that this is the most energy and positivity I’ve seen from any online community since Doge in early 2014. The difference is that here a quorum of folks are actually doing great work, not just waiting for “leadership” to create a roadmap and add value.

9/12 So yeah, when I say that what I see happening here is somewhat unusual, it’s not just bs. There’s an actual framework we can look at. Because these kinds of scenes are uncommon, but very powerful, people have spent a lot of time thinking about them. (So should you.)

10/12 When a scenius forms, there’s an electric energy and a community magic that confers almost supernatural levels of creativity and productivity onto those who were there from the beginning. Many go on to achieve astronomical levels of success.

11/12 That’s what is happening. That’s what is coming.

So why did I buy this particular punk? Returns in fine art are double bimodal, with the highest returns going to the best pieces from the top artists.

12/12 Like all schools of art, the one that comes from this scenius will be defined retroactively. But when given the chance to buy one of the most iconic pieces from an entirely new school, before it’s even been recognized -- not buying would be crazy.

This is the way.
xx SerS

What should I buy next? Right now I’m mostly looking at the OG bluechip projects, but am also interested in emerging artists.