Plantoids

A researcher specialising in copyright law at Harvard university, Primavera de Fillipi launched Plantoid in 2018. Plantoids are blockchain-based ‘organisms’ which reproduce by way of Bitcoin pollination.[1] In the dark I see it; I see the seed.

It illuminates the byway, it begs for

a meeting midway. Biomorphic homecoming, I approach

curiously.

Closer.

Step by step.

The ground beneath me is cool, an overcast night means the only star I follow is a meagre light I see in the distance. In the distance I hear the dull thud of a hypnotic trance set. The experimental work is based on the three main ideas of blockchain technology; it is autonomous, self-sustainable and capable of reproduction. Plantoid is an artistic manifestation of the Decentralised Autonomous Organisation (DAO) which relies on mechanised technology regulated by the organisations’ members rather than a central government.

How did we split so far apart? Our hearts; atoms catapulted lightyears so far away from one another that darkness envelops our very reality. It’s cold, I wrap my arms around my stomach and push further into night.

The work is hybrid, existing both physically and technologically. In the physical realm, plantoids are made from materials such as recycled steel and utilise electronic components for interactive purposes. Technologically, the ‘spirit’ of the plantoid exists on the blockchain operating on a smart contract system. I quicken my pace as I approach the seed-light. Jesus Christ. It’s so cold. Why couldn’t I have taken an unhealthy amount of amphetamines like the rest of them? I shake off the thought. Because there’s more. There has to be. Although the crux of De Fillipi’s work is autonomy, Plantoid is dependent on its global audience for its continued generation. In its capitalisation phase, the plantoid seduces the viewer either physically or intellectually to receive Bitcoin donations, not dissimilar to the way a canary-yellow sunflower attracts insect life for pollination. When the plant has received enough capital to reproduce, a callout is triggered to artists and programmers alike. The original ‘pollinators’ of the project contribute a vote determining the next father/mother of the plantoid, who receives all the Bitcoin through a smart contract on the Ethereum blockchain.

My heart is burning as I get closer. I don’t remember the last time I exercised, and now that I’ve taken it upon myself to run to the seed-light I can really feel the effects of my cigarette vice. I’m tired and weak. What the… I’m nearly blinded by the glow emitted by the seed and I shield my eyes with my hands as I take a minute to adjust. According to De Fillippi, the main objective of plantoid is for a wider demographic to understand DAO’s, which are counter-culture and therefore considered somewhat difficult to comprehend.[2]

I stand a few meters away from the football-sized seed. It floats, suspended by a magnetically warm glow that creates a spherical force field around the seed. Oh my god. This is some alien shit. I’m starting to freak out now because I realise I’m in the middle of nowhere and this is the perfect situation to get abducted. Think think think. Wait no, don’t think. Breathe. What was it that your therapist said?  Inhale … exhale … inhale … exhale… You probably just drank someone’s LSD water and you’re tripping balls. No way. I came sober and walked into the desert sober, why do I always second guess myself?

The same way the DAO puts the power of decision-making on a crowdsourced system, Plantoid utilises smart contracts to generate new works. De Fillippi’s work demonstrates the way DAO’s are at once participatory and secure, shifting the responsibilities of life away from humans onto automated systems on the blockchain. In addition to this, the project questions traditional notions of copyright law.[3] While the foundation of copyright law is based on exclusivity and scarcity, Plantoid blurs the lines of such policies by transferring the authorship of the work from artist to artwork. Based on a Darwinian approach, plantoids with the greatest physical and intellectual strengths will live on, empowered by Bitcoin donations which will birth a lineage of strong descendants. We walk around interacting with our friends, our family, our community. Learning how to be human, one person telling us that tap water sustains us and stops our teeth from rotting. The next person saying tap water will give you dementia, explaining how messed up it is that we have to pay $3 for a bottle of Evian at the petrol station. What if all these choices (largely minute and completely insignificant) were made for us long before we were born? What if we could somehow fall into a stream which carried us into our grace-lane, and our only job was to surrender to the gentle undulations of the river ahead?

These descendants maximise the artists’ return on investments through royalty payments. This radically changes attitudes towards imitation in the artworld, as artists are both incentivised to create their best work and encourage the making of derivative works.

orange heart, warm collision.

Left fingertips

on seed-lights orbit.

open night, starry skin

embrace embrace embrace

I take the seed of light

swallow

Plantoid was born

De Fillipi’s Plantoid transforms traditional ways of thinking in the artworld which emphasise the role of the individual artist. The project reveals the potential for art to exist and evolve independently from the artist, while it simultaneously remains dependent on the peer-to-peer network in the blockchain. It is a collaborative, technologically evolved approach to artmaking which encourages conversation on how art can be funded independently from centralised systems. Plantoid discloses the way smart contracts and automated technology can be applied to ventures outside the art world, such as self-sufficient farms and automated public works projects.[4]

[1] “Plantoids: Blockchain-based life forms,” A Bionic Creature. https://plantoid.org/#bitcoin.

[2] Primavera De Fillippi, “Primavera De Filippi : As an artist I try to challenge the current state of the world…,” interview by Etienne Verbist, Artdependence, May 19, 2017. https://artdependence.com/articles/primavera-de-filippi-as-an-artist-i-try-to-challenge-the-current-state-of-the-world

[3] Josh Zemel, “A new Generation of Plantoids Comes to Life with DAOstack (and Infra): A Conversation with Primavera de Filippi,” DAOstack, (September 2018). https://medium.com/daostack/a-new-generation-of-plantoids-comes-to-life-with-daostack-and-infra-a-conversation-with-eb155d1b0987

[4] Brad Jones, "Digital Plants" Are the First Blockchain-Based Artificial Life Form,” Futurism, (August 2017). https://futurism.com/digital-plants-are-the-first-blockchain-based-artificial-life-form