The digital world is experiencing a new trend with the arrival of the NTF (Non-Fungible Token), which can basically be interpreted as a unique digital certificate, registered in a chain of blocks that has the function of endorsing the ownership of an asset as a a work of art or a collector’s item and it is precisely in this new digital art ‘industry’ that Pablo Stanley, originally from Mexicali, Baja California, decided to exploit and market his talent.
In interview with The Economistthe Mexican who partnered with Time Studios to create an animated television series based on his creations, told us about his experience as a pioneer in designing systems to produce generative art collections, his foray into the world of NFTs, and the requirements that every artist must know to venture into this new digital trend.
“Who is Paul Stanley?”
—I was born in Mexicali, Baja California. I have a 20 year career doing art, comics, illustration and designing digital products. My entire career has been in California, working in Silicon Valley for different companies like Lyft, Invision and Udemy. I co-founded Carbon Health and then Blush, a company that helps people unleash their creativity using cartoons, I am currently CEO of Blush and we are expanding our services into the world of web3 and NFTs. I think a milestone in my artistic career is Robotos NFT, Humankind and Bueno.
I don’t know how to sit still, I have given talks and workshops all over the world on NFTs, Design, Animation, Illustration Systems, Storytelling, Accessibility…comics, because one of my passions is also writing comics.
I really like to teach what I know, my mom is a teacher and I think I inherited something from there. I teach art and design tools on my YouTube channel, Sketch Together and have created some fun projects like Clubpad, Pablito Planeta. As a Mexican who emigrated to the United States, I try to support Latin talent, I have two very nice projects Latinx Who Design and Dreamer Stories.
—How do you start in the world of NFTs?
—My collectors call me “the OG” of illustration systems. Which means that I am a pioneer in designing systems to produce generative art collections, that is, to produce large quantities of digital images using algorithms. After doing those systems for years, I saw the NFTs and I felt a lot of FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out or fear of missing out on the trend) and I started hanging around on Twitter and on the Open Sea platform, what other artists were doing, That same night I set to work to get my collection out.
—What is the particularity of an NFT as opposed to any digital illustration, animated gif or image?
—“NFT” stands for Non-Fungible Token, meaning it is a unique digital item with blockchain-managed ownership that users can buy, hold and trade. The fundamental function of some NFTs is to be digital art. But they can also offer additional benefits such as exclusive access to websites, tickets to events, in-game items, and ownership records for physical items. Think of them as a unique piece of art that can also double as a “members only” card.
—Are there communities in the NFTS world?
—Of course, communities of collectors are the most important thing for an artist. Since I began to devise the project, the community began to form and has been growing little by little, they are always part of my artistic process and are my inspiration. As of today, Robotos has more than 5,600 members from all over the world who form a diverse and vibrant community.
—Tell us how the Robotos project was born.
—It was around June of last year that I decided to create a collection of NFTs as a side project, I have always drawn robots, monsters and cartoons. I began to draw some basic characters with variations of hair, glasses, clothes, eyes, mouths, in order to use an algorithm that would produce the final 9,999 characters; Luckily, I’ve been developing that technology for years with Blush so I didn’t have to draw each one of the 10 thousand buttons, I just designed the illustration system and the robots drew the Robotos for me, ha!
– Who participates in this project?
—In the Robotos team there are engineers, artists and designers, who in addition to being very passionate on the creative side, are also very good at doing business strategy. Zackboto, Jaboto, Meela, Luluboto, Bureboto, Melissa Mimosa, Damn Randy, Beereeboto, Niklas, and Captain Excellent. We are a team spread all over the world: Latinos, Americans and Europeans, we work 24 hours a day because when someone sleeps, another person is already awake.
—Thalía bought one of your works that introduced her to the world of NFTs and now she is one of the first Latin artists to promote this trend.
—I am honored that my work has come to the attention of many within the Crypto community, including Tyler Winklevoss, who acquired 10 Robots; Keith Grossman, president of TIME, Denis Rodman, the NBA legend, Eva Longoria and of course Thalía, the pop queen of Latin music, with whom I share Mexican roots and is a great person. For me it is an honor that people who are cultural icons appreciate my drawings and decide to invest in my project.
—Are there future collaboration plans with the Mexican singer? Can you advance us something?
—The relationship with Thalía has been very good, we have found points of interest. However, although I am excited about new projects, I cannot say more at the moment.
—Where do you buy an NFT?
—Most of the NFTs can only be bought with Eth, so the first thing would be to exchange your pesos for this cryptocurrency in a service like Coinbase or Bitso, open a Cryptowallet and buy in the online NFT markets, like OpenSea, Nifty Gateway, Rarible , Super Rare, among others.
—What does it take to be an NFT artist and sell your works?
—As an artist, to enter the world of NFTs, you must create a contract in the blockchain that you think is convenient (Ethereum, Solana, Tezzos, among others), upload your art, and work hard on the positioning and digital marketing strategy, to start having collectors.
The process of turning your art into NFT requires technical knowledge, so with that in mind, my team and I developed Well, a tool service for artists to create their generative images without having to write a single line of code. We are also working on tools to make contracts and virtual worlds that we call microverses.
—If someone wants to belong to an NFT community, where should they start and what site should they register on?
— Personally I recommend that everyone do their own research on the matter, it is important to be well informed to make any decision. A good source of news in real time about what is happening in the world of NFTs is Twitter, there you can find out what the community thinks and how new projects are being developed. The NFT market is like the art market, highly speculative.
—What is the main objective of Robotos?
— Robotos is on a mission to create a world where its collectors can find a sense of belonging, build together, and be inspired to live a creative life.
—Since it began until today, what are the most significant achievements of the project?
—We have come a long way as a Robotos team and also as a community that has gradually become stronger and generated a great sense of belonging, aimed at our mission. I could list several efforts that the great team and community have achieved, but among the most significant I would mention:
1. Genesis 1
The creation of the art and technology to launch Robotos: 9,999 characters on the Ethereum network. The community received them with great enthusiasm; They sold out in 20 minutes. Until today, Robotos has more than 5,600 collectors worldwide.
2. Robopets
The Robotos team worked for many months to create the Robopets, an NFT associated with Robotos, they are his pets and faithful companions. In October 2021, Robotos collectors were able to adopt 8,800 Robopets. It was a project with a great technological challenge since each robopet inherited at least one particular trait from its owner Roboto, you see that they say that pets tend to resemble their owners.
3.TIME Studios animated television series based on Robotos
I’ve always aspired to bring characters to life and create a universe around them. TIME Studios, an Emmy® Award-winning television studio that has produced feature films and documentaries distributed on streaming platforms like Netflix, has partnered with me to bring to life an animated series inspired by Robotos.
4.The Robotos Microverse
The Robotos Microverse is a virtual world running on the blockchain where Robopets and Robotos can play and interact with each other. A few weeks ago we released Disco Inferno and GM Botos Island, we are constantly developing more microverses!
—What are you working on this year?
—There are many things prepared for 2022: From art toys, 3D Robots ready to use in virtual worlds, to events with our collectors around the world. We will keep working to make Robotos a valuable brand that inspires people to use their creativity. We are going to paint a monumental mural in the Roma neighborhood, in front of the Rosetta de Colima, it will be there for the whole month of March. I continue working with the television series and in all the things that continue to occur to me.
