***Crypt***
Crypt is a labyrinth of sound, image, data, and code. It is an enigma. Once solved, it is also a gateway.

Crypt is a multilayered piece of generative art, one that unfolds into something else, then unfolds again. It contains artworks within artworks, found by puzzles inside other puzzles. One leading to another. At the center is a gateway. The gateway opens another world. That world is an Alternate Reality Game filled with cryptic histories, untold stories, and physical treasures hidden all over the world. 

To begin, some hints. The solution to the first puzzle is a three-part key. It leads to another layer. Here is a room of sorts. An escape room. Viewable from three angles. In the room are eight code-words. They lead to the way out. Collaboration is essential.

At the bottom of Crypt is another key. It unlocks a world. It unlocks Cyclops.

To confirm your solution to crypt and claim your reward please visit: https://cyclopsgroup.art

***Cyclops***

Cyclops is a networked performance, collaborative narrative, and alternate-reality-game designed to be played by groups of people working together across the world. Set in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the game begins with a series of audio tracks. Some tracks are musical compositions, others are filled with odd voices reading letters and counting numbers, others still resemble nothing more than noise and static.
 
Each track is, in fact, a puzzle of increasing complexity. As players work together to solve them, a narrative about early research into psychological operations, mind-control experiments, and an alternative history of the internet age begins to emerge. Over the course of the game, players come across - and are invited to collect - a series of artworks specifically created for Cyclops players. To find these artworks, players must identify and follow up on clues provided within the game. Cyclops is a world within a world.

Crypt

“Life will be lived all the better if it has no meaning” - Albert Camus 

Optimistic nihilism embraces the idea that life's inherent meaninglessness is, in fact, positive. The conflict between intrinsic meaninglessness and our search for meaning is both absurd and liberating. We are free to create our own meaning yet ultimately, there is none. By acknowledging both the futility and the opportunity, we can find joy.

These images have no specific meaning yet often they seem purposed. Each output evokes an emotional tone, such as calm, erratic, troubled, bold, mysterious or cheerful. We are frequently reminded of something or can identify shapes like birds, houses or spaceships. Our innate tendency to find patterns and meaning is evident.

The algorithm uses geometry and rules but has been given as much freedom as possible to create varied compositions which contain both chaos and order. The compositions are constructed using node layouts, which are connected to form shapes. Connection is a recurrent theme in our pursuit of meaning - manifested in pattern formation, our relationships and the interconnectedness of the universe. The shapes are duplicated and modified through rotation, mirroring, and scaling to build up structure and chaotic form. If an output appears too sparse, an extra stage of manipulation is applied. Keypresses reveal the components, allowing viewers to observe the underlying mathematical structure of the composition. How does this insight influence our perception of meaning?

The meaning communicated by each piece is subjective, shaped by the viewer's own experiences interacting with the work. The artist aspires to connect with her audience by discovering the meanings they derive from the outputs we have yet to encounter.

Toggle components - 
1 - Nodes
2 - Shapes
3 - Extras
4 - Strokes or Outlines (if present)
5 - Border
r - Return to full piece

s - Save 2000px wide image
p - Save 5000px wide image

Meaningless

Faceless is inspired by the refugee and immigrant experience. It pays homage to the individuals that have helped over 25 million refugees flee their homeland to find peace and safety elsewhere. Oftentimes, as was the case with my family, it takes the bravery and generosity of a community of individuals, some whose faces will never be known to you, to have the opportunity to reach true freedom and safety. Faceless aspires to share a story of displacement and resilience with the world, and, in turn, give back to the communities that help people in their most critical moments.

Focusing on 2D silhouettes, Faceless is inspired by the Bauhaus designs of the 1920s and illustrates raw human form in a reimagined, colorful, and familiar way. Each output includes faces that are uniquely mapped onto the canvas, meaning no two works will feature the exact same silhouette. Silhouettes are arranged, colored, scaled, and distorted to remind us of the diversity, beauty, and pain that can be found in each unique story.

Faceless

Adorable and purrfect, these carefully bred kitties express a wide range of emotions and personalities. They live entirely on-chain and they just love receiving pets.

CatBlocks

Variant Plan (F01Y20) is an exclusive generative art commission for Variant Fund by Jeff Davis. Each work in the series contains a randomized hash string that determines a unique layout and color placement for the plan. Every plan is unique and all logic for the artwork is stored immutably on the Ethereum blockchain.

Art Blocks Presents

Crypt #2

The Cyclops Group

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