Since founding Art Blocks in 2020, artist Erick Calderon (a.k.a. Snowfro) has been intrigued by the idea of representing digital artwork in the physical world in the form of an ephemeral physical object with meaning, but with no inherent value. 

Donald Judd has long been an inspiration for Art Blocks. One aspect we admire most about Judd’s artistic practice is the elegance of design he effortlessly paired with the accessibility of materials that could be found at a hardware store. With Judd as inspiration, we hatched a plan to create a unique generative art friendship bracelet that includes instructions to make, in minutes, a simple bracelet using a few dollars’ worth of embroidery floss. Donald Judd believed that what surrounds us in our day-to-day life is already so beautiful, and that ultimately the experience of creating art is as important as owning it.

Erick was incredibly excited to collaborate with renowned artist Alexis André (a.k.a. MacTuitui) to bring generative art and ephemeral physical objects together in the form of friendship bracelets. Conceptualized by Erick and aesthetically and programmatically designed by Alexis, this project pairs creative coding with a beautiful spectrum of embroidery floss colors. The project was a true team effort, as each member of the Art Blocks team designed and named their own color palette!

The project is a token of our appreciation to the creators, makers, builders, and collectors who have all contributed to making the Art Blocks community what it is today. Participating in this project is a signal, both online and IRL, that you’re a participant in this evolution of art + community. You are pushing the best ideas forward. You are the reason all of these imaginative projects come to life. Our community is what makes all of this possible. So, to say it plainly, we appreciate you, and we hope that you’ll accept this bracelet as a token of our special friendship!

The owner of any wallet with an Art Blocks piece at the time of snapshot (October 26, 2022, at 3pm US Central time) is eligible to claim two mints from this special generative art project. We would love to see you keep one bracelet and share your love for generative art by gifting your second mint! These mints are free to claim (you pay only the gas) and exist on L1 Ethereum. Please note that we may in the future release additional modified iterations of the Friendship Bracelets project, ideally on an L2 scaling solution, that may substantially increase the total supply of tokens related to the project, with the intent of being a more accessible entry point to a larger audience. But this version is what we're here to celebrate today, and this gift is for you in gratitude for your support along the way. Please enjoy this token of our friendship and explore the wonderful artwork created by Alexis André. Then, let's all make bracelets together! 

Warmly,
Alexis + Erick + the Art Blocks team



The claim window expires on January 10, 2023, at noon US Central time.

Click into the Display Notes for information about making your bracelet.

Friendship Bracelets

This project opens on November 22nd at 2pm ET/1pm CT and closes on December 1st at 2pm ET/1pm CT.

# Yuccas and Boxes
One of the things I took away from my summer trip to Marfa was the need to spend more time absorbing my surroundings and thinking back on my experiences. Witnessing the vast fields of yuccas flowering simultaneously and watching the sunrise over Judd's 100 untitled works in mill aluminum are two specific moments that will never leave my memory. Combining these two sensations resulted in generative arrangements of yuccas and boxes.
## Edge of the desert
The city of Marfa is on the northeast side of the Chihuahuan desert. The weather is dry and hot in the summer. Plants that grow naturally in the region, like the yucca, have adapted well to the harsh conditions.
## Soaptrees
In the Americas, there are a lot of different types of yucca. The type of yucca that grows in and around Marfa is called yucca elata, which is also known as the soaptree yucca. These yuccas grow very slowly, only about an inch per year. Yucca elata doesn't always bloom, but when it does, the flowers come out between May and June.
## Sunrise at Chinati
The Chinati Foundation is a museum in Marfa based on Donald Judd's ideas. The focus is on works that have a strong connection to the land around them. Sometimes a special event called "Sunrise at Chinati" is held at the museum so that people can see the many works in the golden light of the morning sun.
# An SVG is available!
The SVG is a fully scalable resolution agnostic version of the image. To access the SVG press the "p" key and the SVG will automatically download.

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