Culture before consensus

The opportunity

Crypto art was developing quickly, but the technology around it was still difficult for many artists to understand and easy for the wider public to dismiss. The interesting question was not how to explain blockchain in another presentation. It was how to let people experience what the medium made possible.

Rare Effect 2 was our answer: a festival in Lisbon that brought artists, technology, performance, and community into the same physical space.

What I helped create

We brought together 95 artists from around the world. Beyond organising the event, we helped artists understand blockchain and NFT technology, connect with one another, and see themselves as participants in an emerging cultural movement rather than users of a financial tool.

My role sat naturally between curation and venture building. I could understand the technology, shape the experience, bring very different people into the same project, and create a frame that made their individual work feel part of something larger.

Why it matters

Rare Effect 2 became an important cultural moment for Lisbon’s digital art community. Its value was not just attendance or visibility. It created relationships, transferred knowledge, and gave artists a context in which a new technology could become their own medium.

This is the creative half of how I work. I do not separate aesthetic judgment from business or technology. Taste helps people recognise why an idea matters. Structure gives them a way to participate in it. The strongest projects need both.