Carnal Chemistry: An NFT Project for Creating a Change

From the Kangjiashimenji Petroglyphs found in the remote Xinjiang region of northwest China to the works of Renaissance masters, human sexuality has always found its most beautiful expression in visual arts. In sculptures, paintings, literature, poetry, music, and other artistic ways, sexuality has been celebrated widely. Across civilizations and countries, art and sexuality have intersected for centuries in different ways.

But then something happened.

We regressed.

Due to this, a drastic change came upon the way we view sexuality and art. As years passed by, the artistic expression of human sexuality became taboo and stigma. Censorship became a major issue affecting art and sexuality in general. Gradually, it started to erase this supreme connection out of our collective visual memory. One of the instances of censorship in the past centuries is the removal of genitals from sculptures. Erotic art and representations started to lose their value and significance as the years went by. 

The views on erotic art forms started to transform into mere pornographic outlooks. In the 20th century, absurdist art, symbolic representations, and modernism tried to voice the need for portraying the beauty of sexuality. But, even then, censorship, stigma, and taboo took the front row seat in acting against erotic art and artists. 

As we stepped into the digital era, censorship continued in different mediums, including social media. It has created an impact on artists in expressing the essence of eroticism in their artworks. 

Understanding this, Tickle.Life has taken the initiative to curate a platform for erotic artists, especially digital artists, to showcase their artistic works. Here, Tickle.Life will focus on bringing in a change by offering the artists an opportunity to work together.

As the first step, Tickle.Life is here with our very first NFT project, Carnal Chemistry, on digital art that could change the landscape of the ‘chain.’

Carnal Chemistry is a long-term art project and an experiment at the intersection of human sexuality, visual art, and ‘on chain’ provenance to de-stigmatize erotic art.  Here, we strive forward to create a multi-blockchain experience for the users and focus on creating an ecologically beneficial blockchain. For that purpose, Carnal Chemistry will also be listing our 100+ 1/1 artworks in Tezos Blockchain, which is one of the best eco-friendly blockchains. As part of this initiative, it will provide buyers and artists more options for liquidity. Here, the buyers, who purchase through Ethereum from the Open Sea, would also be airdropped the artwork in their Tezos wallet.

Carnal Chemistry endeavors to ensure that the artistic expression of human sexuality finds its creative space in the digital art Renaissance, unfolding in front of our eyes.

To this end, every year, we will collaborate with global artists to release a collection of 100 1/1 art pieces with ‘on chain’ provenance, exploring a specific dimension of human sexuality.

Tickle.Life starts with our first collection titled ‘The Kamasutra’ with artists from India, Chile, the USA, Turkey, Spain, Russia, and France. This collection seeks inspiration from The Kamasutra- an ancient Indian text about sexuality and the alchemy of desire. 

Here, different artists interpret the prescriptions from the books through their own cultural and lived experiences by creating stories encompassing all 100 poses from The Kamasutra. Through this, each art piece will remain unique in its presentation while still be connected through the stories weaved by the artists.

Carnal Chemistry: Roadmap

After the success of the first project, we will move forward into various dimensions within the digital space aiming to improve the representation of erotic art. They include:

• Tools for artists & art Patreons

Making a creative space for artists is just one part of the puzzle. We foresee some form of censorship creeping into Web 3.0 as well. It’s not inconceivable to think of an NFT/Crypto marketplace delisting a collection for not meeting standards. Hence, we will also focus on building tools for the minting and listing for the sex-positive community of artists and art patrons.

• Cutting-edge digital art gallery

People who see and experience art play a significant role. And the emerging nexus of AR/VR technologies make it possible to completely reimagine what an art gallery of the future will look like. This is something that excites us, and we will be actively pursuing this path. Here, we will build a cutting-edge digital art gallery that hosts an ever-growing collection of beautiful erotic art.

• Merchandising

Through this initiative, we strive to support the artists beyond commissions from the primary and secondary sales. We take a step ahead that can be beneficial for our collaborators. For that purpose, we will also launch a line of merchandise using the art, and 5% of proceeds from the sale of the merchandise will go to the respective artists.

By the way, our first collection will be available for sale at OpenSea from 30/10/2021. You can stay informed by dropping an email to carnalchemistry@tickle.life and by joining our growing community on Discord. And don't forget to keep a check on our website. Click here to know more.