Floor is Rising - Khaled Makhshoush - Saudi Pixel Artist
Primer: Khaled Makhshoush started his pixel art journey in 2016. He stumbled upon the NFT art scene last year when a collector brought up SuperRare to him. Since then, he has never looked back. Read on to learn about his thoughts on pixel art and the NFT scene.
How Did He Get Into NFTs
Got into NFTs around Aug/Sep 2020
Received a DM from a collector who introduced him to NFTs and the SuperRare website. Was weirded out by it
Couple of weeks later, he came across another artist's work on SuperRare
Found the website very friendly to people who are unfamiliar with crypto. Looked at the sales volume and was motivated by it
Asked his followers for their thoughts and some of them answered that there is no harm in giving it a try
Applied to SuperRare as an artist. Sold his first artwork on the platform in October 2020
His Initial Concern
Are artists selling the rights to their artwork?
When he understood the technology, he realized that he is not selling the copyright to his work
His Video Game Background
In 2010, indie video games were really popular and one of the styles that was used a lot is pixel art
Decided to make a video game and that kickstarted his interest in pixel art
From 2014 to 2016, they ended up making a couple of video games and participated in a few game jams
In 2016, he started to learn pixel art
Creates art for many different reasons. It could be an idea that he is interested in exploring
Creating NFT artwork fits into his schedule
What Is Pixel Art?
Pixel art is any kind of artwork that is created using pixelated art without the use of anti-aliasing
Draw with a grid, and each square on that grid is coloured to create a mosaic type of artwork
There are traditions in pixel art that are focused on a limited colour palette and canvas size
He works on a 300 by 400 canvas, which is considered very big
"Pixel art is all about limitations. And this, I feel, limitation is kind of what gives it a unique look." - Khaled Makhshoush
Usually, other pixel artists work on an 8 by 8 canvas or an even smaller canvas
Historically, this limitation existed due to hardware reasons
CryptoPunks follow the same tradition — limited colour palette and canvas size
Is The Pixel Art NFT Scene Progressing In Different Directions From The Larger Pixel Art Scene?
Those who enter the NFT scene represents the greater Pixel Art scene
Main difference he sees within the pixel art NFT scene is whether do artists create collectibles or those 1/1 artwork
There was a divide that happened in the broader art space in March this year:
Are NFTs a scam?
Are NFTs harming the environment?
Knew that NFTs are not a scam as he has made a few sales and converted that to actual money
Did research to find out whether his work has really consumed that much energy/harm the environment
Balancing Between Work And Creating Art That Interests Him
Have been making art for 5 years now. Did not make much money from it. However, it was a very fulfilling thing for him to do
For artists, commissioned work is stressful and there's a deadline for them
By incorporating NFTs as another revenue source, he can now be selective about the commissions he takes
NFTs have become his main income source now
Tries not to get into a mode where he creates an NFT just for the sake of creating an NFT. He wants to create artwork and then see whether if it makes a good NFT
Are Artists Capitalizing On The NFT Hype?
Thinks that it is not wrong for artists to do that
For himself, creating artwork is something very fulfilling
NFTs benefit him by making him more relaxed. It takes off the unneeded pressure of needing to create artwork just for the sake of creating artwork (when compared to commissioned work)
If he went on a constant release schedule, his ideas wouldn't be much thought out
The Saudi Art Scene
Local art scene is very conservative
Mostly for well-educated people who focus on the traditional art world rather than the digital art world
The digital movement is growing due to the increased usage of social media. Seeing increases in digital artists
When people think of pixel art, they think of Atari. He had the pleasure of working with Atari on an NFT project
Sometimes, he would think about whether is his artwork reflective of the culture he grew up in. Realized he has been influenced by a lot of things and is becoming more cosmopolitan
Staying Local Or Going Global?
Kizu: There are 2 camps in art:
Artists should feel some kind of responsibility or obligation to be the spokesperson for their culture and to address local political issues in their work
Artists who deliberately choose not to address the local in their work
When people see Khaled's artwork, they think that he is catering to an international audience. However, this is not the case; his artwork just represents who he is
He could draw things that relate to his culture (e.g. desert, camels, horses, oasis, etc.) and he finds those things beautiful. However, he actually grew up in a city and is more familiar with skyscrapers, asphalt, traffic, etc. It becomes a point of contention as people would find the former more authentic
Who Are His Favourite Artists?
Waneella, a pixel artist from Russia
Jubilee, aka 16pxl, from the United States
Gutty Kreum
Genuine Human Art
Recommends an account called Pixel Art NFT Week that focuses on pixel art
All information presented above is for educational purposes only and should not be taken as investment advice. Summaries are prepared by The Reading Ape. While reasonable efforts are made to provide accurate content, any errors in interpreting and summarizing the source material are ours alone. We disclaim any liability associated with the use of our content.