shifting culture with code
I’ve been a creative coder for some years, experimenting with many languages & libraries, initially creating music visualisers. My first projects were written in javascript but I found the learning curve too steep, so I moved to node based programs like Touchdesigner as it allowed for rapid prototyping, I also found the workflow to be a lot more forgiving that writing code.
Around 2021 I came across generative art, I already knew about libraries like p5.js but the idea of creating rules based systems and using randomness as a seed to create near infinite variants was new and fascinating - I had to learn more. It’s around this time that NFT’s were really starting to explode, artists on platforms like Art Blocks were making life changing money and as a developer with a passion for creative code - I saw my calling. I’ll be honest - I didn’t really understand NFT’s at first, I knew about bitcoin and during the WallStreetBets saga I’d made small change buying stocks and invested some into ethereum but I didn’t think further than “I just wanna double my money and take my girl out for sushi” - I have my regrets but life goes on.
After some convincing from my peers namely IX Shells, Dmitri Cherniak & Spongenuity. I took the dive and minted my first NFT Cherry Blu. Holy shit - I just made $3,000… like that!? Ok I’m hooked! That was my catalyst and I’ve found reasonable success since but that’s not what this post is about. I want to talk about where my head is now, almost 4yrs later.
For a period of time especially with regards to the work I released as NFT’s my aim was simply to monetise my creativity, I didn’t think much further than that. It was a means for me to generate extra income to invest into my hobbies - I wasn’t trying to change the world, just simply trying to survive. This is until July 2022 when Bright Moments asked me to work on a project for them. Around this time I was feeling really stuck at my day job and the lack of career progression led me to quit so really this was the perfect opportunity for me.
Social media during the 2020 #BLM protests, was a really toxic place and I was constantly triggered and this multiplied with the isolation enforced by lockdowns, and I began to question my identity. I wasn’t born in the UK, I was born in Cameroon. The morals and principles enstilled in me from birth differ to those that I’ve grown acustomed to in the society that I live in now. So I was confused as who I was and what I represent. So, I used this opportunity to really dig deep into myself, my history, my present and my future. I won’t lie, it was hard. It was only yesterday that someone referred to me as an artist, and from my understanding an artist is someone who can express emotion visually or tell a story creatively. I didn’t think was me.
I had to write a pitch for the project so I decided to focus on my roots. For some years Cameroon has been going through an ‘Anglophone Crisis’ - an ongoing battle for independence between armed militias in the english speaking parts of the country against a largely francophone government. This issue had been bubbling for some time but really ramped up after a government crackdown on student protests in 2017. I had to approach the topic carefully because that’s where my family is from but I also didn’t want to create an “Africa is struggling” art project. So I focused on the positives; the people, the culture & traditions because no matter what happens, culture persists and if we stop talking about it, it dies. My initial fears as to wether or not I was the right person to do this were culled when the elders saw my concept and gave me thier blessing.
So, over the following months, I worked extensively on crafting an algorithm inspired by the fabrics (toghu & ndop) from the region making sure to not just copy but to craft something new and add to the culture. I studied the fashion from my grandma’s generation down to my mum’s and mine, breaking down elements which persisted, applying them into a generative algorithm to extend and reinterpret. I hoped to educate but at the very least showcase a culture from a part of the world rarely talked about without making it exotic or focusing on trauma.
In the end, I believe I found myself & my purpose. I now see myself as a bridge between a technology forward society and a little known place, Bamenda. Shining a light on a culture not widely known through an exciting medium. I called it ‘nth culture’ because as much as my roots are there, the soil which has enabled me to grow is here. The response from the generative art / NFT communities was truly amazing and the project has since been featured in a Taschen Book. So I guess I’m the artist I thought I wasn’t ?
Wow, I really appreciate the timeline Fingacode! Thanks for sharing ❤️