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Beyond the Screen showcases an impressive array of artworks, including pioneering examples such as a video DVD by Bruce Nauman (1999) and a video installation by Jennifer Steinkamp (2005). The auction also highlights artists who have gained prominence in the Web3 space, with pieces like a unique print by Alpha Centauri Kid (2023), a gemstone necklace from a Tiffany & Co. and CryptoPunk collaboration (2022), an algorithmic pen plotter work by Tyler Hobbs (2016), and a Bitcoin Hologram sculpture by Sarah Meyohas (2024). This auction offers a unique opportunity for collectors to explore and acquire high-quality digital art at accessible price points.

In this interview, Sebastian Sanchez, Manager of Digital Art Sales, spoke with two artists contributing to the Beyond the Screen auction: Sarah Meyohas and Other World. Sarah Meyohas, a conceptual artist and pioneer in crypto art, delves into the intersection of digital and physical art through her innovative use of emerging technologies. Other World, a digital artist and PhD student in Biomedical Engineering, blends digital collage and illustration to create compelling narratives that challenge traditional artistic boundaries.

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Join us as we explore their creative processes, inspirations, and the unique ways they work between digital and physical art.

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Sebastian Sanchez: We are so excited to have you participate in Beyond the Screen. Our goal is to contextualize Digital Art within the wider Contemporary Art landscape, encouraging collectors to experience digital art “beyond their screens.” Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork you contributed to Beyond the Screen?

Sarah Meyohas: The Bitcoin Holograms are a series of 9 Denisyuk, glass plate holograms depicting a physical Bitcoin within a network, each paired with a corresponding Ordinal inscribed onto the 9th block of the Bitcoin blockchain, notably mined by Satoshi Nakamoto and the first block to have a spent coinbase. The holograms were created by setting up a physical scene with a 3D-printed Bitcoin, then exposing a glass plate to laser light, recording the resulting interference pattern. I felt that holography which is both hyper physical and completely virtual was a perfect way to embody Bitcoin.

Other World: The artwork I created, “Ghosts We Can See”, is my first ever physical-only artwork for auction. My art has naturally grown towards being more chaotic and abstract, which can be seen especially with this piece. To emphasize this, and create a truly irreplaceable 1/1 artwork, I have hand painted over the fire and the bones to add a more personal touch. Those two things, fire and bones, are key parts to the story of destruction and renewal depicted in the piece.

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SS: What drew you to participating in Beyond the Screen?

SM: I was particularly interested in its egalitarian approach to digital art. The selection of works included spans both digital art native to various blockchains, as well as more traditional artists engaging digital media outside of blockchain technology. Artists from both spheres have been working with technology to make art for years, and it makes sense to consider them as part of the same canon.

OW: I have always wanted to create and sell a physical-only piece. However, I wanted it to be special, and this auction was the perfect fit for this.

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SS: Do you primarily work in digital or physical mediums when creating artworks and does your creative process differ when working on digital pieces compared to physical ones? If so, how?

SM: They feel largely the same to me, as I see most mediums as technology to begin with. For example, analog holography dates back to the 1940s and was a revolutionary precursor to more contemporary technologies like virtual reality. It is a technology that does not plug in: it is a piece of glass coated with an emulsion of silver halide particles, which, when illuminated at the correct angle, recreate a light wave. With any artwork, I am considering a given technology and how I can push it towards more creative or poetic ends.

OW: I primarily have been working with digital mediums over the last 4 years since my career has taken off. Before this, I have mainly worked in physical mediums. It is important to remind myself, and my supporters, that I am an artist who is capable of creating art across different mediums. This piece was a combination of the digital and physical creative processes, where I created the work digitally, based off of physical classical artworks, and then completed the piece in the physical realm with printing it and hand embellishing important details. The main difference I experience in the physical aspect of it is the unforgiving nature of physical creation. Changing, or deleting, a mistake in physical art is not as easy as it is in digital, which is just a click of a button. This intrinsically makes the artist approach the creation of the work in a different way.

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SS: Do you experiment with new technologies in your art practice and do you have any particular techniques, materials or concepts that you consistently use?

SM: Constantly — I’ve worked with holography, artificial intelligence, virtual and augmented reality, blockchain technology, plotters and so on.

OW: Experimentation is key to my works. I heavily rely on digital collage and continue to advance this approach in my works. I am always trying new things and can’t wait to reveal these as I discover them throughout my career.

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SS: How do you decide which artworks will be physical or digital?

SM: The medium comes first, and then I consider interesting or creative ways to engage with it, so the medium typically dictates how it will exist in the world. Every medium presents a unique way for me to find expression. I can start to see that digital works and physical works both bear my “imprint” on them.

OW: It is hard to pin point what should be physical and what should be digital. The main reason for this piece is that I really wanted to ground the artwork in the physical world and give it physical texture through the hand-embellished details. I wanted to exaggerate the fire and the bones, and because of this, I decided to create it as a physical artwork.

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SS: How do you think the physicality of your work changes the viewer's experience compared to solely digital art? Have you noticed any differences in the audience's reception or interpretation of your work when it is presented in a physical medium?

SM: The holograms are such a physical experience that it is impossible to accurately document and translate them online. In this case, the specific context of the Bitcoin blockchain, being able to inscribe them onto specific satoshis, made sense for the work for symbolic reasons, and created a different online experience for them.

OW: The difference when viewing a physical to a digital is immense. One is not better than the other, and both have a purpose, but most viewers are used to consuming art as physicals. The experience of viewing art on screens is still a relatively new way of taking in art.

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SS: Are you currently exploring any new mediums or techniques for upcoming work?

SM: I am developing a series of pastel drawings made with a custom 6’ x 6’ plotter. Drawing is arguably the oldest visual technology, yet I get to approach it from a new perspective. Plotters are typically used with pen or marker due to their machine precision, while pastels are soft and messier. It’s a fun problem to work through.

OW: Yes, I am working on a physical + digital artwork that will be brought to life as the largest artwork that I have ever completed. I am excited to share it once it is finished.

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SS: What would you like to see more of for digitally native art being presented in physical spaces?

SM: More varied and better quality display systems! We stare at screens all day, so it would be nice to experience digital art a bit differently.

OW: Thoughtfully curated physical exhibitions and being exhibited alongside “traditional” artists. For digital artists to be showcased as artists in every sense of the word, without being put in a box. Also, if the work is being presented on screens, for both the artist and the curators to work together in ensuring that the digital file is specifically optimized for the chosen screen.

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