Case Study / Tezos x SXSW 2022
Tezos
Exploring how culture is reimagined in Web3.
At SXSW in downtown Austin, we created a physical hub called Block/Space where festival-goers could experience a showcase of blockchain innovations, learn from Tezos makers, and spark new professional connections in the rapidly evolving space.
Overview
We collaborated with Tezos on an interactive brand activation at one of the world’s most bustling intersections of creativity and technology at SXSW in Austin, TX, where blockchain enthusiasts and passionate creators could mingle and get inspired by the future of Web3.
Coming straight off the heels of Tezos’ explosive growth at Art Basel, our team prepared to continue the trajectory of brand awareness in Austin. For this initiative, I led the creative team in building upon the existing experience principles we established at Art Basel, bringing a fresh conceptual lens to a new creative problem: how to engage an entirely new audience of tech enthusiasts and creators already familiar with Web3 and looking for cultural inspiration.
Partnering closely with Tezos, we curated a physical hub called Block/Space that featured a blockchain innovation showcase with brands building in Web3—spanning the worlds of gaming, spatial computing, XR, digital wearables, interactive fandom, and next-era design. Each brand experience was housed in a bespoke, experiential “garage,” calling back to an era of experimentation and conjuring a vibe of casual collaboration and conversation.
I managed a large, cross-discipline team of physical designers, digital experience designers, brand designers, copywriters, technologists, motion designers, and production artists, and worked in tight partnership with Web3 start-ups and creators to design customized, co-branded experiences in each garage. As the creative leader, I held the vision and oversaw the execution for the overall experience, guiding both the internal team and the client through conceptual and tactical creative decisions from ideation through production, and partnered with strategic communications to illuminate the activation across public channels.
The opportunity
Since Tezos has always been a thriving community of creators, but without the attributes of ‘crypto-flash,’ we knew it could genuinely excite audiences at SXSW in Austin. Our strategy underscored the fundamental truth that Tezos is the place where creativity and culture happen. It’s experimental, highly organic, creatively growing, and populated by true believers, Web3 enthusiasts, and tinkerers of all stripes. With this, we saw the perfect analogy—a return to the tech ‘garage.’
The idea
We created a hub called Block/Space, an interactive showcase and speaker series exploring how culture is being reimagined in Web3. Block/Space featured four bespoke, interactive garages showcasing emerging technologies, digital wearables, interactive fandom, and next-era designs, all built on the Tezos blockchain. Through a mobile dApp experience, visitors could easily set up a Tezos wallet and collect SXSW-exclusive NFTs from each room, providing a host of next-gen swag only available on site.
Upon entering, visitors could step inside a camera array built by BlueVishnu, transforming them into a 3D avatar that they could own as an NFT—showcasing the potential of digital identity integrations into gaming, fashion, social media, and virtual reality. Next, visitors could explore a storefront for digital wearables by Flex, a footwear NFT marketplace, where they could browse, try-on with AR, and purchase wearables in-store—marking a new transformation for the fashion industry and retail in the metaverse. Visitors could also explore new dimensions of fandom inside the InterPop Comics garage, giving NFT holders the ability to shape and interact with their favorite stories through the power of digital ownership. The final garage invited visitors into an immersive color experience by Pantone, showcasing collectible NFT artworks by Polygon1993 to celebrate Very Peri, Pantone’s Color of the Year 2022.
Throughout the weekend, Tezos hosted a daily speaker series at Block/Space, streaming 15 talks online to a global audience and covering topics on the intersection of Web3, blockchain technology, art and culture. At the height of the activation, we hosted a curated, private launch party for Block/Space presented by Tezos, inviting industry professionals, media, influencers, and SXSW attendees to engage and take a peek at Block/Space after-hours.
Garage 1 – BlueVishnu
NFT Yourself into the metaverse. With BlueVishnu’s camera array, visitors could be transformed into a 3D avatar that they could own as an NFT—showcasing a new dimension of digital identity with massive potential for integration into gaming, fashion, social media, and virtual reality.
Garage 2 – Flex
Flexing the digital wearables. Flex is a footwear NFT marketplace built on Tezos, which is helping to bring the retail experience out of the store and into the metaverse. Here, visitors could try shoes on virtually and buy them as NFTs, marking a new transformation for the fashion industry and flexing your digital wearables.
Garage 3 – Interpop
Taking fandom to a new dimension. With Interpop, fans can geek out over reading, collecting, selling or trading comic books, just like they would in a physical store—except with a layer of interaction and ownership of NFTs. This unlocks the ability to help shape the story, giving NFT owners a say in everything from character costumes to major plotlines. Visitors could explore this comic book “store” to experience a brand new world of fandom.
Garage 4 – Pantone
Next-era art & design. Visitors could experience Pantone’s Color of the Year 2022, Very Peri, and collect NFTs from digital artist Polygon1993. Inspired by the merging of our physical and digital lives, Very Peri celebrates “courageous creativity, an altered landscape of possibilities,” so we gave visitors a space to be immersed in color, artwork, and playful digital experiences.
The result
The activation was a great success, resulting in the on-site creation of 978 Kukai wallets and the minting and distribution of 3,017 NFTs over the course of 3 days. We earned 980M media impressions, a 135% increase from Art Basel Miami, and were featured in 135+ total articles, including CNBC, FOX Business, Forbes, Fortune, and more.
Project credits and info
My role: Group Creative Director
Collaborators: Jorge Castaño, Lindsay Cliett, Allison Henry, Emily Koh, Laura Lyman, Giancarlo Orsi, Jason Schlossberg, Ben Smyth, Scott Fogel, Stijn Jansen
Agency: Huge
Client: Tezos
Experiential Marketing, Interaction Design, Brand Activation, Physical Event Design, Thought Leadership, Blockchain, Metaverse, XR, Web3
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