Mad from Art Blocks, a generative art platform, interviews generative artist-turned-donor Jeres, alongside Katie from Outright International, about their journey in supporting LGBTIQ causes.

Community is always looking for innovative ways to fundraise for the organizations they love. In the spirit of Pride, we're thrilled to showcase a powerful example of collaboration between donors and nonprofits working together for a successful digital fundraising campaign. Dive into the minds of an impact-minded donor and a nonprofit expanding their web3 presence. Get inspired by their methods and keep the love flowing this June by utilizing Endaoment to facilitate these donations.

The Conversation

To be able to create something that also changes the world in a very practical way simply by channeling resources only amplifies the impact of that art. - Jeres

Mad at Art Blocks: Jeres, how did you find out about digital art and Art Blocks?

Jeres: I discovered generative art in 2021 when a friend introduced me to Art Blocks. The concept immediately resonated with me. I was aware of digital and code based art, but the integration of long form generative art into the blockchain really made it click. I studied computer science and art history in college and had worked primarily as a software developer for the decades following, all while channeling my creative energy into music, photography, album art and other random tech experiments. Being able to combine coding and creative expression via generative art quickly became my passion and focus. Long term, my goal was to release a collection on Art Blocks, but first I wanted to experiment so I focused on open platforms to learn the craft and hopefully find my voice as an artist.

Finding Outright International happened along that journey. Just before submitting Torrent to Art Blocks, I released what may be my most vulnerable release to date, Glossolalia, on fxhash. This collection was an emotional piece for me because it represented the clash of my religious upbringing with my coming of age as a queer person. The compositions were abstractions of catharsis amidst repression as well as an embrace of diversity and expression. I wanted to donate a portion from that project to a cause related to the LGBTIQ community and Outright had just been added to fxhash’s list of supported organizations so it was a perfect fit and timing. From there, I became connected to Katie Hultquist from Outright and formed more of a relationship and our connection grew from there.

Mad at Art Blocks: Jeres, share a bit about your project, Torrent, and the charitable component you incorporated to Outright International.

Jeres: Torrent is my first collection on Art Blocks and conceptually explores the nature of truth, memory and experience. It’s an animated piece that re-contextualizes a static composition, playing with the notion that one version of truth or history may not match another. Also that with time one person’s version of truth, memory or experience may itself evolve. This could apply to lived moments or constructions of the past.

Simply, it’s about the fluidity of reality and how our understanding can change with time, data, empathy or some other affecting factor.

To be able to release Torrent with Art Blocks was an honor and a life changing moment for me. Art Blocks values and encourages donations by their artists with all projects and makes it really simple to include that into any collection. Having already been a supporter of Outright International, I was delighted to find that they had a relationship with Art Blocks and that it was so seamlessly connected via Endaoment.

Mad at Art Blocks: Why did you choose Outright and what about their mission speaks to you?

Jeres: I’m pansexual and have a fluid relationship with gender so Outright International was an organization that I could immediately connect with. I’m grateful for the LGBTIQ community that I have and for the many rights that have been won for folks where I live, even though some of those are under attack. Outright continues to push here in the US, but also puts so much work into bettering lives and establishing rights for queer folks around the world where it may be illegal to to merely exist or there is some other threat, violent or otherwise, simply because of who they are.

People should have the right to love and live in a way that is natural to them without fear or punishment. The fight may never end but pushing forward is all we can do and I’m honored that I can help Outright with that in any capacity.

To be able to create art and have part of that go to the betterment of people’s lives delights me. I hope collectors feel that when they buy art that gives back as well. Whenever I collect on Art Blocks, I’m always excited to see where the artist has chosen to give. Sometimes it’s building schools or donating to research but it could be any number of causes. It’s inspiring to see how many areas have been touched by the art on Art Blocks.

Mad at Art Blocks: What advice do you have for other artists wanting to give to nonprofits through their art?

Jeres: Art is meant to change the world. It’s not meant to be passive. It’s meant to have an impact on some emotional, intellectual, political or spiritual level. To be able to create something that also changes the world in a very practical way simply by channeling resources only amplifies the impact of that art.

Sometimes it is impossible for artists to give because they have to make ends meet, and that’s fine, but when there is an opportunity to share it can be enormously rewarding to do so. Just knowing that somehow, somewhere, someone might have a better life because Outright was able to fight for them, makes each piece in the collection a little more special to me.

Ultimately, just do what you can. I think that applies to any sort of giving. We all know what we can or can’t do. Find something that you care about or think about something that you take for granted that others don’t have. The more you are personally invested in where you decide to donate only makes it more meaningful.

Katie, Outright International: How did Art Blocks decide to incorporate charitable giving into the community process? How do you encourage artists to give to orgs like ours, or support the ones that want to but don’t know where to donate?

Mad, Art Blocks: Charitable giving has been part of our ecosystem since the beginning. When the platform started, the tremendous influx of money felt overwhelming, so channeling funds toward charity helped bring a sense of responsibility and purpose. Encouraging donations helps maintain our community's integrity, and facilitating charitable giving has been integrated into the Art Blocks platform. In the creator dashboard, artists can directly link a charity's wallet, ensuring funds go directly to their chosen organization as mints are purchased. We provide resources and guidance, including a list of crypto-friendly charities and instructions on how to donate through platforms like Endaoment.org.

We encourage artists to give back to causes that personally resonate with them, and we’ve seen donations go to a range of organizations from human rights organizations like Outright to environmental initiatives like The Ocean Cleanup to open-source coding libraries like Processing Foundation. We offer personalized support through our community channels and by hosting educational events where artists and nonprofits share their experiences, further inspiring charitable contributions.

Even though the NFT market has shifted over the past few years, a culture of giving has remained, and our community has donated more than $45 million to various causes. This remarkable impact demonstrates the incredible potential for positive change within the generative art and blockchain space.

Mad: Katie, you and the Outright International team have taken a deep dive into web3. Can you share a bit about your experience working with crypto donors and NFT artists and any advice you have for other nonprofits looking to dip their toe in?

Katie from Outright International: Outright International was founded in 1990 to protect and advance the human rights of lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer people around the world, especially in places where our communities face extreme persecution, discrimination, and where our movement is under-resourced. Our longterm vision is to radically accelerate social and legal change to improve the lives of LGBTIQ people everywhere.

To achieve this vision, we need more allies across the globe to invest in this work. So in 2021, we began to explore how to work with current supporters who wanted to do charitable giving through crypto and how we could invite others in the web3 space to join us. We quickly identified Robbie, Zach, and the team at Endaoment as kindred spirits who shared our optimism and wanted to help us connect with artists, founders, collectors, and other donors who are interested in social impact and supporting the LGBTIQ community. Endaoment made it easy for us to understand the web3 space, tell our story, and build relationships with people, companies, and communities that share our values and want to help.

Over the past 2.5 years we’ve received tens of thousands of dollars of new funding from platforms like Art Blocks and artists like Jeres. I think what is so special about this partnership is Art Blocks’ own commitment and encouraging/empowering artists to give back since its inception, and developing a true friendship with Jeres, who is both an incredibly talented artist and a kind and generous person. We are incredibly grateful to them and to everyone who has supported Outright through Endaoment and other web3 platforms.

What we’ve learned as a nonprofit in the web3 space is that it’s critical to spend time building relationships with partners whose vision and values are aligned with your mission and to show a genuine interest in finding areas for mutual collaboration and support. I think it’s important to stay present even in the slow or tough times and to be consistent about your messaging and what you can do and offer. Finally, both nonprofits and our partners should nurture and celebrate each other’s successes - lifting each other up will ultimately help all of us.

What’s been most rewarding about our experience in web3 so far is developing warm, strong, and mutually beneficial relationships with our partners and witnessing the impact of their contributions. Two great examples of this impact are our LBQ Connect program, which supports the work of LBQ activists in the Global South and East, and our Ukraine LGBTIQ Emergency Fund, which has distributed over $3.5M to local partners supporting queer people suffering because of the war. Both of these initiatives were significantly fueled by donations from web3 supporters. I am excited to see how we can continue creating innovative new collaborations with Endaoment and with other artists, communities, and donors in the web3 space to improve the lives of LGBTIQ people around the world.

CTAs/How You Can Help:

• Join our Outright Proud “Family Pride” campaign this Pride month to celebrate the diversity of queer and chosen families worldwide.

• Follow @OutrightIntl on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube and share our work.

• Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date.

• Donate to Outright through Endaoment, platforms like Art Blocks or fxhash that encourage and enable artists to give to causes they care about, or here.

• My DMs and email (khultquist@outrightinternational.org) are always open for conversations about future collaborations and partnership.

• Step up in your own community as an ally. Hold your elected officials accountable and support your local orgs and mutual aid efforts to help queer people.

• Pay attention to what’s going on across borders and sound the alarm about human rights violations as well as progress. Get involved with and follow Outright and other global organizations.

• Check on your queer friends who may be under attack right now. Let them know you love and support them and that you will fight for them.