My Work

My technique did not become viable until the advent of NFT’s. I design contemporary, artistic cryptograms featuring a traditional, text based substitution cipher presented to the viewer through a vertically displayed but horizontally read character set. The challenge for the Trithemian Web™ owner is to decipher the piece, revealing the body text (message), the designated title, and, if included, other revelations.  The message, title, and other inclusions are exclusive to that particular piece. The owner can share that information if they so desire.

Super Rare?

What do I envision as Super Rare? Beeple for instance. His ‘Everyday’s: the First 5000 Days’ sold for $69 million. I don’t believe it was the 5,000 digital images that inspired the sale. It was his dedication to produce an image a day for 5,000 days; a stroke of genius. He is the first and only person to achieve such an endeavor. That makes ‘Everyday’s Super Rare and extremely valuable. On a side note, Mike Winkelmann (Beeple) and I are from the Charleston area, home to the Spoleto USA.

Another example would be ‘Black Circle’, a 1924 oil on canvas painting by the Kiev-born Russian artist Kazimir Malevich sold on the secondary market for $85 million. Others have painted black circles on canvas, but they are secondary to the originator. There are many other examples of Super Rare in the art world – innovators who have long passed but whose work survived. Consider Salvador Dalí, Claude Monet, Rembrandt, Leonardo da Vinci and Picasso. Each was an innovator, a master of his craft.

I don’t believe an artist has to be dead for their work to be considered Super Rare. Beeple for example. He’s only 40. He has developed quite a social media following since starting his design career. What if he had not developed that large following but still produced ‘Everyday’s? Would it have sold for $69 million? That we will never know. Would the piece have still been considered Super Rare? I believe so. He still would have been the first and only person to undertake such a task.

I have developed a linear graphic character set along with a methodology to present a text based cryptogram that is solely unique. In addition, I incorporate another procedure that sets my work apart. See Black Magic. These distinctive elements define my work. Super Rare? That’s for a collector to decide. Each Trithemian Web™ holds a personal message – a form of immortality. My goal is to design uniquely identifiable pieces that will help them survive through generations. My messages will be perpetuated in a most unusual format.

Exclusivity Precautions – NFT’s

Some of my pieces (ones featuring a black question marked red spider) contain a design element or elements that can only be activated using the original, digital file. Many designers upload their originals to a marketplace, depending on the file size. Due to the nature of my design elements, a person who copies a marketplace image could decipher it if the critical design elements were included. They are not. Leaving them out does not alter the look of the image, but the copy cannot be deciphered. Upon purchase, the exchange will deliver the original, digital file along with its accompanying documentation.

In Conclusion

My goal, when I was a younger man, was to design pieces that could be purchased by the masses. My graphic design work was more focused on the art side of the gift market. Please read my History for a detailed sequence of events. In my remaining years I’ve decided to focus on designing and producing Trithemian Web™ cryptograms for the serious, sophisticated collector.