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A Guide to Creating and Collecting on Tezos

While Ethereum has no doubt been the most popular blockchain for creating, buying, and selling NFTs, a vibrant community of artists and collectors has been growing and flourishing on Tezos.

Wondering what Tezos is, what you’ve been missing out on, and how to get started? We’re here to help! Read on.

What is Tezos?

Tezos is another blockchain that can execute peer-to-peer transactions and deploy smart contracts, just like Ethereum! It runs on the currency commonly referred to as tez, but is otherwise listed on crypto exchanges via the official ticker symbol XTZ.

Why venture over to Tezos?

#1: Tezos is cheaper.

Tezos started gaining popularity as an alternative blockchain to Ethereum over the past 2 years, given that it was more environmentally friendly and cheaper to use. Despite Ethereum being greener now, Tezos still has much lower fees compared to the hefty gas fees seen on Ethereum.

#2: Tezos is viewed to be more artist and collector friendly.

While one can argue that Ethereum is climate-conscious after moving to Proof of Stake (PoS), Tezos has held on to its artist-friendly reputation. Because there is less trading volume around larger NFT projects on Tezos, there is also less speculation, resulting in a diehard community of artists and collectors who are truly there for the art.

#3: You gain exposure to a different group of artists and collectors.

We have learned that each blockchain has its own community and advocates. If you are not yet on Tezos, this could be your opportunity to find new audiences to connect with and monetize from.

#4: Exposure to a new blockchain serves in furthering your education about emerging technologies.

Web3 is still a nascent industry. By dabbling in and exploring different blockchains, you can learn more about the underlying technology and be at the forefront of how you can leverage it to further your creative business and practice.

How to get started on Tezos

Getting started on Tezos is no different from getting started on Ethereum. Here’s how:

Step 1: Purchase some XTZ

To start creating and collecting on Tezos, you’ll need some XTZ! You can easily acquire the XTZ token on your regular crypto exchange, such as Coinbase or Binance, or acquire it via credit card using providers like MoonPay.

Step 2: Transfer XTZ to your Tezos wallet

Got your XTZ? Great! You’ll now need to transfer it to a crypto wallet that enables you to buy and store your Tezos NFTs. While most people use MetaMask for Ethereum, you can choose between a few for Tezos. We recommend Temple or Kukai.

Step 3: Browse, mint, and purchase on Tezos marketplaces

Now that you have XTZ in your wallet, it’s time to explore the leading Tezos NFT marketplaces!

• Objkt: The largest NFT marketplace on Tezos, and the go-to option for most creators and collectors. Objkt is most comparable to OpenSea.

• Fxhash: While Objkt is a general purpose NFT marketplace, fxhash is made specifically for generative art and is more comparable to Art Blocks, a generative art marketplace on Ethereum.

• Teia: Considered a close second to Objkt, Teia is a newer Tezos marketplace launched in February 2022 that is open source, decentralized, and community-owned.

• Oneof: Oneof specializes in music and sports memorabilia, and was founded in partnership with record producer and musician Quincy Jones. Some of the projects launched on OneOf include NFT collections by the Notorious B.I.G. and Sports Illustrated x Muhammad Ali.

How to mint a collection on Tezos

Since Objkt is the most widely used marketplace on Tezos, here are the detailed instructions for minting your first collection there.

Good news — unlike OpenSea, you can mint and deploy on your own smart contract directly from Objkt.

To understand more about why owning your own smart contract is important, check out our past issue on creative sovereignty.

Notable artists on Tezos

Last week, we asked the community for Tezos artists worth following and collecting from! There were way too many to name, but here are 5 of our favorite women artists and their notable collections, in no particular order.

#1: Elena Lazutina (Twitter | Objkt)

We love Elena’s collection Color of Happiness, which features animated pieces of colorful buildings, and makes use of AI in post-processing.

#2: Melissa Wiederrecht (Twitter | Objkt)

Melissa is a generative artist that has worked across multiple collections and has also collaborated with abstract artist Amber Vittoria. We love her short-form collection here called Generative Flow.

#3: Ana María Caballero (Twitter | Objkt)

Ana María is an award-winning poet and artist who has taken her written word to the blockchain. In Poems by Ana María Caballero, you can find spoken word poems from her prize-winning book, MAMMAL.

#4: Michelle Thompson (Twitter | Objkt)

Michelle Thompson is a British illustrator and collage artist. Her collection Muted features stunning minimalist collage pieces.

#5: Goldcat (Twitter | Objkt)

Goldcat is a Germany-based digital painter with a background in fantasy illustration. She takes an intuitive painting approach and focuses on figurative pieces in emotional dialog with their surroundings. We love her stunning collection of 1/1s that feature bold emotive brushstrokes.

Inspired by Goldcat? Check out what she has to say about Tezos.

Closing Thoughts

While entering an entirely new ecosystem and interacting with a different blockchain can seem intimidating, it seems like many artists and collectors have found their home on Tezos.

Interested in learning more? Join us on Twitter Spaces on Thursday 1:30pm EST as we host Michelle Thompson, Christine Hall, and Wise (Community Manager of Objkt) to chat about Tezos, and all there is to love about it. Set your reminders!

In the News

Industry News

• In a hotly contested fight for market share with Blur, NFT marketplace OpenSea has opted to make creator royalties optional. Creators everywhere are outraged, and are continuing to advocate for change. We expect there to be continued developments in this area, so stay tuned.

• Rarible announced the aggregation of popular Tezos marketplaces on its platform, making it easier for Tezos buyers to see all available Tezos listings in one place.

• New YouTube CEO Neal Mohan hints at potential use cases for NFTs on the leading video streaming platform, making us even more bullish on the mainstream adoption of NFTs, as they start making their way to the largest Web2 platforms today.

Tools and Resources

• Want to discover ways you can serve your collectors better? Check out the latest from Shopify and their latest Web3 and NFT-friendly tools!

• What if your fans could become your editors and marketers - your very own Digital Street Team? Check out token-gated streaming platform the 402’s unique answer to this question with their latest launch called Petal Flower.

Notable Creators

• Danny Cole, the multidisciplinary artist and painter behind NFT project Creature World, debuted his Creature World Fashion Label during New York Fashion Week. Danny aims to bridge art with fashion through this collection.

• Renowned digital artist XCOPY minted his final artwork on his SuperRare collection, capping it off at 149 pieces.

• The Monty Report publishes an in-depth interview with Sotheby’s artist Des Lucréce - read it here. We covered Des’ work in last week’s issue on Burning NFTs.

• Notable vector artist Jeremy Booth launches a unique collaboration with Wrangler.

Artist Grants and Opportunities

• Have you applied for your HUG Artist Profile? Get your customizable, sharable profile to house all of your social links and collections, all while receiving meaningful reviews from adoring collectors.

• The Field offers unrestricted cash awards of $5,000 to artists who have children. Apply here by February 24th.

• NXTHVN welcomes artists and curators to participate in this paid 10-month intensive Fellowship Program. Each fellow will receive studio or office space, a stipend, subsidized housing, and professional development sessions led by visiting artists, curators, scholars, and practitioners. Applications are due February 27th.

• Post your best work to Creatively every week, let the community vote, and stand a chance to win a $5,000 cash grant each month.

This Week’s Art Drops - Tezos Edition!

• I Spy With My Little Eye… Something HOT PINK by Wildy x Luther (Limited Edition, from 2 tez) - follow Wildy on Twitter: Wildy Martinez collaborates with her 5 year old son on the collection I Spy With My Little Eye, which is inspired by his use of color and the happy energy coming off each of his brushstrokes. This collection reminds us to never lose sight of our wonder and whim.

• Lady Marina by Nubianizm (Limited Edition, 25 tez) - follow Nubianizm on Twitter: Part of Nubianizm’s Black Rennaissance collection, Lady Marina is a figure that is admired for her reserved beauty and honey eyes, and depicts beauty beyond looks.

• Signal by Lisa Mckenna (Limited Edition, 7 tez) - follow Lisa on Twitter: Part of Lisa’s Vacancies collection, Signal is a digital collage inspired by 1960s tourism postcards, combined with imagery from NASA.

• UH OH by Mr Purple (1/1, 15 tez) - follow Mr Purple on Twitter: UH OH features Mr Purple’s signature punk and skate style and is part of his Thrown Together collection that features one weirdo for every day of October.

• Malificent Blowing Bubble Gum by Deniz Izadi (Limited Edition, 16 tez) - follow Deniz on Twitter: Gif addict Deniz puts together a whimsical collection of bubblegum blowing characters. Malificent is one of them, alongside Ariel, Batman, and more.

• Smile by María Delgado (Limited Edition, 12 tez) - follow María on Twitter: Analog collage based off the 2023 official word prompt calendar of “Februllage”.

• Madam Rose by Oyi Sands (Limited Edition, 10 tez) - follow Oyi on Twitter: Part of Oyi’s Flow collection, which depicts lines acting on their own accord.

• Overthinking Skull by Darina aka Swarley Art (Limited Edition, 2 tez) - follow Darina on Twitter: Skull lover Darina brings to life fun and colorful animated pieces of skulls in her Playing With Skulls collection.