{"id":18718,"date":"2023-05-17T23:43:50","date_gmt":"2023-05-17T23:43:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nftandcrypto-news.com\/art\/vincent-van-dough-talks-disrupting-galleries-and-the-power-of-pepe\/"},"modified":"2023-05-17T23:43:50","modified_gmt":"2023-05-17T23:43:50","slug":"vincent-van-dough-talks-disrupting-galleries-and-the-power-of-pepe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nftandcrypto-news.com\/art\/vincent-van-dough-talks-disrupting-galleries-and-the-power-of-pepe\/","title":{"rendered":"Vincent Van Dough Talks Disrupting Galleries and the Power of Pepe"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The pantheon of pseudonymous NFT collectors features no shortage of enigmatic characters, but few enjoy the crypto-native cult following of Vincent Van Dough<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Regarded as a major proponent of the digital art ecosystem, the 2023 NFT100 honoree is well known for his NFT spending sprees and eclectic projects, which now include the web3 gallery Art of This Millennium (AOTM), the Notable Pepes<\/a> series, TungstenDAO<\/a>, and more.<\/p>\n

While he has been active in crypto since 2013 and was among the original claimers of CryptoPunks, Van Dough\u2019s current alias dates back to 2021. In an interview that year, he claims to have spent over $20 million on NFTs.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s fitting that Van Dough\u2019s digital identity is more fluid than many of his contemporaries. There\u2019s no recognizable CryptoPunk to hang your hat on. It\u2019s an ever-shifting array of avatars that all somehow carry the same memetic energy, from a tuxedoed Pepe the Frog and Che-Yu Wu\u2019s<\/a> Sea Hams to the \u201cMoonbirds\u201d<\/a> he made to troll Kevin Rose<\/a>. You know it when you see it.<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"
Credit: La Vaun<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

As a collector, Van Dough can distill his thesis into a simple statement: \u201cCollect pieces of art that resonate.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBeyond just aesthetics, it is a combination of intuition and knowledge of internet culture, identifying promising artists, keeping a pulse on the contemporary art landscape, and always being on the lookout for art that has a fresh and unique perspective,\u201d he tells nft now. \u201cCollecting isn\u2019t a job for me; it is something that I genuinely derive meaning and fulfillment from.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
\n

\u201cCollect pieces of art that resonate.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vincent van dough<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n

While collecting may not be a job to him, others have sought to enlist his investment approach. In August 2021, Su Zhu and Kyle Davies, the founders of now-defunct crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital, tapped Van Dough to curate a $100 million NFT fund called Starry Night Capital. <\/p>\n

In the following months, Van Dough helped the fund amass an impressive collection of blue-chip NFTs, including projects like CryptoPunks, Deafbeef, and Autoglyphs, 1\/1 art by XCOPY, Alpha Centauri Kid, and Grant Yun, and notable Art Blocks pieces by Tyler Hobbs, Dmitri Cherniak, and Snowfro.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, Three Arrows Capital declared bankruptcy in July 2022 following the Terra Luna collapse, and Starry Night\u2019s collection is currently entangled in liquidation proceedings. In an October 2022 filing, consulting firm Teneo cited Van Dough\u2019s cooperation in helping them account for and take possession of Starry Night\u2019s assets.<\/p>\n

\u201cI bought a bunch of jpegs for them and curated the Starry Night Capital collection,\u201d Van Dough commented on Twitter<\/a>. \u201cThat is the extent of our affiliation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Given the experience, it\u2019s no surprise that Van Dough\u2019s next chapter would signal a new direction by prioritizing direct engagement with the artists he champions. <\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n