This piece is a light paper for the Shame Shared web3 art project, it lays out the inspiration for the project and the three key areas of exploration: vulnerability, transformation, and accessibility to art participation. It also outlines how the project creates networked value; and finally, the process and how to get involved.
The project
Shame Shared is a space to share moments of NFT-related shame, projects that have failed, good bets gone bad, the times when you knew you shouldn’t get in, or knew you should have got out and didn’t. The moments that are locked away in the dark because they are not part of the compelling positive narrative of NFT profit.
Each shame documents a failed collection and something of its story, along with the emotion around it, the financial costs, and the cognitive bias at play. They are created as a 2 of 2 mint, with one held by the person sharing the shame, and the other offered to the market to hold the shame. 50% of the sale goes to the shame sharer.
Inspiration
Shame Shared was inspired by a conversation in a discord community about survivorship bias in NFTs, and the discomfort we feel at talking about the failures.
That ‘awkwardness’ resonated for me. It’s been bubbling under the surface in various ways since I got into web3: ‘I don’t know what I’m doing’, ‘I look stupid’, ‘I lost all this ‘real money’… on what??’, ‘I can’t tell my in-laws about this…’ etc. etc. I can feel it layering a background anxiety, and with it the emotional drivers to keep quiet and hidden.
This is shame. My shame so far has been minor, but it’s been there, for others I’m sure it has been crippling. IRL (‘in real life’ for those not versed in the jargon) you can read about it in a recent Guardian Article. I’m sure there is huge shame for many people caught up in the phishing attack on OpenSea.
Purpose
I see Shame Shared as a way to dissipate personal shame by expressing it; and to help develop social norms in web3 where we can be vulnerable and talk about things that don’t feel comfortable.
On vulnerability
Talking about my experience, with people who I trust not to judge me, has dissipated my (minor) shame. Some people are certainly talking on twitter about what’s happened to them, though it is rarely about how they feel about it.
and there are plenty more who I’m sure aren’t talking about it at all.