QQL

QQL is an experiment in collaborative generative art created by myself and Indigo Mané, where we invite collectors to take on one of the most important aspects of shaping a series and become curators. They are the ones who select the outputs to be minted as part of the official set of 999. Because of this, QQL is also an experiment in the practice of distributed, communal curation. While this has its own interesting implications, it also allowed Indigo and me to design the QQL algorithm with emergence in mind - those rare but incredible moments that happen with enough rolls of the algorithmic dice.

Creating Art

It was important to us that QQL be free for anyone to interact with and create art with. You can explore the algorithm and create your own QQL at qql.art/create. Optionally, you may connect an Ethereum wallet (e.g. Metamask) in order to save the images that you create.

The QQL interface allows you to loosely guide the aesthetic direction of the algorithm. Particular patterns, qualities, or color characteristics can be manually selected. However despite these manual selections, randomness will always play a big role in the output! Even with the same settings, a wide range of outcomes is possible.

Minting

Practically speaking, minting happens through the use of a QQL Mint Pass. 999 Mint Passes were originally created on September 19, 2021. Anyone who holds one may spend it in a transaction that results in the minting of a new, official QQL. Any output from the algorithm can be selected to become an official mint (although there are some restrictions around who "owns" that output - we'll get to that shortly). The Mint Passes never expire, and can be used at any time. As a result, new QQLs will continue to be minted over a long span of time - presumably decades or centuries.

Because this project unfolds over a long time span, QQL has a chronological, historical aspect to it. Even in the first two years of its existence, you can observe trends and changes in the types of outputs that are minted. Certain styles and types of outputs were common in early mints, only to fade in popularity. New techniques and tools for exploring the output space of QQL have allowed for certain extremely rare outputs to be discovered. And, the core community around QQL has created an artistic dialogue that has elevated the standards for what is considered a great output, as well as the reasons why one might be appreciated. We are fascinated to see how the QQL collective continues to evolve over time, as both tools and the aesthetic tastes of our co-creators continue to develop.

Seeds

An individual output from the QQL algorithm is often referred to as a "seed". It's a bit of technical jargon, but essentially, the reason is that a "seed" is a small piece of data that's fed into a random number generator before it's used. If a random number generator is setup with the same seed, it will always output the same sequence of "random" numbers. So, in the context of QQL, the same seed will always result in the same image being generated.

If you click on any QQL on the website, you'll can find the seed on the page it links to. For example, let's take a look at QQL #1. If you click on it, you'll go to a page with a URL like:

https://qql.art/token/0x33c9371d25ce44a408f8a6473fbad86bf81e1a178c012cd49a85ffff14c54b46

Everything that comes after "/token/" in the URL is the seed. The first half of the seed is actually just the address of the wallet of the person who created it (in this case, me: 1.tylerxhobbs.eth). By making the creator's address part of the seed, we guarantee that nobody can copy a seed that someone else found. It will forever be linked to the original creator. And, by default, that creator is the only one who has the power to mint it as an official QQL.

However, we decided to allow a few more options to make things interesting. The owner of the seed (always initially the creator) can transfer ownership to somebody else. The new owner then has the option to mint it.

In early 2023, we took this idea further and created the Seed Marketplace. Here, seed owners can list their seeds for sale, at whatever price they choose. However, there is one catch: seeds can only be bought if the buyer simultaneously mints that seed as an official QQL. This means that there's no speculation on seeds.

Since the Seed Marketplace was introduced, approximately half of the new QQL mints have come from seeds listed on the marketplace, while the other half have come from seeds that the creator discovered themself.

The Official Mints

To browse the set of official QQL mints, go to qql.art/mints. The interface there allows you to explore the mints in several ways. You can filter by particular traits, such as specific color palettes or patterns. You can also look at the occasion for minting, to see the set that were minted on Day 1, or those minted for the Year 1 Anniversary, and so on. You can also view the collection of a particular owner, or view all QQLs created by a particular parametric artist (the person who originally created/discovered the seed).

There are many mints in the official set that are amazing for different reasons. Many of these work as standalone pieces, but several of them are also sequentially minted to form diptychs and triptychs. For example, QQL #292, #293, and #294:

Community

A huge part of QQL and the way that it exists is the community. Here are some of the ways that the community interacts and shares artwork:

Discord

The most consistent community hub is the #qql channel on the Tyler Hobbs Discord server. Every day, folks show up to share the art they've generated recently, discuss seeds created by others, and collectively delve deeper into exploring the QQL algorithm with one another.

The discord server is also where the most up-to-date announcements are posted, feedback is solicited, and events are planned.

(If you haven't used it before, Discord is a modern chat application. It's pretty easy to use!)

Discourse

Not to be confused with Discord, the QQL Discourse is where we have started to gather writing about QQL, and to document how the project evolves over time. It's used to capture the details of some of the other community events here.

Seedbox

The Seedbox is a highly curated collection of seeds that have not yet been minted. Each seed in the Seedbox was individually selected and curated by the QQL Council (see below) and features a diverse set of aesthetics generated by a wide array of community members. If you're looking for good potential seeds to mint, this is an excellent place to start!

QQL Council

The QQL Council is a rotating set of community members who help guide the project and shape its trajectory over time. This group represents some of the most passionate members of the community, most of whom have generated absurd numbers of QQL seeds, engaged in meaningful conversations, and helped discover emergent traits.

QQL Monthly

This event is a monthly curatorial challenge. Each month, the community selects a target theme, goal, or constraint. Members of the community are then challenged to generated and submit QQLs that best satisfy the theme. Toward the end of the month, all submissions are presented, and all community members are encouraged to vote for their favorites. This voting process empowers community curation and determines the monthly top picks.

To participate, join the #qql-monthly channel on the Tyler Hobbs Discord server.

To see past winners, check out the Discourse channel #qql-monthly community-curated-seeds.

QQL Anniversary

We've only had the chance to do this once, but we plan to make it happen every year! Each September, we want to celebrate the anniversary of the launch of QQL. The best way to celebrate is with a live mint party, where we all have a moment to see and discuss some of the best mints of the year. In 2023, for the Year 1 Anniversary, we saw 36 new mints come through during the live mint party.

This celebration will generally take place on Discord, although there may also be some live celebrations added to the mix. If you'd like to participate, keep an eye on Discord and X announcements when September approaches.

Community Mints

For the Year 1 Anniversary, Indigo and I decided to used some of our vaulted Mint Passes to create a small, special collection of some of the best QQLs we had seen from the community. We wanted to capture a wide range of the algorithm, but we also wanted to show some of the most beautiful, immediately enjoyable outputs from the algorithm. After a long curation process, we selected these seven:

To embrace the communal nature of these works, we decided to make high-quality, open edition prints of the Community Mints available for anyone to purchase.

To order prints, visit the Community Mint print shop.

QQL: Analogs

In 2023, I exhibited a series of twelve carefully curated outputs from the QQL algorithm, executed as large-scale paintings on panel for a solo exhibition at Pace Gallery in New York. Created using a combination of traditional painting techniques and robotic tools, including a plotter adapted with mechanical customizations, these works reflect enactments of both chaos and order, foregrounding the vast possibilities of systematic approaches to art making.

Not only did the use of robotics unlock a level of precision and consistency that was key to realizing these works as paintings, but it also contributed the unique tell-tale aesthetic signs of mechanical involvement: details that are curious and foreign when compared to the brushwork we typically find in paintings that are executed by hand.

To see and read more, visit the QQL: Analogs interview.

Additional Resources

Explore: Browse the collection on qql.art

Collect: See what's available on OpenSea

Prints: Holders of QQL NFTs or Parametric Artists of minted works can order official prints from the studio.

We also offer open edition Community Prints, available to anyone!