Derech - Artist

Ever been captivated by the intersection of art, photography, and crypto? Here's your chance to journey with us as we unravel this fascinating world with our guest, Derech. A cross-chain artist renowned for his dynamic compositions and storytelling prowess, Derech pulls back the curtain on his enchanting Tokyo experience and the evolution of his unique artistry in the online space.

Take a plunge into Derech's transformative art journey, a narrative deeply shaped by his autism and the loss of his father. His resourcefulness, creative process, and unique approach to art and photography have won him a significant following on Instagram, and he shares valuable insights on how to navigate this space. Derech also demystifies the intriguing world of NFTs, offering invaluable advice to budding artists hoping to make their mark. Fasten your seat belt as he shares his travel tales during the COVID-19 pandemic and the unexpected circumstances that led him to settle in Japan.

Love and support often serve as the bedrock for an artist's journey, and Derech's story is no exception. Recalling a whirlwind romance that bloomed from an encounter on Tinder, he shares how this love story has paralleled his own artistic journey and played a pivotal role during the pandemic. As we wrap up, Derech shares his thoughts on the art market and his success stories, revealing how positivity and community support have been key to his journey. He also reflects on his passion for the North Calgary Shield, a podcast he hosts. Grab a cup of your favorite brew and join us for this riveting exploration of art, creativity, and everything in between.

Transcript

NorCal Guy: 0:30

What the sh-. What the sh hey, everyone, welcome to this next episode of Noor Cal and Shil. Today we have Derek. Derek is a multidisciplinary, cross-chain artist who has experimented with image making and storytelling. By combining street photography and cinematography With the use of visual cues, he aims to evoke a similar sensation to that of a movie experience by slowing down the pace of time and exploring the candidness of daily life scenes. He extends the gesture of fleeting moments that normally would pass inadvertently and weaves three different perspectives that end up creating a short movie. He meticulously uses dynamic compositions, color theory and a cinematic visual language that, summed together, become his signature style.

NorCal Guy: 1:28

In this episode, we delve into the world of art, creativity and everything in between. Derek is a talented photographer and artist. Takes us on a journey through his life, from his experience in Tokyo to his exploration of online art. We'll hear about the support Derek received in Japan, his unique photography style that developed and how he turned his passion into a business opportunity. Join us as we dive deep into the world of photography, artistic experimentation and the challenges of the art world. It's a captivating episode you won't want to miss, so grab your headphones and let's get started. Everybody, please welcome Derek. Hey, derek, welcome to the podcast. How are you doing today?

Derech: 2:18

Hey Norco, how are you doing Nice to see you.

NorCal Guy: 2:21

It's good to see you too. You know, it's funny because we kind of ran into each other in New York. I don't know if I really knew you before then, but we started talking, or maybe I did know you through a Discord or something random, I don't remember. We started talking and I love your photography or your cinematic motion. Here we are, we're on a podcast now, finally. I think that's the beauty of what's for you right.

Derech: 3:03

Everybody knows everybody At some point. At some, just like truly random point, you end up meeting people when you least expect it, because I even remember when we met and then NFT and YC finished and everything passed, and then you're like, oh yeah, we met in NFT and YC and I was like, wait, oh shit, we did. You know, it's like so much people, it's so much everything that it's just like for some sort of an independent reason, you end up meeting all the people that you wanted to.

NorCal Guy: 3:44

Right, well, it was very random because we were leaving the punk breakfast and we were walking to Comstomp. I think it was. Was it Comstomp Studios? Yeah, the photography.

Derech: 3:58

We were walking towards the coffee shop. I think it was a photography reunion, okay.

NorCal Guy: 4:04

Were we?

Derech: 4:06

I think it was, so there's a coffee shop on top and I think there was an exhibition underneath.

NorCal Guy: 4:09

Yeah, so it was just kind of random because it was just like, all right, yeah, we're going to go over there. And then you were part of that group. There's just like I didn't know everyone in that the like small group of like six people and it was just like, oh hey, what's going on?

Derech: 4:25

I think we were. It was you, Clutch, Sam was there and I NFT stats, I think.

NorCal Guy: 4:34

Oh, was he I? Maybe I don't know, I'm not like. All I remember was I remember from who was in that group was me Clutch and you. I'm like I'm blinking on who else was there, but it was just yeah. It was fun times it was good and we connected because you had your camera, I had mine. We were talking about our cameras, as always, yeah.

Derech: 4:58

As the photographer is always there.

NorCal Guy: 5:01

Right, right, so jumping into it. Do you have and use a hardware wallet.

Derech: 5:08

Yeah, of course, of course, yeah. So actually, when, when I got started in crypto, my best friend, he's, he's OG, like he. He even has a tweet about how Bitcoin was performing so well that it was above two cents.

NorCal Guy: 5:32

Oh, wow.

Derech: 5:32

Yeah, yeah, like that degree. Unfortunately, he got hacked with the whole mount box thing. Oh yeah, and he got a very bitter taste about crypto, because I never asked him how much he had, but I mean, if it was like two cents, he probably had a pretty decent amount, right? So he, he had this bitter taste. And then when I told him that I wanted to get in which was during the bull run in 2021, he told me like yeah, I'll help you, I'll set up everything, but the first thing that you're getting is a hardware wallet Like there's. There's no way I'm letting you in without one. And I was like okay, and I remember like clearly the first month it was just like this is a pain in the ass to use. I hate it. But he did make a lot of emphasis on just just use it, like you'll understand later on why it's so important, but just use it.

NorCal Guy: 6:35

Nice. Well, that's good. That's good, you had someone to help and guide you with proper security.

Derech: 6:42

It's cause it's so scary. I remember the first times I was doing like when I transferred crypto, when I would do like any movement, I was just like what if I fuck up with one letter, what if I do this, what if I do that? And yeah, obviously, little by little you start to lose that. But but the first time said which is like, and I remember the last scare I had was with Bitcoin, because I had never bought Bitcoin before. Oh yeah, and it, like the wallets and everything are very different from Ethereum. So I remember that I bought it and I was transferring to my hardware wallet, but I didn't know that the wallets on Bitcoin are pre. How are they called? Pre none? Someone told me the exact name, but the point is that the wallet changes. It's not always the same address. Not pretty deterministic, something like that I mean.

NorCal Guy: 7:50

I. I guess it depends on how you use it. You can use the same address, but most a lot of bit corners try to always like move funds to a new address with every transaction.

Derech: 8:03

Yeah, exactly. So I made my just for security. I made my first small transfer there and once it was cleared I was going to send the second transfer, which was bigger, and suddenly it realized like wait, wait, wait, why is my wallet different here? Like did I lose everything on the last one? But yeah, like then I understood all that, but yeah, yeah, nice.

NorCal Guy: 8:27

So what were your first thoughts when you heard about this digital art on chain?

Derech: 8:34

I actually loved it because I was very used to Instagram. So I was used to social media posting, interacting with followers. A lot of my gigs came from Instagram. So technically I was used to monetize what I created. But it was never so direct, like I would take photos and posts and whatever and people would hire me to make their work, right, right.

Derech: 9:07

So then when all this started I was just like, wait, this sounds like Creator's Heaven, where like, literally, I can do whatever I want and people, if they love it, they'll just buy it. You know like it's really nice, because I always wanted to do exhibitions, and you know like be a proper artist. But the traditional world is really tough and especially, I think, for photography, it's even harder because there's like so many photographers out there. So when I got in I was just like, oh, this is really nice. And again I got in at Peak Bowl Run so I was seeing so many people selling like crazy and for crazy amounts and everything that doesn't mean that I sold anything, because unfortunately I didn't.

Derech: 10:03

But right, right, but it was nice Like I remember that actually my first piece was sold to Andrew Jiang from Curated.

Derech: 10:16

Okay, yeah, I was just like, wow, this is, this is amazing. Like I think I sold for one E and I mean for my very first sale. That was a lot, yeah. And then the crash came and I lost basically nearly everything. That was just like my first lesson and I remember calling my collectors and like, what the fuck is this? I just lost 50% or more of what I had saved and stuff. And everybody was like, yeah, just get used to it, that's crypto.

NorCal Guy: 10:51

That's crypto, true, true. So why did you choose photography or art? What brought you to it?

Derech: 11:00

So I've been in art all my life. A lot of people don't realize it, but I'm autistic. So there are many things or many situations in which it's very tough for me to express myself and art always helped me, especially linguistically. It's now I'm okay, but I've trained myself over and over and over to be able to. But art always allowed me to bring out this side that's very deep, that I can't explain with words, that I'm a very abstract person and I love this, this capability of being able to show emotions, to show thoughts, to show experiences through color, through textures, through. You know, like, as photographers, like we love all those details and I think that once you understand the deeper meaning of different visual elements and how you can twist them to create a language where you can convey sadness, or you can convey love, or you can you know, once you achieve that moment, you can start making something that's more meaningful than just taking a picture. So for me, like, the biggest click was after my father passed away. I was in a very dark moment and, unfortunately, I was about to commit suicide, and in that moment I started to see a lot of photos in my head, okay, and it was just like like a movie, like I would just see a flashback of images, images, images, images, images. And I think that moment clicked for me how important images are for us and how we take photos in our head, because memories are basically photos that we have stored and they're really short. It's not even like we remember a lot of that moment, it's just like maybe you remember, just like one photo of your 10th birthday. You know, it's not like you'll remember one minute of exactly that situation. That happened.

Derech: 13:48

Fortunately, I overcame all that. My best friend came and gave me a camera and he was like you need to get out of this house. You're in a really dark spot, you don't. You don't need to do that. So he gave me the camera and the whole point of that was when you put the camera in front of you, it's like if you had a force and you start to steer it into direction that you want. The camera did that for me, like it was like for me, everything was really gray and dull and when I put the camera in front, I was like I don't want to shoot that gray and dull world, you know. So I started to focus in the beauty and the hope and the things that I that made me feel alive. And little by little, I started to get deeper and deeper into photography and I started to meet more people. I started to shoot documentaries, chase stories, just like look for things that felt alive. And and that's how I got started into it.

NorCal Guy: 15:01

Nice, nice. So what? What jobs did you have like in high school and and before you became a professional?

Derech: 15:11

Dude, I did everything. I think that's like the thing about Mexicans like we are used to whatever we have to do, we'll do it. So I did anything you so one of the jobs because I had. I wanted to be in college but I couldn't afford it. I had to pay, like my tuition plus the expenses at home, plus everything, right. So suddenly, because I liked photography, I realized like, oh shit, like photography department asks you for all the film gear. And because the college that I used to go to was kind of fancy, everybody had the issue where they had to go downtown and find a phone, and find a camera and find the film and find everything.

Derech: 16:07

And it was just like, wait, this is a very good opportunity to make money here. So I would wake up at four AM, go downtown, meet all these people, buy film cameras, buy film, buy the paper, everything just source all the materials, go back to the go to school. Well, go to college, sell everything to all these people and then start my classes. Or during my classes, I would be taking orders on my phone and then delivering. So I would be taking classes, suddenly someone would knock on the door and I'd be like, oh sorry, just go and deliver it and go back to studying.

Derech: 16:49

And that's actually how a lot of my love for photography and like weird lenses started to be born. Because it was this limitation of okay, I cannot afford to buy a digital lens because they're really expensive. So I used to have a Nikon D3200, which, if anybody knows, it's like the lowest of the lowest line that you can get for a digital Nikon, but it has this very interesting work where they have kept the mounts all the way from vintage lenses or like their film camera lines up to today. So I was just like, oh, this is really interesting because that means that I can use a film lens on a digital body. And back when I was doing that, like film wasn't a thing, film was just, like, you know, junk.

Derech: 17:45

So when I was buying all the cameras for the people in my college, I was like, wait, what did I do? Because the people who would tell me the cameras they'd just be like, oh yeah, I have this camera with this lens you take. And suddenly I realized that the camera came with like a 50 millimeter 1.2 lens or like very interesting lenses that if you wanted to have it on a digital version, it would be super expensive. So I'd start to like test those lenses on the digital camera. And it goes back to the conversation that we having before recording that there was so much character there was like this thing that it was just like, wow, it looks very different from anything I've seen. And I started shooting that way. And that's when I got into Instagram and suddenly people were like, wait, what the fuck is this Like? I've never seen this effect before.

Derech: 18:46

And it started to make noise Right that makes sense.

NorCal Guy: 18:48

That's awesome. I love that. It's very, it's very, man. What's the word Mexican? No, it's very. The work ethic, man, that's just awesome that you like put in the time and you're like, hey, this is awesome. I see some, you know a need, I'm gonna go out and and supply these people with the need and hustle, hustle that. There it is, that's definitely it. Oh man, so if you were an animal, what would you be and why? Oh, that's what.

Derech: 19:36

I think I love egos Because they can fly as high as they want and they don't have any issues with the height. They have very good vision. They can fly very long distances. They're also very lonely at times. They're sharp, which is something that I love. I actually have tattoos all over my arm of different animals that I admire I have a tiger, a crane, snakes, koi, fishes Because I think that that that a lot of the traits that I love to see in humans like kind of resemble animals. So Sometimes it's more like how can you act more instinctively? And more trust, basically trusting your gut, which is something that I think a lot of people are not used to anymore, because we tend to overthink our reactions Definitely, and I don't know like I see a lot of Maybe it's crazy, but I see it a lot in crypto how people really trust their guts and they just like Do things that see decisions that seem totally random, but they actually know what they're doing in someone.

NorCal Guy: 20:58

Right right, that makes sense. That makes sense. Do you have a favorite food?

Derech: 21:04

Mexican hey that's my favorite food too. I was actually talking with a friend yesterday about that because, um, we're super foodies, right, and especially my wife. She's like I thought I was foodies. She's like Absolutely next level. She, she will, we have any trip and she will plan everything around restaurants that she wants to go. It's crazy and I had never had that before. Like I love having sweet food and enjoying it or whatever, but I never understood the true foodie culture and when I met her, it was like oh yeah, but we have to go to this and this and this restaurant in order this and this and this and this. And it was like, wow, okay, this is, this is next level. But I've had amazing food things to her, so like nice, wait, but yeah, mexican food, and now that we're married, um, korean food.

Derech: 22:05

I acquired a new, new taste, and you love for it.

NorCal Guy: 22:10

So well, do you find good Mexican food where you are? Yeah, so oh yeah.

Derech: 22:17

Again, I think the beauty of Mexicans is we're hustlers, so we're all over the world, so over here there's not a big Mexican population, but there are some, and this Mexican magnet just drives you to other Mexicans.

Derech: 22:38

It's like if you follow your north star, you end up with Mexicans. So we've we found many, many nice Mexican restaurants, and I think that it's also like it's really nice because at some point I've traveled a lot and Again, I used documentary photography, so I used to go everywhere, yeah, and I think one key point for people that travel a lot is To find certain things that ground you, so that you're not always, or your, your brain is not always feeling like it's completely in the nucleus. So, for example, for me it was like Mexican food. So when I arrived here and suddenly I realized like, oh yeah, there are a few Mexican restaurants, whatever, for some reason, my brain, my brain whenever I have it, I feel like like home, hmm, so, even though I'm in a completely foreign country, that makes me feel cozy and that makes me feel like, oh, yeah, okay, there are certain elements that still follow the pattern of my regular Life before. So it makes sense, thanks, I like that.

NorCal Guy: 24:02

Do you have advice for artists joining the NFT space? Raise yourself.

Derech: 24:13

Oh, that's fair. I Think it's a very rewarding space. It's a very beautiful space. As I said, like if you wanted to achieve the things that you can achieve in this space in the traditional world, it's either you have a very lucky shot or you have to hustle for many, many, many years, network for many, many years and probably undersell yourself for many years.

Derech: 24:44

Whereas here I Think it was a little bit affected. Well, it was very affected by the full run because people started to have like unrealistic expectations about things. And then when you realize that people were paying millions of dollars for the jpeg of Iraq, it's kind of tough because I think for artists it's like it takes a long time to understand that sometimes things are not about the art. So Even I was frustrated and I'd be like but wait, what the fuck, like my work is better than the art Jpeg of Iraq and why are people paying so much money for that and stuff? And Right, once I got the point, I understood and I understood what's happening and I made peace with that idea that, yeah, people are willing to pay millions of dollars for the board a for whatever. Then I started to understand like, okay, then what is the value that people do see in an artist and and their work, and what can I do to achieve that? Because I think the first thing that happens when you enter the space is like you do think that it is for the art's sake, and Even though it is, there's also other other things that you can do, and I think that's the first thing that happens when you enter the space is like you do think that there's also other other things that that have to happen in order for you to start truly selling, because you might have this lucky shot where you sell one to, or you come across this random guy called guy Norco and he's like oh shit, you minted your Genesis here, I'll buy it. And it's like, oh, why, sultan, guy Norco, yeah, that's, that's like the blessing I didn't have that I wish I would have. And in mind, you, like everybody, was getting their Genesis sold to guy Norco and suddenly I never got my soul to him and I was like wait, what am I doing wrong? But uh, but yeah, it's just.

Derech: 27:01

I think the hardest part over here is understanding that you have to become part of the space. You have to become part of the space. It's not about you just being an artist and doing your own way and leaving your own path over here and whatever it's like. You have to be A part of the clock. You have to find them where you fit and where Basically you belong and you can help others grow. And once you find that, then you start to build a reputation and then people start to know you and people are interested. But until then, if you think that it's only like, oh yeah, I'll just like share my art and see if someone buys it, I think you might, but I don't think it's sustainable. If anything is sustainable, right, right.

NorCal Guy: 27:54

So I know you've traveled a few places. So if you could live or move anywhere, where would you live? In white.

Derech: 28:03

So, as you know, I live in Japan now, which is basically what I would answer to your question.

NorCal Guy: 28:11

Alright, no, that's fair, that's fair.

Derech: 28:14

I never intended to live here. It was more like, oh yeah, I traveled once to Japan and it would be really cool because you know, like it's a very exotic country and it's like full of temples and it's really interesting for photography and everything. But it was a dream. It was just like you know, it was so foreign and everything that I was like, yeah, this shit is never gonna happen.

Derech: 28:41

And then, low on the cold, I decided to travel during COVID. Actually, when I started traveling, it was not even COVID, it was just like this random thing happening in China. I was like, oh yeah, I'll just travel, whatever. And suddenly I decided to make that trip my Asia photography trip. So why not during COVID? Decide to hit first Asia?

Derech: 29:10

So I saw everything involved, from this random thing in China to like the pandemic, and every time I saw it was getting worse. I would just like fly to the next country and to the next country and to the next country, trying to avoid it. And that way I traveled maybe like six, seven countries. I was really kind of lucky, because, no, I was actually really lucky. But the point is I got to see countries in a very different way because of COVID. A lot of tourists had left, so I was able to see, for example, I would go to India and I would have the touch for myself, which is something that's really impossible like normally it's super crowded.

Derech: 29:57

Or I went to Myanmar before the coup, just like that kind of random things, and while I was in India, the government was basically like you know what? The world is fucked, we're entering a pandemic, everybody's shutting down their borders and we are going to do that and you have 72 hours to leave the country, yeah, yeah. Then they were like just buck a flight and you have to return home and whatever. And I tried to buy my ticket, but because you know how, back sometimes ask you for the double verification with your SMS and whatever. I tried to do that and obviously I was in India, so my phone number didn't work and I wasn't able to buy my ticket. Then I was traveling around with a friend that was also like a shooter, so I was like I can't get out of the country and he liked my lens and he was just like okay, let's, let's do the trade out. I'll buy your flight and you give me the lens and it was like okay, like that makes sense.

Derech: 31:07

And I really wanted to get out because even the Indian government told you, like you don't want to be stuck here, like we don't know how long this is going to take, right, so she buys my ticket. It was India, japan, united States, mexico.

NorCal Guy: 31:25

Okay.

Derech: 31:27

And by the time that I flew to Japan and I was just waiting like for two hours, everybody shot their borders and I ended up oh shoot.

NorCal Guy: 31:41

Oh, got it.

Derech: 31:44

And I remember like this thing completely, like I would just be sitting down in the airport chilling, eating my sandwich, like just whatever, and suddenly, like all the screens, everything canceled, canceled, canceled, canceled. All the people tried to imagine, like all the Japanese people kindly telling you basically your fault. So they were running to everybody and just telling them, like you know, like the borders are shut, like you can't get out of here, all the flights are canceled and everything. And they was like it's fine, because they told me it was going to be like one week, two weeks, like okay, I'll see my friends and just like find a place to stay and whatever. And from two weeks it extended and it extended and it extended. So, yeah, it was a pretty well time, yeah.

NorCal Guy: 32:50

Yeah, cannot imagine that'd be crazy.

Derech: 32:53

I mean, I think you would have enjoyed it a lot, because, as photographers, I think that the benefit that we have is it's very easy to entertain us, because as long as you have a camera, you can do whatever you want, right? So for me it was really nice, because I didn't, I didn't have money, because I had been traveling for a long time, so I was really lucky to find a hostel that remained open. So I booked that. Oh, wow, well, I thought it was going to be only two weeks. I booked that and if everything was okay, right.

Derech: 33:30

And suddenly the government extended everything and the hostel was just like wait, this is, this is we got a situation here, you know. And I remember when I saw the announcements I was just like okay, I need a call. So I called the manager of the hotel, the hostel, and I tell him like guys, we need to talk. And they were like yeah, we know we need to talk. And then I go down, I see them and they were like okay, I tell them the whole situation and basically I'm broke, like I have a bit of money but it's not nearly enough to cover, like, the expenses of the hostel and everything. Yeah, we actually spoke to the owners of the chain and we, we want to offer you something where you can still feel safe and you can do this, right. So they told me like we're not, we're removing our fees. You decide whatever you can pay, as long as you have enough money for food and whatever. Like, if you tell us like $2, $10, $100, like it's fine, we won't, we won't I mean we won't, we won't hesitate. So basically, it was just like I ended up paying like $9, $8 per day, which for Tokyo, is like nothing, and they just became my family a little by little, because I couldn't.

Derech: 35:11

I was the only person in the whole hostel. Like there was nobody else. It was a nine floor place and they were just running it for me. So imagine, like they would teach me about Japanese culture. They would teach me Japanese, they would invite me to their staff dinners. Oh, wow, yeah, at some point it got so bad that I was only eating once at once a day. So people would start like, because I was active on Instagram, I would share my story and people would donate me food and they would ship it through Amazon, so they would have it delivered to the hostel and it was really nice Suddenly, like the people from the hostel would be like yo, you got a package from I don't know what and I'd be receiving like pasta or like tomatoes or random things from people that were just doing that.

Derech: 36:04

And that's when, for example, Zai, I told the story that I had to give away my lens for the ticket, and they reached out and they were like yo, we want to send you a gift. And they shipped me the lens that I have and given for my ticket. And they even put like it was so nice because, like they sent me the box with the lens and wrapped up in another bigger box that the people from the office had made, Like this wasn't even a company thing, this was actively something that the people in the office just wanted to do for me. They put like they packed like little Japanese sweets, some little canned food. One lady even put like a sit block with handmade face masks that her mom had made. Oh, because I didn't have face masks, Obviously, like it wasn't my priority to buy them and they knew that I was going out, so they'd send me that and like personal notes and post-its and everything wishing me to get better. And it was really nice because once I got the lens I was able to.

Derech: 37:16

The people from the hostel would lend me their bicycle and I would basically go with my tripod, my camera and just like bike all around the city Like this post-apocalyptic empty Tokyo and it just be like yeah, I'm just minding my own business, being happy, you know, and that's a lot of why my style, my style, started to develop more towards this slower, candid nighttime Tokyo, because it was like when I was shooting, it was empty, it was, it was not lonely, but it was like, you know, like there were way less people in the streets and it was slower.

Derech: 37:57

And I think it makes you appreciate a lot like the not so flashy details about Japan, if it makes any sense. And yeah, like from photography, I started to evolve more into video because I was just like, okay, I love street photography, but how can I push it a little bit further? You know like, okay, how can I? Because you know like we're street photographers, so maybe a person crossing the street will catch your eye, right, and it might look really beautiful and it's still. But I'm like, right, how could I push that gesture of the person walking a little bit more? You know, and that's what started to push me more into video.

NorCal Guy: 38:48

Okay, all right, nice, I didn't even know that story. That was awesome, amazing story.

Derech: 38:55

It was crazy and like maybe times faded a lot, Like for me it's just like everything is a blurb. But maybe like five months into all that I got into Tinder because obviously I was lonely, and suddenly I found this girl who was looking for another photographer to go out and shoot and just like to become friends and just learn whatever, Like she clearly on her bio, like stated like this is not a relationship thing, I'm not looking for any anything, it's just I'm looking for models like whatever, just to go out and do something and shoot. And I was like, oh, this sounds cool, Like this is exactly what I need, you know. So we ended up matching and we went out shooting and whatever. And I was like, oh fuck, I like her. So I remember we went that first day we went to a temple that's like very well known here in Tokyo, which is Sensor G. It's like the biggest, more traditional temple. I don't know what. Have you been here before? Oh, you have to come. You have to come, especially now that you have me here. Now you have to come.

Derech: 40:33

But imagine this massive, beautiful Japanese temple and it was kind of and for her it's on the outskirts of Tokyo and so she had to travel a long time to get there. So I was telling her like, oh, this story of how I was traveling. And you know, like, imagine, I was just fresh from all that trip. So all my clothes, all my everything, we're just like backpacker clothes, Like I had holes in my clothes, Like I wasn't smelly, but I was just like, you know right. So I felt a little ashamed that like once we shot and whatever, I was like, oh, let's have some dinner. But I couldn't afford having dinner. You know, like I couldn't take her to a restaurant and I was already like, oh, I actually like this girl. So we ended up going to a convenience store by like sandwiches and sodas and stuff, and there was a river next to where we were shooting.

Derech: 41:34

So we had, like this, dinner by the river side and everything, and I was like, oh, this is, this is really nice. And we kept on meeting and at some point I was just like you know what I do, you want to be my girlfriend. And little by little that developed into a relationship. And two months into the relationship I sold a little bit more of my gear and got her ring and that's her. Oh nice, that's awesome, yeah, and that's how I ended up here.

NorCal Guy: 42:14

Never made it back to Mexico.

Derech: 42:16

Literally the only reason why I went back to Mexico was for my documents after we got married, and I mean like it was really tough because even if I wanted to go back to Mexico because of the whole situation, I was a very high risk of not being able to reenter that because if there was another condendate where there was anything, I would be screwed, so I tried to leave the country as little as possible.

NorCal Guy: 42:42

Yeah, that makes sense. So do you have any questions for me?

Derech: 42:49

Do I have any questions for you? Why didn't you get my Genesis? No, I'm joking, I don't know. Like I think more than questions, I think it's more like I want to thank you because I think that the space, especially right now, is very tense. I think, especially now in all caps, because of the war and everything like. Right at this moment it's really really, really tense and a lot of artists are struggling and a lot of collectors are already burned out and it's a very tough time.

Derech: 43:41

And, from many collectors that I know, you are the one that's always sticking up and helping other people and keep on collecting and keep on asking artists if they're okay and you care about the people and this is not kissing gas. I think it's something that has a lot of merit because, because people need it and the fact that you still bring like good vibes and you're just you and you keep on going, it's something that's very admirable. And for me it's really sad because I've seen a lot of collectors leave because it was too much Like honestly, like I don't even know how I survived here. Then you, who is still collecting, who is still pushing, who is still like keeping all the you know like there's very few collectors keeping this safety net of the one of one art world.

Derech: 44:48

It's something that I think is very, it's, very valuable. It's, it's and it's very admirable. So cheers to you for doing that Same thing, like I was listening to the podcast that you did with Bat-Soupium.

NorCal Guy: 45:04

And I was like this.

Derech: 45:05

Two guys are hitting it up so nicely, and it's really nice that we still have people like you, cause if you talk with other collectors, some of them are just like. They're just sick and tired. I think it's. It must be really tough to be on a collector's shoes, which is something that I think that artists rarely think about. They don't, they don't think about like how would it feel like if you have 30, 40 people shilling you on your DMs every single day? And I see it like I have collectors of mine telling me like you don't understand how overwhelming it is. Once you become a collector and people know that you're buying like a decent amount of pieces, everybody starts to hit you up in the DMs and I feel rude to not reply. And then they understand that they have to, unfortunately, start to like just stack the ends because they won't. It's not sustainable.

NorCal Guy: 46:11

Right, yeah, it's really a tough time, man, yeah, yeah, I mean you know, props to everyone that is still here and still grinding it out, cause it's going to be grind definitely for next few months, at least minimum. But you know, we can come together. There's still like pockets, good communities, people can hang out and there's a lot of people supporting each other. Small groups like I know, like I see, like the proof, discord's active still. People are still on there. The I know our click create discord is really active with artists and they're always in there like, hey, how's it going? They're always checking up on each other. So there are these little communities that are like there for the artists and collectors that are there, and there is a support network. You just need to find it, find your the one for you, for sure.

Derech: 47:17

So, and that goes back to what we- were saying that once you find your place within the space, that's when you find those communities, that's when people start to to start to value you and everything, cause you do become part of it. Right, but actually, yeah, I do have a question. How did you get into digital art? Probably other people have asked you that.

NorCal Guy: 47:42

Yeah, I mean initially it was through NBA top shots.

Derech: 47:49

Everybody I know.

NorCal Guy: 47:52

That was where it first started. And then, you know, then I got into the journey of art and I was flipping a lot of that, but the more I like sat there and was thinking about this journey of art, I was like man, this is probably. I feel like this is going to be pretty historic and this is very stupid, that I'm flipping all this. So I stopped flipping that and just sat mainly sat on the stuff that I had and then got into the one-on-one art and really enjoyed the friendships and relationships you can build from actually communicating with the artists. Cause, I mean, I like Gen Art a lot, I think there's a lot of potential in Gen Art, I think it's really cool.

NorCal Guy: 48:38

It's all on chain, you know, but very rarely do you get to like have the conversations with those artists. So I just transitioned into one-on-one, partly also cause I mean the art block summer thing and I was just like this is too much hype. I got transitioned out and just hold what I got and get to know these artists. And also that's why I like got into photography, cause no one was wanting photography and it didn't make sense to me why no one was collecting photography. Everyone was collecting the astronauts, and so I started collecting photography, cause it just made sense. I liked photography.

Derech: 49:27

Yeah, I know I get it, Cause I think I say like I love generative art and everything, but at some point the value of the relationships that you can get with one-on-one art are completely different. Yeah, and you stop being the one of 400, 500, 600, 10,000. Right, right, and it's just the direct impact that you can have in our artist side is it's completely different, I guess.

NorCal Guy: 50:03

Yeah, that's true, that's true. So do you have any upcoming projects? Oh, always, any shout outs.

Derech: 50:13

So now that winter is coming, like I have a lot of, I'm fortunate to have a few commissioned pieces or prepaid pieces, which is how I operate, cause at some point I've never been a fan of. First of all, I don't like auctions, cause it's kind of weird, like I think I prefer having a collector collect what they really love without having that issue of the Bitwars although I know that there are collectors like you that love Bitwars and have to shake them off but I think it comes down to like. I remember I had this experience where I really loved one piece a long time ago, which was a Yatraela, but they were just starting, like it was like they were nobody's though, and I was like oh yeah, I can get this, you know. Like it's like in photography, it's really beautiful, whatever. I bid on one, and suddenly I learned what whales are and I was just like, fuck you, I'm not doing this, like I'm not engaging in this war, you know. And my dream was crushed, and I think that that is when and why I tell artists like, put yourself in a collector's shoes, like try to understand how it feels, like, cause I was really in love with that piece and I was not able to get it. So I was just like I don't want a collector to have that kind of experience with me. So even though my options could go higher than the price that I put on them, I'd rather know that the collector got what they really wanted. And I think that that started to develop into a more long-term mentality of I'd rather have a happy collector than have a short-term gain. And that little by little started to compound into very happy collectors having what they wanted.

Derech: 52:15

And after that I decided that I wouldn't even list anything. I would just like have my network of collectors and be like okay, you know, like I have, I work more in slots. Like I have maybe five slots of available future pieces. So instead of me showing you like, yo, this is a new piece that I'm gonna sell, it's more like do you want one of the slots? And you know that you'll get a piece in this in one month, two months, five months, whatever.

Derech: 52:56

So, for example, batsupion was like that. Like he was like I don't care whenever you have it ready, you have it ready. Like I'm in the list, you know. And that's really nice because that allows me to work more mindfully. I don't have to rush to deliver a piece. It's more like whenever it is, it is and the collector also knows that they will have one. That's true, but it's very hard to achieve that kind of market Like I think you have to build a lot in order to be able to just like tell someone like, oh yeah, your piece is gonna be maybe in one year.

NorCal Guy: 53:35

Right definitely. Have to have a good collector base already established. My people are happy for sure. That's all I can say Well, that's good, that's good Well, awesome Well, derek man I've had a great chat with you. And I wanna say thank you for coming on the pod and waking up a little early and joining me today. I really appreciate it, thank you.

Derech: 54:04

Okay, it's my pleasure, and thank you for inviting me. Man, it's always a pleasure talking to you.

NorCal Guy: 54:10

Who is this guy? Who is this guy? Who is this guy? Who is this guy? Who is this guy? North Calgary, north Calgary, north Calgary, north Calgary, north Calgary, north Calgary, north Calgary, north Calgary, north Calgary, shield Puckett. So it's show time North Calgary Shield Podcast. Put the shield the shield. North Calgary Shield Podcast. Show time North Calgary Shield Podcast. Put the shield, rescue the shield.