(DCA) Daniel Calderon Arenas

Code-based visual artist working with blockchain

[Raster @raster_art]

12/ Spire (Bokashi Cone) #10 by @DaCaldera, 2023

“In traditional Japanese woodblock printing, bokashi refers to the technique of applying ink to the print...”

Acquired by @a1111ac011d0 for $404 (0.175 ETH)

https://t.co/ZByACjHexU

[(DCA) Daniel Calderon Arenas @DaCaldera]

@CozomoMedici 👏 👏 👏

[Long-Form Art @LongFormArt]

Long-Form Conversations with Emily Nicoll 🌸

Had a great chat yesterday with @ENICOLL! We covered her recent @artblocks_io release "Geophylla", her journey into the blockchain art space and more.

Links below 👇

YouTube: https://t.co/CfoTVoPnKk

Spotify: https://t.co/7Un9nO337l

[Art Blocks @artblocks_io]

Save the Date

Art Blocks Marfa Weekend
October 22 - 25, 2026

We can't wait to see you.

[Nat Sarkissian @_NatSarkissian]

Super excited be launching my print shop! Kicking it off with 4 special print editions from Never the Same :)
Link in bio

[WIM 😎 @Wim_HODL]

Gm! 🌞☕️

New episode with @ManuelLarino will be released soon for Long-Form Conversations.

Really enjoyed this episode!

[Logan Woodyard @loganxwoodyard]

Proud to announce that Emergence in Marfa is an Official Selection at the 17th New Media Film Festival @NewMediaFF

World Premiere: June 4th at the historic Culver Theater, LA As generative art moves from the cultural periphery into the contemporary canon, the materials of our time are no longer just steel and concrete- they are code and algorithms. Set against the high desert of Marfa, Texas, during Art Blocks' Marfa Weekend, this documentary looks beyond the 'black box' of the screen. It is an exploration of code as a physical material, and a search for the human pulse within an automated world. This project wouldn't exist without the generous backing of The Generative Art Foundation @genartfound at Philanthropic Ventures Foundation.

This film is built entirely on the brilliance of its subjects. An immense thank you to the incredible collective of artists and collaborators who made this project possible:

@artblocks_io
@aa_murakami
@BernarVenetArt
@carreras_anna
@luke_shannon_
@ivoentchev
@TODNExist
@remnynt
@toThePixel
@dadabots
@madebyoona
@mitchellfchan
@heeey_eth
@ArtOnBlockchain
@jeffgdavis
@peeren_van
@clarkunderwood
@marfastgeorge
@glitchmarfa

[SquiggleDAO @squiggleDAO]

Happy birthday, Snowfro.

Thank you for creating the rainbow that has made so many people smile and brought this community together.

[WIM 😎 @Wim_HODL]

Huge congrats to @ManuelLarino with his @artblocks_io release “Gift of Time”

Captured this shot last year in Marfa.

“Momentary Thrill” 📸

Nothing stops this train!

[Manuel Lariño ☔️ @ManuelLarino]

Thank you all so much for the incredible response to Gift of Time.

I’m honestly grateful to see this project connect with so many people, from so many different places and backgrounds.

I originally planned to share more about how the system works while the mint was live… but it sold out before I had the chance. :)

So I wanted to start digging a little deeper into some of the questions I’ve been getting.
One of the most asked about elements has been the moon phase calendar.

Moon phases are built directly into the system, slowly transforming the colored circles within the mechanism, forms that act almost like pupils, expanding and contracting over time, like in this animated sketch.

And this is just one layer.

Gift of Time is made from multiple interconnected systems, each subtly influencing the work as time passes.

@artblocks_io + @opensea

[Manuel Lariño ☔️ @ManuelLarino]

Thank you so much, everyone. 🙏🏼

After a month in Marfa thanks to @artblocks_io and @opensea , and 9 more months building Gift of Time, seeing it sell out in under 2 minutes is honestly overwhelming.

My time in Marfa was truly inspiring, and I wanted to fully integrate all the ideas that kept emerging there, along with everything filling my sketchbook, into this project.

All the hard work would have been worth it just for the messages, comments, and support alone.

This project holds so many layers, small details, shifting systems, and changes tied to time itself… moon phases, calendars, cycles, and movement. As we move away from the full moon, you’ll start noticing subtle changes.

Thank you for looking at it, supporting it, collecting it, and spending time with it. It truly means a lot.

[(DCA) Daniel Calderon Arenas @DaCaldera]

@toThePixel Beautiful

[𝕫𝕠𝕞𝕓𝕚𝕖𝕕𝕣𝕠𝕠𝕝 @zxmbiedrool]

Bosque de Chapultepec

@DaCaldera

[abnormality ☠️ @joshripple]

Finally messed with my Diggly Collects All on @artblocks_io. It has a fun little game built into the art. Went exploring and found tons of pieces to put on the shelves. This was a lot of fun to play with.
Diggly Collects All #349 by @DaCaldera

[Art Blocks @artblocks_io]

Gift of Time

Last year, in the wide open landscape of Marfa TX, resident artist @ManuelLarino—selected for our Art Blocks x @OpenSea Marfa Residency program—noticed a shift in time. 

“In the desert, I felt time move differently. It stretched, slowed, and became something I noticed… Moments felt longer, attention sharpened, and I became increasingly aware of each moment as it passed.” -@ManuelLarino

[Manuel Lariño ☔️ @ManuelLarino]

April 30 • 12:00pm ET
Art Blocks + OpenSea

“Gift of time” began during my residency in Marfa, Texas, as part of the Art Blocks and OpenSea artist residency program, where a distinct shift in the experience of time became central to the work.

In the desert, I felt time move differently. It stretched, slowed, and became something I noticed. After a few days, the rhythm changed. Moments felt longer, attention sharpened, and I became increasingly aware of each moment as it passed. This work comes from that condition.

Time is not treated only as a theme, but as a system embedded in the structure of the piece. Different ways of measuring time, such as mechanical cycles, calendars, and lunar phases, are translated into rules that continuously transform the work. The piece does not represent time. It runs on it.

Its movement is tied to blockchain time. Even when unseen, it continues to rotate and evolve. When loaded, it synchronizes with the present moment, but it does not begin when it is viewed, and it does not stop when it disappears from the screen.

During the residency, I spent hours thinking, sketching, and making connections. Those connections are also visible. Elastic lines, like rubber bands, link elements across the piece, representing how memories connect, how one thought leads to another, and how everything builds over time. These same connections introduce moments where the system attempts to pull itself back, as if trying to regain control. But it never fully resets. It is not a loop. The movement continues, drifting forward, never returning to a fixed state.

Visually, the work reveals its own construction. Lines, paths, and rotations expose an internal logic, like looking inside a mechanism. The drawing language recalls diagrams, technical sketches, or the interior of a mechanical watch. It is a system in motion, always active.

“Gift of Time” exists because I was given time by Art Blocks, OpenSea, and above all my family. It is my way of saying thank you. It is both a reflection on time and a product of it.

April 30 @ 12:00pm ET
on Art blocks & OpenSea
1 / 1 / 365 • 0.02 Eth

@artblocks_io, @opensea

[(DCA) Daniel Calderon Arenas @DaCaldera]

@unrealSov Thanks for the reminder!

[(DCA) Daniel Calderon Arenas @DaCaldera]

Baby is enjoying this beautiful two-page spread of Arrels, a generative artwork (Feral File, 2021) by artist Anna Carreras.

Onboarding the next generation!

@carreras_anna @FeralFile @TASCHEN

[SquiggleDAO @squiggleDAO]

SquiggleDAO is finally announcing the secret project we've been working on with @Pakmanscoop and @ArtOnBlockchain.

The Squiggle Display Station! 📺

We’ve seen significant success with art that creates a memorable experience. As younger generations become increasingly disengaged in traditional museum settings, immersive and experiential exhibitions have grown rapidly in popularity. We believe it’s important to offer a way to experience the Squiggle interactively, without altering the artwork itself and highlighting its artistic significance.

To bring this vision into the physical world, we partnered with Hash Inc and Snowfro. Snowfro has been working on the hardware side for some time, and recently succeeded in porting the Chromie Squiggles script to C++ allowing us to run them on a Raspberry Pi. This breakthrough made it possible to integrate his work directly into the Display Station, allowing the project to come to life. Snowfro was pivotal in creating the electrical and software components of the Display Station. This wouldn’t have been possible without his contribution and hardware advancements.

How it works:
- The display station arrives ready to install, requiring only a few panels to be screwed together. It includes two cords: a power cable and an HDMI cable, allowing it to connect to virtually any screen.
- Users can adjust the speed, change the background color, and enter any Squiggle type and hypervariant as the original artist's traits. To respect the owners of each Squiggle, we have received approval from many owners to display over 3000 Squiggles. When selecting a Squiggle type it will generate a random Squiggle from that approved list. Instead of typing numbers, we focused on the types of Squiggles in order to emphasize its importance and variety.
- The display station creates an interactive experience that helps audiences better understand the artwork. Many people are unaware that the Squiggle moves, and even fewer realize that both the background color and speed can change. This interactive setup allows viewers to explore these intricacies firsthand, making it one of the most memorable ways to experience, learn and engage with the art.

Our goal is to convince museums to install these for exhibitions and if we're lucky enough, to have them as permanent displays so their audience can always interact with the Squiggle.

[Art Blocks @artblocks_io]

Meet our new Marfa Resident!

Nygilia @nygi_xxv is an accomplished artist with a passion for storytelling and retro RPG video games.

Her work has been featured globally at events such as Art Basel, Digital Art Asia, and Dakar Biennial. 🧵👇