tommylei

visual artist • explore more of my work 🔻

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

Hey friends. I took time away from the space to refine my artistic voice — the one that feels true to my practice on and off chain. Grateful to be returning with intention.

I quietly debuted Ball Drop (2025): an AR audiovisual 1/1 with an original score by Braden Pontoli.

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

@halecar2 @lag_gallery This photograph is sublime, so is the rest of the series.

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

@halecar2 @fred_dot_jpg @RalphSigg What a huge milestone!! Congrats Alejandro 👏🏽💕

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

@mich_viljoen Thank you for being vulnerable. Sending good vibes and love only!

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

@CARDELUCCI @bottoproject Congratulations!! Such a stunning piece.

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

@CaballeroAnaMa @bitforms This is stunning Ana!!

[Nathan A. Bauman @nathanabauman]

Scenes from Across America

[justinaversano @justinaversano]

There are 4 months left of Moments of the Unknown daily auctions and podcasts!

As we wrap up 2025 in a couple weeks I want to thank everyone who has been involved in collecting the artworks and been a special guest on my daily show. This couldn’t be done without you all.

Grateful to all those who are here and those to come who make up this digital art world we are building together!

Thank you to last months collectors @drCCO, @iancr, @goldie_mceve, @jmpailhon, @pengwinpants, @gcchaps, @smerjpoo, @barrylsutton, @rainerhosch, @sunnysangwan, @straitwhiskey, @Jdsears, @dsoeirosanches, @degens, & @HeirttThrone for supporting the vision.

I look forward to all the guests and collectors who join us in the coming months!

Goals for 2026!?

- Working on 366 30x40 inch AI / AR hand painted silkscreens using the movie stills of this project.

- Utilizing all 365 podcasts into an immersive sound and light installation

- Manifesting a museum exhibition to showcase all 366 videos, paintings, Polaroids, immersive sound and 3 part film installations. Curators let’s talk!

- Expanding Moments of the Unknown podcast from the NFT / Digital art community to expand into weekly contemporary art conversations.

- Committing to making 1000 tintypes and media channel working with people who work in cancer : from patients to researchers and doctors.

- Creating 12 life size bronze sculptures using AI, Photography, and 3D printing with people who have blindness.

- Learning how to code to integrate with photography and dynamic installations.

- Collaborate with more artists from this space.

- Continue building the art collection of my peers!

[alejandro cartagena @halecar2]

"GROUND RULES" Retrospective at the SFMOMA

I am honored to announce my first-ever mid-career retrospective at the @SFMOMA. For the past four years, I have been working side by side with the amazing curator Shana Lopes to bring this exhibition to life. The depth of research and reflection involved is something I had never experienced before. The result is an exhibition that faithfully represents the themes and ideas I have been obsessing over for the past 21 years. My earliest projects connect to my most recent ones, and new links, ones I had never considered, emerged from our deep conversations about what my work means within contemporary and Mexican photography ecosystems. The exhibition will highlight around 200 works across twenty+ projects, 27 books I've published, NFTs and my latest AI work. The exhibition will be accompanied by a book published by @aperturefnd.

21 years doing art is crazy to think about. Most have been about suffering and trying to survive as an artist. I am honored that one of the biggest museums in the world "saw" my art for what it is and decided to pursue this retrospective. Trying to be an artist in Latin America is a constant struggle, so I am especially thankful for the opportunity to reach a wider audience.

I am forever grateful to everyone at the museum who has supported me, starting with Lisa Sutcliffe, Jessica S. McDonald, Sandra S. Phillips, Alex Landry, and all the museum teams involved. Thank you, thank you! I also want to thank all my collectors and galleries for your constant support. The path has not been easy, but I am here because of the care you have given me.

Here is a bit of an outline of the exhibition:

“Alejandro Cartagena: Ground Rules”

This first major retrospective of the acclaimed photographer brings together over two decades of work exploring suburban sprawl, the US-Mexico border, and economic inequality. Through documentary images, collage, vernacular photos, and AI-generated video, Cartagena prompts us to question the systems shaping our world.
-----
Esta primera gran retrospectiva del reconocido fotógrafo reúne más de veinte años de obras en las que exploró la expansión suburbana, la frontera entre México y Estados Unidos y la desigualdad económica. Por medio de imágenes documentales, collages, fotografías vernáculas y videos generados por IA, Cartagena nos invita a cuestionar los sistemas que dan forma a nuestro mundo.

Tomorrow a few more announcement around this and other exhibitions 📢🔥

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

@wildalps So sorry for your loss, Dom. Sending you so much love and strength!

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

@OliverWDahl Proud to own a copy :)

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

@OliverWDahl I've always wanted to visit. This is an awesome series, Oliver!

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

Art that sells for $1 is still art.
A monetary value doesn't make you any less of an artist.

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

The collector will receive a 1/1 edition on @objktcom, along with a physical alu-dibond piece and COA. Feel free to take a look here: https://t.co/g4xMYZk2Q4

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

Hey friends. I took time away from the space to refine my artistic voice — the one that feels true to my practice on and off chain. Grateful to be returning with intention.

I quietly debuted Ball Drop (2025): an AR audiovisual 1/1 with an original score by Braden Pontoli.

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

The piece was a part of @BalancedForces_ CODE:BLUE exhibition with BitBasel during @MiamiArtWeek. A huge thanks to @IllustSpace for putting this together!

[illust. | Augmented Reality Studio @IllustSpace]

Zone 3
16. "Unity" by Tarcila Neves
17. "Water You See..." by @TechMental_
18. "Ball Drop" by Tommy Lei

[illust. | Augmented Reality Studio @IllustSpace]

🧵 Recap of works from @BalancedForces_ Code Blue Miami supported by the @bitbaselart event. Celebrating oceanic conservation through a global curation of AR works...👇

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

@Jen_Stark @TSqArts @Blondie23LMD Wow!!!

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

This is all very timely 🙏🏽

[UnknownCollector @UnknownCo123]

Claire’s feelings are valid.
And so are the feelings of every artist in this space, also the ones who aren’t selling, who feel invisible, who are tired.

We can’t blame people for being frustrated when they’re putting work out and getting silence back.
A lot of artists came here with big hopes. They showed up. They created. They believed in the space.
So when it doesn’t work, of course they feel it. Of course they speak up.

And honestly, it’s strange how we only celebrate vulnerability when it comes from artists who are already successful.
If someone with (former) big sales opens up, we say “thank you for sharing.”
If someone without them does the same, we call it negativity. Blocked.

That double standard is real. And it’s damaging.

Not everyone has the connections.
Not everyone has the “right” style at the “right” time.
It’s not all talent or effort, it’s timing, network, visibility, luck.
That doesn’t mean people aren’t trying.

So no, don’t shame artists for expressing disappointment. We are all humans.
They’re not ruining the vibe.
They’re being honest.

But if we only support people after they make it, what kind of space are we building?

Real community means also listening before the hype.

[tommylei @TommyLeiStudio]

@justinaversano All of this. You never know. That's the prompt. Thank you <3