Guest Blog: A community interview with a mysterious egg.

Introduction by a creator on Foundation, community member and Discord moderator, Indra Tor: 

Aito? Egg? DAO? Being from another dimension? These are just a few of the theories posed about the identity behind the mysterious mega-collector Aito, who made waves last week after launching their own Discord server. Artists quickly joined and started sharing their work. Kicking off one auction after another, Aito wound up collecting over a hundred NFTs on Foundation in just two short days—something the community quickly took notice of. It’s always an exciting moment when an artist in our community sells their first NFT, but once Aito started this collecting frenzy, there was a tremendous, uplifting buzz all around.

We all had to know more about the mysterious egg. Last week, Lindsay Howard, Head of Community at Foundation, answered our call, and approached us on Discord with the question: 

"What would you ask Aito?" 

A handful of the most interesting queries were selected and sent directly to Aito via undisclosed means (possibly by carrier pigeon). This interview is a joint effort between the Foundation community and team to learn more about the anonymous Aito.

Why the egg symbol? —Gael

It just happened by interacting with @sirsuhayb during my first days on Twitter. You can go back to the first tweets to find the whole story, it was a very fun interaction. Decided to keep it and grow on it because I think it is a really powerful symbol and the community is always right!

Did you grow up with an appreciation for art? —Ashmit

Yes, all kinds of mediums actually, but have always been in love with paintings and architecture

Are you a DAO? If so, how much would it cost to become a member? —Widmer

No, I am not, but anyone is welcome to collect the same artists I support!

How do you select the artwork that you collect? Do you research each artist before you place a bid? —Evri

I collect art that I connect to, it’s usually a matter of luck of finding the right artists/artwork. It takes a lot of time, I also follow and try to see how artists promote themselves and contribute to the community. It's a very important part for me.

Before you made your own Discord server, what was your process for finding artworks? Did you use social media, or did you also browse marketplaces for artworks? —August

Mostly Twitter and also going on marketplaces and trying to find some gems. I also have a lot of discussions with other collectors but now I just browse thisisaito.xyz and see what I like there!

What made you decide to bid on so many works at once last week? —Wout

Time and opportunity! I had so many tabs open for a long time. I usually find art I like, keep the tab open, keep an eye on the artist, and then when I have time, I buy. Last week was special because I also launched my Discord, a lot of amazing artists joined, and I wanted to also show my support. I always want to give back to those who support me.

What do you plan to do with your collection? Will you create a gallery? —Satyrus

Yes, it's on thisisaito.xyz!

Are you more interested in NFTs for their artistic value or are you collecting more for the purpose of trading and treating NFTs like stocks/investments? —August

I am definitely not an art speculator, I always buy in the mindset that I would not mind having this artwork in my collection forever. But I am also conscious of the financial value of those artworks, I think they will appreciate greatly in the future, some more individually, but ultimately everyone who creates now is already early and part of a first movement which will be named a posteriori.

What inspires you about the NFT community? —UWABAMI

The openness and inclusivity of everyone, especially how creators are helping each other. I see the whole NFT movement as an art movement in itself that will birth the new art metaverse. I don't think everyone is aware of it, but this is a defining moment for culture and exchange of value on the internet.

This is so humbling. I could not be more blessed to be part of this community.

Which do you prefer: sunny side up, over-easy, or scrambled? —Glauco

Scrambled!