-SUBTRACTION-

Subtraction is typically regarded as absence or negation, something that takes and never gives, something missing where something should be. But this is not the case. Most objects provide utility from their lack of space just as much as their physical attributes, whether it's the air in a combustion engine, the opening in a door, or the void inside a cup. It is also a critical methodology in both computer graphics and fine art, a technique so subconscious and biological we do not often recognize it directly. Thus, Subtraction is the meeting place of ThankYouX and mpkoz in their most recent collaboration, the empty shape in the middle of the overlap of their skills and passions.

A GAN was trained on over 10 years’ worth of ThankYouX paintings, providing each Form of Subtraction with a unique and unrepeatable central texture. All other behavior and geometry is procedurally created by custom generative software. Many traits and combinations of behaviors are possible, furthering the individuality of each piece. However, the central theme of positive and negative forces exists in all.

As Subtraction in nature and industry provides utility, so will these tokens. They will afford their holders exclusive access to future ThankYouX and mpkoz projects–solo and collaborative, digital and physical. This is only the beginning.