The Sphere
The Sphere is a transdisciplinary research-creation collective working on the creation of a web 3.0 digital platform, functioning as an open, contributive value network.
The spirit of the open-source movement:
In the spirit of the open-source movement, the platform will allow every agent of the performing arts ecosystem to participate directly in the development of new organizational, aesthetic and economic forms.
It’s both a new business model and an integrated digital ecosystem for artistic production.
Four interconnected operating layers
The Sphere’s digital infrastructure is made up of four interconnected operating layers.
1st layer: Anarchive:
A directory of traces:
The anarchive is defined as a repertoire of traces of collaborative research-creation events.
The idea is that traces are not inert, but are carriers of potential.
They can be reactivated, and their reactivation makes it possible to trigger a new event which continues the creative process from which they came, but in a new iteration.
Thus, the anarchive is not the documentation of past activity.
Rather, it is a feedback mechanism (amplifying loop) within the creative process.
The archive waypoint for the anarchive:
The anarchive needs documentation – the archive – from where it starts and through which it passes.
It is a surplus energy of the archive: a kind of supplement or added value of the archive.
Its complementary and excessive nature means that it is never contained in a particular archive or in a piece of documentation contained in an archive.
It is never contained in an object.
The anarchive is made up of the formative movements that enter and leave the archive, for which the objects contained in the archive serve as a springboard.
The anarchive as such is made up of formative tendencies, of compositional forces in search of a new form.
Archives are their points of passage.
The anarchive is by nature a cross-platform phenomenon.
It is activated in relays: between the media, between verbal and material expressions, and above all between all the archival forms it can take.
The anarchive is linked to the event: a kind of derivative of the event, or surplus value of the event.
2nd layer: the blockchain:
Smart contracts for rights management and Contributive Commons licensing.
The blockchain-based, commons-oriented rights management system guarantees reliable, granular data lineage and provenance, enabling revenue generation in an open (unforgeable) economy.
The integration of intellectual property rights powered by blockchain technology aims to facilitate the remuneration of content creators, as well as the distribution and creative remixing of their works in a sustainable way for the whole community.
3rd layer: Contributory accounting system:
The design of the contributory accounting system is based on the extensive research conducted by the P2P Foundation and its partners on this issue.
Robust visualization tools are a key element in enabling stakeholders to see their contribution as part of a wider collaborative ecosystem.
4th layer: Crypto-economic model:
The design of a native blockchain-based economic infrastructure represents the final layer of The Sphere ecosystem.
It acts as an economic interface for agents operating inside and outside its ecosystem.
It enables innovative ways of raising funds.
It also includes an integrated, automated wealth redistribution mechanism, enabling every participant – artist and audience alike – to become a stakeholder in a given project and/or in The Sphere as a whole.
Main objectives and political positioning
The main objective of The Sphere is to enable a step change in the way we think about and manage creative processes and intellectual property in the performing arts and beyond, that is, the way we (an ) archive, express and organize around artistic proposals and ideas.
From experience, we know that blockchain pioneers are delighted to collaborate with ethical and artistic partners from non-market-oriented sectors.
Futurists warn of the dangers of leaving new technological advancements (web 3.0) entirely in the hands of technologists and business entrepreneurs.
Through The Sphere, circus artists will collaborate with technologists, presenters, audiences and a diverse range of stakeholders to build a resilient, innovative community.
Funded by the European Commission’s Creative Europe 2020-2023 program.