NFT Art Project Donates $4,500 to Reef Preservation
Proceeds from the sale of 57 Vanishing Murals NFT artworks are going to Fish Pono and its coral reef conservation education efforts.
The Vanishing Murals Hawaii Ocean NFT art project, created by Hawai‘i-born artist Jana Ireijo, donated $4,500 to Fish Pono-Save Our Reef to support its educational campaign to encourage responsible fishing of seaweed-eating fishes, thereby enhancing the resilience of Hawaii’s coral reefs.
Sale of the unique NFT artworks launched in late October 2023, with 20% of each sale donated to Fish Pono. The NFT project is a genesis collection of three distinctive non-fungible token (NFT) artworks inspired by Hawaii’s ocean, astrology and the 1970s.
Ireijo elaborately hand-painted each of the designs — ‘Moemoeā’, ‘Pilina, As Above So Below’, and ‘Stay Wild, Uluwehi’ — on canvas before digitally replicating each artwork into a CryptoArt collection of 57 dynamic NFT artworks.
Maintaining the unique element of “vanishing” in Jana’s artwork, these creative NFTs are also “dynamic” meaning they evolve and transform based on Hawaii ocean water temperatures every 12 hours, using blockchain technology environmental data pulled from the Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System (PacIOOS). If the ocean water temperature is too high or low, the NFT starts to vanish, signaling undesirable conditions for marine life.
Ocean water temperatures are a good indicator of whether coral reefs are able to thrive.
“As an environmental artist, my collaboration with Fish Pono—Save Our Reefs is timely and vital as it signifies a shared commitment to preserve and protect our islands’ precious and fragile coral reefs,” explained Ireijo. “I am honored to be included as part of the Fish Pono ‘ohana and the opportunity to contribute to a group of storytellers for the ocean, working together to create a narrative of resilience, unity, and sustainability.”
“Fish Pono is grateful for the partnership with Jana and the generous donation from the Vanishing Murals project which allows us to continue our grassroots public education campaign,” said Dr. Mark Hixon, a Fish Pono scientific advisor. “This unique NFT project blends art, technology, science and environmental advocacy to remind us of the critical kuleana we all have to replenish Hawaii’s herbivore fish populations to foster healthy coral reefs.”
In addition to supporting Fish Pono–Save Our Reefs, holders of the Vanishing Murals NFT artworks will be given benefits and perks with a network of partners, all of whom are mission-aligned in ocean conservation and protection.
Learn more about the Vanishing Murals Hawaii Ocean NFT art project here.
About Fish Pono–Save Our Reefs
Fish Pono–Save Our Reefs is a growing ʻohana of ocean-lovers, scientists, watermen and women, fishers and like-minded organizations that care about our Hawaiian Islands, the culture, and the reefs that surround them. We envision a Hawaii with thriving, self-sustaining coral reefs and fisheries by replenishing herbivore populations so they can foster healthy coral reefs. For more information visit: fishpono.org.
About Mural Ethos: Vanishing Murals
Hawai‘i-born Jana Ireijo is the founder of Mural Ethos: Vanishing Murals. After receiving a BFA in Graphic Design from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, she moved to NYC to obtain an MFA in Painting from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. The NFT project is part of her homecoming back to Hawaii. In April 2021 she created a Vanishing Coral Reef mural for The Nature Conservancy at the Maui Ocean Center.
Jana began creating large-scale vanishing murals, using non-permanent mediums, including foraged wildfire charcoal and earth pigments such as red dirt, alaea, ōlena, seaweed, and algae to create murals that are temporary and return to earth with the elements. Her vanishing murals illustrate the effects of climate change on the environment, vulnerable species, and habitats to raise awareness and inspire action. Her hope is that her art inspires the viewer with a sense of urgency to take collective action.
About Vanishing Murals NFTs
An NFT (Non-Fungible Token) is a personally owned digital image that cannot be forged or manipulated. The Vanishing Murals NFTs are artworks that have been created on canvas and then digitized as NFTs, each with ownership directly transferred by the artist, Jana Ireijo, to the collector. Each Vanishing Mural NFT in this collection is linked to oceanographic data, such that the image fades when conditions for coral reefs are poor and revives when conditions are favorable.
