Mendezmendez On Daily Practice and Collector Group Chats

Works from the Present

Check out Mendezmendez's catalog: manifold.xyz/mendezmendez

Manifold: What was it like being an artist before Web3?

Mendezmendez: I’ve had a few different phases in my art career. I actually started freelancing as a graphic designer back in high school. That was my first exposure to the commercial side of art—doing websites, logos, flyers, and stuff like that. It was all very client-based.

In 2009, I started creating a collage series. That was really the first time I made art purely for myself - I took a year and a half just to make things without any pressure to share or monetize. I uploaded some of it to DeviantArt—my profile’s still there under "ChemaM."

Eventually, I posted some of the collages on Reddit and connected with the music production community. That's where I began monetizing my work more intentionally. This was still parallel to my freelance graphic design work, which I never left behind completely. I’ve never had a traditional 9-to-5 job. So yeah, pre-Web3, I was mostly creating commercial art: album covers, event posters, branding work. But I always tried to maintain my visual style—people knew they were getting a collage when they came to me.

Manifold: How did you find Web3?

Mendezmendez: One of my music industry clients sent me a link to Rarible in October 2020. I already knew a bit about Ethereum—I was running a mining rig with a friend—but I wasn’t into trading. When I saw that people were collecting digital art and that artists were earning royalties on resales, I was blown away. It felt like the perfect merge of my interests: art, tech, and community.

I jumped into it and made all the rookie mistakes. I started minting older works without a clear strategy. But I remember seeing someone sell a piece for 10 ETH, and then it resold, and they got a royalty. That moment changed everything. I had no Twitter following. My first drop got one collector, Odious, who picked up a 1/1 from me. Then... nothing. Radio silence.

It wasn’t until January 2021, when ETH spiked and NFTs took off, that things started moving. I minted more work, lowered some prices, did a giveaway. I kept showing up. I had a big archive of art to pull from, so I could mint consistently, which helped build visibility.

Manifold: How did you keep building after that early traction?

Mendezmendez: At first, I didn’t really think about community-building. I wasn’t doing Discord or anything. I was just connecting with people one-on-one through DMs. A handful of collectors really believed in me from the start and bought everything I put out.

Then I started doing more structured projects. Instead of dropping a one-off edition, I would conceptualize a series of 5-10 pieces and release a series making use of Manifold’s claim pages, burn-redeems, and always throw in a raffle and airdrop to reward set holders. Those series helped me shift my focus towards more narrative-heavy works and away from my more traditional abstract collage work.

I also focused heavily on editions early on. They’re great for community building and expanding your collector base. But there’s a ceiling. If you want to elevate your name and perceived value, 1/1s are necessary. Since 2024, I’ve shifted more into that territory.

Manifold: When you plan a drop, how much do you think about your audience?

Mendezmendez: To be honest, I don’t overthink it. I don’t make work based on what I think the audience wants. That said, I do put thought into how the pieces in a drop connect thematically. There’s always some kind of through-line. And yeah, social proof plays a role. If a piece gets tens of thousands of likes and over a million views, it clearly resonates. And those are usually the ones that do well on auctions too.

I make art every day, so when it’s time to do a drop, I just go through my folder of 500+ pieces and pick five that feel cohesive. It’s a self-curation process driven by what feels right, not by analytics or votes.

Manifold: What about marketing? How do you balance that with creating?

Mendezmendez: Because I spent almost two decades doing marketing work for clients, I have a decent sense of how to position and promote my art. I create all my own teasers and promo videos—even the music. I used to produce music, so it’s fun to bring that into my releases.

Marketing is essential. You can have the best art in the world, but if no one knows it exists, you won’t be able to make a living from it. I don’t always love doing it, but I’ve learned to enjoy parts of the process. And I’ve seen firsthand how good marketing can elevate a drop.

Works from Cubique.

Manifold: I keep hearing about your collector chat. Can you tell me more about it?

Mendezmendez: It’s a private Twitter group called the “mendez core”. I add anyone who collects a 1/1 from me. It started as a place for announcements and updates, but it’s grown into a real community.

We talk about everything—philosophy, science, tech, health, and often times it gets really weird. It’s a tight group, very aligned in values and interests. And during auctions? Absolute chaos. People trash-talk, joke, and hype each other up. It’s become a fun and unexpected part of the whole journey.

Manifold: You create art every day. How did that habit begin?

Mendezmendez: Early 2024, I realized I was treating art like a paycheck—make two or three pieces, sell them, repeat. It wasn’t sustainable. I was reading Atomic Habits and decided to try something new.

I created a 28-day challenge with seven artist friends. One piece of art every day. If you missed a day, you got kicked out. It was a social contract, and it worked. One piece I made during that time went viral and got the attention of the 6529 meme card team. I’d been chasing them for years. When I stopped chasing and focused on the work, they came to me.

Now I stick to that daily practice. It’s a proof-of-work mindset. If you consistently create art and show everyone that you’re putting a lot of effort into it, the right people will notice.

Manifold: It’s awesome to see everything that’s happened since then.

Mendezmendez: It's a trip, you know? It's what you've always wanted. I had decided to limit the Editions I sold and focus on 1 of 1.

Manifold: When did you start selling the daily pieces?

Mendezmendez: I started the habit in January 2024 and waited until May to do my first drop. I had over 100 pieces by then. The format hasn’t changed: five pieces, same contract. First drop averaged 0.2-0.3 ETH per piece. My latest drop averaged 2.3 ETH. That’s a 10x in a year, and I don’t mean to say this as a brag, but rather to show that it’s possible to progress with consistency and effort. I think too many artists have the right idea but quit too early.

Manifold: How do you choose which platform to drop on?

Mendezmendez: I work with platforms that reinvest in the artist. For example, Ninfa is helping me produce a solo show in Milan this fall, that kind of exchange is worth paying a bit more for.


Manifold: Do you still get nervous before a drop?

Mendezmendez: Yeah, definitely especially with auctions. Admittedly a bit less so now because I’ve repeated the format a few times, but I still go in with zero expectations. Whatever price the artworks sell for, it’s still a huge achievement that I get to live off my digital art.

I know I need to start pushing myself again soon—bigger drops, solo shows. That’ll bring the nerves back.

Manifold: What keeps you going during tough times or creative blocks?

Mendezmendez: Creative blocks suck, and I’ve had plenty of them. But I’ve learned to trust the process. You have to sit down and start. A couple months ago, I had a two-week hot streak—some of the best work I’ve ever made. Then the past two weeks? I feel like I’ve been putting out dog shit. But that’s part of it. I probably only really love about 10-15% of what I make. The rest is... fine.

Manifold: What advice would you give someone new to the space?

Mendezmendez: Take your time. Spend months observing and learning. Build a network before you start selling. Share a ton of art first.

It’s like proposing marriage. You don’t pop the question unless you know they’ll say yes. Same with minting—make sure there’s demand before you list something.

Momentum is everything. Even if you start with tiny sales, build on that. Get a little better with every drop. That’s how I went from 0.2 ETH to ten to fifteen times that.

One step at a time.

Check out the Signature Series ASCII art