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We are honoured to host the first NFT by celebrated titan of the digital art space, Ryoji Ikeda. A Single Number That Has 10,000,086 Digits demonstrates a natural evolution of this prolific artist’s practice into the NFT realm. Permeating the totality of the image, the viewer is immediately lost amongst an immense expanse of data - specifically a single number. A visual enigma emerges as the work contains a unique number comprising exactly 10,000,086 digits; its seemingly random nature means there is no way to verify its randomness or ascertain any kind of pattern. Ikeda’s number transcends human comprehension and is only made tangible through the artist’s depiction. Doubtless, this is the first occasion these specific digits have been presented before our eyes since the dawn of time. Redirected to thoughts of the endless existence of undiscovered and unseen numbers, Ikeda’s dynamic marriage of mathematics and visual representation caters to the inherent human interest in concepts of infinity. By referencing ideas that go far beyond the remit of human understanding, the artist presents a singular number in monumental form. The unique and infinite numerical possibility explored in Ikeda’s work powerfully echo’s the nature of NFTs themselves, which are cryptographically proven to be similarly one of a kind.

Both this work, and Ikeda’s earlier A Single Number That Has 124,761,600 Digits, exhibit the influence of numerical science on his practice. Regarding the potential origin and invention of numbers themselves, the two works address one of the fundamental issues for mathematicians in the philosophy of mathematics; if the notion of numbers was gradually developed by humans throughout our evolution, would outer worldly civilizations with an alternate language and science have a different or identical conception of numbers?

This invention versus discovery debate produces no clear answer but has provided invaluable stimulus for Ikeda’s artistic expression.

Recognised as Japan’s leading electronic music composer and visual artist, Ryoji Ikeda is renowned for his unique talent across both visual and sonic media. An interest in data, mathematical aesthetics and Japanese concepts of infinity inform his diverse multimedia practice. He conflates these mediations with elaborately orchestrated sound, resulting in his mesmerising live performances and visual installations. His largest retrospective to date is opening at 180 The Strand, showcasing 12 artworks including the world premiere of Ikeda’s data verse trilogy, along with never-before-seen installations such as A (continuum). The show is a testament to this prodigious artist’s prolific investigations into the idea of data as a medium and formal content to express diverse ideas about our relationship with ourselves and the cosmos. Playing with scale, with both a focus on the minimal and the monumental, Ikeda opens our eyes to the order and chaos contained within us and outside of us.