Pussy Riot’s Nadya Tolokonnikova Is Leading the Feminist Crypto Revolution

C rypto has gone to the bros. That’s what Nadya Tolokonnikova believes. But Tolokonnikova – best known as the creator of the feminist protest-art collective Pussy Riot – has a plan to take it back.

Two years ago, Pussy Riot dropped their first NFT, Panic Attack, which raised funds for victims of domestic violence in Russia and initiated Tolokonnikova’s interest in web 3. “Crypto is supposed to be idealistic and revolutionary,” she says, noting that today most web infrastructure is controlled by large corporations, banks and governments. “What is the point of revolution that leads right back to finance bros getting all the benefit?”

The internet was founded with revolutionary potential, and Tolokonnikova thinks that web 3 offers a revival of its subversive undercurrent. Last year, on the 10th anniversary of her two-year imprisonment for participating in Pussy Riot’s anti-Putin protest “Punk Prayer,” Tolokonnikova cofounded Unicorn DAO, a loose affiliation of art collectors and NFT enthusiasts who share one goal: to bring more tools, capital and power to women-identifying and LGBTQ+ artists. Now, she’s curated an auction at Sotheby’s, open for bidding through 14 March.

Tolokonnikova and her cofounder, John Caldwell (aka VegSurfer), a venture partner at Wave Financial, were motivated by the fact that work by women artists consistently sells for less than their male peers, leading to economic barriers and professional scrutiny. “Capital is still vastly concentrated in the hands of men – they still rule the world,” says Tolokonnikova. “And it’s not cute.”

DAO, or decentralized autonomous organization, is a big phrase for a digital collective. DAOs are leaderless and self-governing, and their decision-making is collective – ideals that align with Tolokonnikova’s anarchist politics. “In many ways, Pussy Riot was an early DAO – a loose and leaderless organization with a singular mission, many members and equality of decision-making in its ethos,” she says. “Back then, the only reward we could offer for participation was jail time. Now we can offer an NFT or POAP or maybe inclusion in a Sotheby’s sale benefitting reproductive rights.”

And from 7–14 March, Unicorn DAO is offering exactly that. The auction My Body, My Business features 32 artworks made by women-identifying artists, curated by Tolokonnikova and Unicorn DAO. A portion of the sale’s proceeds will benefit a number of reproductive health organizations, including Planned Parenthood.

The auction is the latest example of how Unicorn DAO pools resources and directs them in ways that improve conditions for artists. The DAO runs a “war chest” of funds that they use to acquire work and support strategic investments, such as in Dirt, a women-led web 3 company. But the “real power” of Unicorn DAO, according to Tolokonnikova, is in the reach and communal strength of its network, which allows them to mobilize quickly in response to current events. Beeple recently agreed to showcase work by the collective’s artists in his new gallery in Charleston, SC. And after Roe v. Wade was overturned, Unicorn DAO spearheaded the launch of Proof of Protest, a collection of NFTs sold to support reproductive rights. “The concept was molotov bottles of liquid feminism.”

“DIY is so important within punk and activist causes,” Tolokonnikova continues. A second DAO she organized, Ukraine DAO raised over $7 million selling NFTs of the Ukrainian flag – minted from a JPEG she simply downloaded from the internet. “With crypto you have all these building blocks that you can put together in minutes to create powerful, trust-less, globally reaching financial systems. We are taking power back from large banks and governments that can choose to censor or block people on a whim. This is the first time when anarchy is not just a promise, it’s actually something achievable.”

Anarchist in principle, the sentiment finds appeal among investors. “Buying female+ art is not an act of charity, it is a strategic investment into what we believe is an undervalued asset class,” says Caldwell, who runs Wave’s NFT Fund. “Working with Nadya on Ukraine DAO and now Unicorn DAO has been inspirational, as we can start to enact meaningful social change with web 3 tools.”

My Body, My Business places work by some of the most established traditional artists alongside trailblazing digital creators – all empowered by a common cause. The auction takes its name from a work by Michele Pred, who has long explored women’s rights. “People like the Guerrilla Girls have talked about lack of inclusivity in the art world forever, so this is not something new. However we look at this moment as being malleable,” says Tolokonnikova. Marina Abromović (“like my godmother”) donated The Current to the auction, while Jenny Holzer is represented by a plaque that reads, “Go where people sleep and see if they are safe.”

“It’s such an honor to work with goddesses like Cindy Sherman, Andrea Bowers, Ellen von Unwerth,” Tolokonnikova continues. “And it’s so amazing to show emerging web 3 artists alongside them.” One lesser-known figure is Zhanna Kadyrova, an artist from Ukraine whose PALIANYTSIA depicts a humble loaf of bread, elevated to a symbol of national identity and solidarity during Russia’s invasion.

“We still have the same ethos as Pussy Riot did over 10 years ago: bringing equality, justice and joy to communities that have been historically underrepresented,” says Tolokonnikova. “Unicorn DAO is here to redistribute wealth and to allow women and LGBTQ+ people to empower themselves.”

AUCTION

My Body, My Business

7 March 2023 | 14 March 2023 | New York

_{Portrait of Nadya Tolokonnikova courtesy Pussy Riot}