Reflection

Surrounded by all the buzz in Firefly Forest, NFTrex suddenly felt something come to mind. It was a friendly toad who liked to stay out of sight, so it cleverly hopped on top of things to hide. Wanting to get a look & ‘meat’ this new friend, NFTrex peaked into the water. Taken back by a moment of self reflection, NFTrex stayed still while taking in all the beauty around. Further distracting the dinosaur from becoming its dinner, the clever toad showed NFTrex why we shouldn’t eat our friends and that they’re ‘mint’ to be collected instead! Yet still hearing the grumbling of hunger, the toad recommended NFTrex head out to the Opensea to see what other friends could be found!

-Inspiration- As I’m surrounded by a buzzing world of creators & creativity, I’ve been doing a lot of self reflecting. Specifically in wanting to create in this space, while creating a safe space for my creativity to thrive. I will forever be a believer that we must take moments to “Make Something & Grow”. In this moment, through the calming creation of this art, I feel that I’m growing. With this growth into wed3, I am soaking in & inspired by the wisdom around me. This piece celebrates two Artists that I have connected with. Not only through conversations, but with them I have found the feeling of commonality in our protection of our creativity & craft. As you may have guessed, the toad is a nod to the ever-so-loved & talented @gremplin. Being a respected Artist in the space, he has created a long list of valuable & creative collections. CrypToadz being amongst my favorite! What I love about Toadz, in relation to gremplin, is that to me it’s a perfect depiction of who he is. A creature that likes to stay out sight, yet he cleverly always remains top of mind! He’s currently in a space of being happily tucked away, though I secretly can’t wait until he hops out of the forest with a new collection! Meanwhile, the buzzing of all the fireflies are the little sparks of joy & inspiration I feel from Gossamer Rozen (@grelysian), who lights up web3 with her beautiful & glowing creativity. Tigerbob was my first NFT purchase, and I’ve been so impressed with what all Gossamer is building within her brand. She’s one of the most talented & creative Artists I’ve met, constantly making new things while speaking to the importance of protecting her mental & creative health. She’s involved in a number of other projects, both passion & partnerships, constantly fueling & strengthening the joy she has within her creativity. The inspiration of this whole scene is a celebration of her work for @WoodiesOfficial, a brilliant collection in partnership with Chris Wallace & UltraDao. I hope this firefly creation fills you with a curiosity to go find & follow my friends, and collect their creations!

-Details- Created by Illustrator & Animator Rachel Ryle, mixed media digital cel animation using stop motion techniques; 13-second looping film; mp4; 1080px1080px. The first collector of each drop in this Storybook Series will receive a custom-made printed storybook - containing all of the artwork from the full NFTrex collection! Collectors please contact @rachelryle directly via social for your special storybook creation!