Crypto Moments - by Ben Brauser (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Strap in for a raucous ride through the ever-evolving history of Bitcoin.

Replete with details guaranteed to shock and inspire, Crypto historian Ben Brauser and Cheyne Mackie's account of the genesis and history of cryptocurrency is a captivating journey through the basics of the paradigm-shattering currency, with key detours into fascinating crypto trivia that may transform the way you think about the concept of money.

Consider the common pizza. While some would guess that the first-ever object purchased with a Bitcoin had to be more spectacular, it was indeed two supreme pies. Large. As crypto-experts Brauser and Mackie illustrate, the ongoing story of cryptocurrency is charming, quirky, and unexpectedly action-packed. It's a trip through a quantum universe of strangeness. You'll encounter:

• A pseudonymous coder acting on a utopian vision. Nakamoto has never been identified, but Brauser and Mackie provide fascinating clues to his identity.
• Unimaginable sums of money spent on utterly ephemeral art objects-and the art market will never be the same!
• Illicit transactions over the dark web.
• Highly consequential coding overseen by the quirkiest-imaginable individuals.
• A civil war fought over the very infrastructure of Bitcoin.

With the pace of a breaking-news cycle, Ben Brauser and Cheyne Mackie take us on a wild ride through the rapid highs and lows of cryptocurrency's past, where each moment in the saga is not only compelling, but transformative, and absolutely essential for understanding the coming crypto-currency, decentralized economy barreling down upon us.

About the Author

Ben Brauser's professional career began in the legal field as an attorney specializing in corporate law. Subsequently, he joined his family office to work as in-house counsel. In that role he began investing in the stock market and various private and public ventures, particularly focused on technology. However, his true passion was ignited when he stumbled upon the world of Web3 and NFTs. He quickly realized how revolutionary and life changing crypto and NFTs are and will become. Communities are a big part of NFTs, and through one of those, he was fortunate to meet Csaw. The minute Csaw shared the idea of Crypto Moments and the opportunity to build it with him he didn't hesitate, and the rest is history.

Being in the crypto space for over a decade, Csaw has been at the forefront of the adoption wave. In the early days, Csaw built brokerages, set up Bitcoin ATMs around the world, and ran a bitcoin exchange. Pivoting from bitcoin, Csaw then took a step back and began passionately trading and experimenting with all the newest techs and trends - from participating in the ICO craze, DeFi summer, Tomb Fork season, and eventually landing in the NFT space. Here he found his community, and once again his passion had been reignited. Csaw foresees the next ten years to be even bigger with Crypto Moments diving deep into all the space has to offer.

Darius Puia (Baka) widely recognized as BakaArts, emerges from Germany as a boundary-pushing Digital Art Designer. With a journey spanning 17+ years, Darius breathes life into surreal, cyberpunk, and science fiction designs. Expertise in vibrant, modern and hyper-detailed artwork define his unique style. Embracing design challenges, Darius fearlessly shapes the dystopian future, infusing it with an unmistakable artistic vision.

Luke Hadland (ROLU) likes to explore - to find wild hideouts in nature and the uncanny corners of urban sprawl - always carrying a sketchbook. He worked in Medical Science while holding the occasional exhibition and painting murals, until web3 finally allowed him to embrace art as a full-time career. He creates surreal characters, scenes of flowing linework and 3D curiosities - forever wanting to blend mediums and explore new methods of interaction with art. ROLUs art is made to capture the imagination, with details to encourage viewers to take the time to find hidden secrets. ROLU has worked with many projects, creating the art for the generative music collection OMGKirby GENESIS, commissioned art of RENGA, MAYC, GutterCats, WAGDIE, and more. His own collection MEMES by ROLU is a humorous take on the web3 space while sticking to his illustrative style. In the physical world, ROLU has held large scale exhibitions, created art for vinyl bus wraps, as well as murals in pubs, cafes, offices and community space.

Alexey Devyanin (Pixelord) is an audiovisual artist who took up NFT in 2021, collaborating with a number of popular NFT artists and now creating his own NFT on various platforms. His style combines techniques such as webpunk, surrealism, pixel art, 3D, generative and AI, so his visuals and sound stand out in any collection. Pixelord sold its first largest collection of GM Punks in 2021, a collection of 303 characters. He also released many other smaller collections, such as Meta Ravers (characters with music) and GMs on Opensea, as well as 1/1 works on Foundation, most of which sold out. Pixelord has collaborated with several major collections and names in the NFT, such as Mr. Oizo and others. In 2022 he created digital costumes that can be worn by the metaverse, recorded an NFT course, and launched new art collections. At the moment he is developing his style on different NFT platforms, actively uses neural networks in his art and writes music.

Phuncal lives and works in Beijing as an animation director and screenwriter, and also a trainee techno music producer and a fan of old movies. Though phuncal initially loved painting, when he was introduced to film he realized that this is what he wanted to pursue for the rest of his life. After graduating from the Beijing Film Academy, he worked on many animated films, commercials and series, experimenting with a variety of artistic styles, and in 2008, phuncal founded Shockunit Studio, which is dedicated to the development and production of original projects. Animation is the language he uses to communicate with reality.

Beginning as early as 2007, Dawid Imach (Peekcell) embarked on a journey into the realm of digital art and graphic design. Utilizing the potential of Photoshop combined with his passion for pixelated art he originally focused on playful amalgamations and humorous art for the communities he was a part of. It wasn't until he dabbled into the world of photography that he truly recognized his true artistic voice. Capturing everyday moments through the lens of a camera wherever he went brought such tranquility and peace that it eventually became not just an integral part of his art, but life as well. With inspiration drawn from moments, the human body, music, the sun and virtually everything that surrounds him, he brings a unique sense of style into his work that also includes a dash of distinctive humor making his art very recognizable to his fans. Currently Peekcell is very focused on the ever evolving NFT space and is devoted to building and creating within it.