I was curious about how many derivatives existed and wondered what was “the first” derivative was. So after some research I put a timeline together.
The derivative timeline is my effort to organize a set of projects that took inspiration, visual elements, and project elements from the CryptoPunks across a multi-year timeline from 2017-2021. This is a non-exhaustive visual, and is only meant to be representational of the growth of CryptoPunks derivatives and altpunks.
The Historical Timeline
Additional CryptoPunks Derivatives Resources:
PDF Version of the Historical Timeline – A multi-year timeline from 2017 – 2021.
The Unofficial Punks: A collection of 100 custom CryptoPunk-inspired designs that stands as a pioneering force, acting as the “progenitor of a sprawling decentralized art movement” – the Altpunks. The Unofficial Punks revolutionized the concept of using CryptoPunks as a template for personal expression and aesthetic exploration.
A Short History of Alt-punks (2-min read) – Alt-punks are a crypto-native art movement that began as an organic social collaboration and an homage to the CryptoPunks in February 2021.
CryptoPunks and Copyright: A two articles that attempt to capture the discussion around CryptoPunks and issues related to their copyright.
IttyBits – A 10k PFP project created by @posvar where each Cryptopunk constrained to 12×12 pixels, while retaining their original ID #s and traits.
Punkism – A growing collection of artists and artworks curated by @piv_piv that use the CryptoPunks as a template for creative exploration and artistic expression.
PunkMaker – An app created by @gwendall that allows you to create your own CryptoPunk
A Spreadsheet of CryptoPunks Derivatives (Outdated) – A big list of CryptoPunks derivatives and alt-punks that served as my original source material for the visualized timeline. Most of the projects listed not included in the timeline above. This is not yet an exhaustive list, but it is a good representation of the creativity in remix culture.