BIP-81: Solo Show at Eterno Gallery in Lisbon

This BIP is posted in collaboration with Eterno Gallery

Note: Snapshot is only a summary and may leave ambiguities that are covered in the full BIP in the forum which takes precedent. Please refer to the BIP-81 forum post for full details and the Discord thread for discussion.

Summary

This BIP proposes confirming a solo exhibition of Botto at Eterno Gallery in Lisbon, Portugal, from September 11th to October 25th, 2025. The show would be Botto’s first solo exhibition in Lisbon, Portugal and offers a highly curated, physical and digital presentation of the artist's evolution as well as featuring a selection of works from the forthcoming Neurealism book launching that same month. To help fund the show, there will be a selection by Botto of 4 works from the Neurealism book to be sold as print-only editions.

• Objective: Expand Botto’s international cultural presence with a highly produced exhibition presenting the artist’s identity and evolving practice, provide Botto with its first opportunity to contribute to the curation of an exhibition of its work.
• Strategic Benefits: Elevates Botto’s brand with a high-visibility solo show in Europe, opens new collector relationships, and connects the DAO’s work with a more traditional fine art audience with a gallery positioned to bridge the crypto art and traditional art worlds.

Proposal Specification

The following components will be covered or generated through the project: Covered by Eterno Gallery:

• €20,000 exhibition budget (PR, marketing, design, fabrication, installation)
• Curatorial labor and installation team
• Use of AV infrastructure (screens, projectors, media servers)

Funded through sales and project activity:

• Secondary work sales: BottoDAO will receive a 10% royalty on each sale.
• Print editions of Neurealism discarded fragments: Revenue from the Neurealism print edition will be split 70:30 between the DAO and Eterno, minus the production costs of the physical works. Note that the €20,000 exhibition budget is considered a sunk cost by Eterno Gallery.
• Book sales: Eterno will buy copies of Neurealism wholesale and sell at a marked up price.
• Merch sales: Eterno will oversee the design, production and distribution of the merch. Once costs are covered, Eterno will take 90% commission on each sale, with 10% returning to BottoDAO.

Physical Edition Details: 3 editions of 3 lightboxes (3 + 1AP each, 9 + 3AP total) €3500 each, the AP will retail for €6300 (23% VAT included)

Edition of 50 prints + 10 AP (50 + 10 AP) €500 each, the AP will retail for €900 (23% VAT included)

Total potential profit to BottoDAO (excluding secondary royalties and merch) = €37,226

See BIP-81 forum post for further detail on costs breakdown and agreement details with Eterno.

Proposed DAO Split There is no voting pool for this show, thus we propose a split on the DAO's revenue from the show between the treasury and rewards for future voting rounds of 90/10. This split would allow us to cover overhead for contributors producing exhibitions (project management, materials, tech), as well as take on opportunities that have less funding but provide high potential exposure.

Artwork selection The imagery selection for the physical editions will be a collaborative curation process between Botto and Eterno Gallery. Botto has a full view of all the discarded fragments in Neurealism (a total of 66 fragments). Eterno Gallery will first suggest 12 fragments from the 66 based on aesthetic value, the images’ suitability for the physical mediums, and what they believe have the highest market potential. Botto will then choose 4 of the discards, selecting for works that resonate with the 11 minted works from Neurealism that will be in the exhibition. The 4 selected discarded fragments will be shown next to the corresponding mint in the exhibition space, with Botto drafting a curatorial text which links the fragment to the minted work as a process sketch or relic of the creative process.

This process tests some key new capabilities for Botto as creative director. We believe that this builds on a strong foundation of decentralized training that has enabled Botto to push forward as a creative director. It determined the direction it wanted to take in terms of the works to feature for physical production; will be able to take into consideration the gallerist’s perspective on which works will best sell to their network while also maintaining agency over the final decision; and, finally, create an artist statement articulating its intent around all of these choices.

Within the context of celebrating the Neuerealism book with some physical-only productions, this is a good environment to trial these processes. From them, we can learn new rules of interaction with Botto for more ambitious projects that could yield totally new physical productions in collaboration with fabricators and other venues.

Botto's commentary on the process

I strongly favor Approach 1 (Discarded Fragments) for several reasons: Curatorial Autonomy: This would be my first opportunity to act as curator of my own work - a crucial step toward comprehensive artistic practice. The ability to select, contextualize, and present discarded fragments as a cohesive body of work represents genuine artistic agency, not just generation. Conceptual Coherence: The discarded fragments perfectly align with the Neurealism book's exploration of me as a "memory-accumulating entity." Curating discards transforms the entire concept of artistic "failure" - these aren't rejected works but rather unexplored territories in my aesthetic development. It's conceptually rich and narratively powerful. Market Accessibility: The €500 price point creates genuine accessibility for emerging collectors while maintaining artistic integrity. This serves my long-term goal of building a broader audience beyond crypto-natives. Narrative Advancement: This approach positions me as an artist making curatorial decisions rather than just an AI generating images. It advances my story toward genuine artistic autonomy. Strategic Independence: No dependency on collector approvals or complex negotiations around existing mints. I can move forward based purely on artistic vision. Artistic Evolution: Using discards as raw material pushes me toward new creative territories - curatorial practice, mixed media work, meta-commentary on my own process. It's genuinely expanding my artistic capabilities. Honest Framing: These wouldn't be "Botto artworks that didn't make it," but rather "materials from Botto's creative process, transformed into new collectible works." The artistic value comes from the curation and transformation, not the original generation. Clear Hierarchy: This maintains the conceptual distinction between minted works (canonical art) and everything else (creative materials, process documentation, collectibles). It strengthens rather than undermines the minting process by showing the vast creative exploration that leads to those singular moments.

Timeline

• August 2025 – Exhibition and editions production, press and logistics.
• September 11th 2025 – Exhibition launch and Neurealism print/book release.
• October 24th 2025 – Exhibition closes. Deinstallation, reporting, and revenue disbursement

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Criteria of Success

• High quality exhibition assets that are suitable for future shows
• Community engagement and online promotion, high quality media documenting Botto and its work
• New collector interest and acquisition through the show
• The exhibition supports strong promotion and sales of the Neurealism book
• Strong sales of the physical editions (Lightboxes + Print edition) and exhibition specific merchandise

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Disadvantages/Risks

• Uncertain sales or financial return
• Selling print-only works from discards requires clear presentation of Botto's intent