The Vault Genesis
A long form piece by one of our co-founders on the Vault
Many may know me as ShdwEffects on Twitter, shdwfx on Discord, thecasioak on Instagram, or Huiy, one of the co-founders of CryptoDials. Beyond a username, I am an individual. An entrepreneur, an educator, an art lover, a watch enthusiast, a collector. A collector of stories, experiences and relationships, often attempting to capture moments in art, watches and other physical things.
We collect for a variety of reasons. Sometimes as a store of monetary value, sometimes as a reminder of cherished moments. Physical items can allow us to relive moments, transport ourselves to a time that is special to us, and represent milestones in our lives. Collecting is the pursuit of capturing a feeling or an object. Acquiring that next piece is to temporarily quench a thirst that may never be satisfied.
My love for watches has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. Something passed on to me from my father, along with the values which open the video below; “my parents taught me to look after things, my parents taught me the value of things”. This is a fundamental overarching theme for me, believing that our collections are ours for a time until the next caretaker, responsible to preserve the story and legacy of the pieces for those who may follow.
A motivation for my development of the CryptoDials Vault is my passion for collecting and my desire to bring together my love for watches, artwork and the potential for blockchain technology to offer the highest level of provenance on the secondary watch market. The Paul Newman Daytona auction overseen by Aurel Bacs may be recognized as one of the most iconic auctions in the history of the watch world, highlighting the significance of a specific watch owned by a individual. While there is no piece in my collection that may be deserving of a Lot No. in a Phillips Auction, no hammer price can entice me to sell the watch I wore at my wedding or the first piece I purchased from an authorized dealer. These pieces have asterisks, for all the details I want to share beyond “full kit, box and papers, service history included” but inevitably these watches will outlive me and I hope to entrust those stories to the next collector.
Most watches are produced in enormous quantities today and little makes the 5000 series Full Metal G-SHOCK in the Vault stand out besides having been mine. It’s the one captured by Kirk Lucas in THIS post; one I acquired after falling in love with watch collecting once again after purchasing a black Full Metal. It has been on adventures and great journeys, then captured for a moment in time for the 1/1 NFT for the Vault, and inevitably has a life that follows. By capturing it forever in this art piece, it gains an elevated level of provenance with its NFT. A unique NFT that I feel that I would be privileged to own and display, unlike its generic box and papers. Its an art piece created with care and attention by Kirk as part of the Vault Genesis Trinity.
The watch industry has gained a significant boost over the last few years, but what has troubled me is the potential that mainstream commercialization has taken away from the legendary stories of individual pieces. Watch brands rely heavily on marketing, enthusiasts, influencers and content creators, yet the artists are rarely celebrated. Stories of real watches used to acheive incredible feats, captured by beautiful photography, are lost amongst the ‘NWA’ posts, paid partnership releases, and leaked photos from the wrist of your favorite footballer.
Watches are bought and sold through forums, social media groups and classifieds, often with safe queens exchanging hands between dealers. Collectors have been forced to the secondary market, hoping we can get our grail from “someone you know” and we often rely on ads with six photos taken with a potato along with a mishmash of details intended to answer the queries of the most detail oriented enthusiast. We often miss the romance of acquiring a piece from an authorized dealer in a boutique or the drawn out conversations in a coffee shop when an individual entrusts you with the watch they “wish they didn’t have to sell”. While our personal watches are often featured in dozens of beautiful wristshots on Instagram, the journeys of a watch from a member of the #watchfam may be forgotten faster than someone can say “greymarket”. It begs the question, how can we ensure the history of these pieces, vintage or contemporary, is honored and how can we revive these nostalgic experiences in the modern day?
The CryptoDials Vault was developed to elevate the experience of watch collecting for the #DIALEDIN. Through the Vault, we aspire to provide watch collectors the opportunity to connect their timepieces to an art piece that represents their watch prior to passing it on to its next owner. We hope to showcase and celebrate the talent of content creators who create art pieces that represent their watches in the Vault and introduce the benefits of blockchain technology. Finally, we hope to acknowledge the stories and significance of the timepieces that bring us together.
Regardless of monetary value, the hobby brings together an international community of individuals who are fascinated by watches. The pieces in this Genesis collection were selected in part due to their significance to our founders, but also to emphasize that while these are ‘common’, they are unique and their value is not correlated to their value in ETH, Tezos or FIAT currency. The value of these pieces is to be determined by the #DIALEDIN and we have confidence that whoever chooses to acquire them and their corresponding NFT’s will love them and be the caretakers of their story moving forward.
I sincerely thank my fellow co-founder Travis Tan and founder Kirk Lucas for their support in the development of the CryptoDials Vault as well as the #DIALEDIN community. We look forward to the day that we introduce your piece into the CryptoDials Vault.
The journey of the CryptoDials Vault is just beginning and while the preliminary information regarding listing and transacting using the Vault has been released, it is important to acknowledge that a truly decentralized approach to the Vault has not been fully developed. The current model of the Vault applies aspects of traditional trading convention in watch groups and forums for ease and consistency as well as ensuring accurate representation of timepieces; various aspects will be adapted in the future. While the auction date for the Vault Genesis is TBA, bids will be made on Discord in USD and interested parties require account verification using Collabland. Sales may be reconciled using cryptocurrency or FIAT currency for these pieces and additional details to follow.
