Liquidity Layer is an artwork on an ERC-20 token, transforming market activity into a collaborative, generative, self-consuming force.
Each trade leaves a mark. Buys and sells pile up.
Until nothing remains but speculation.
Infrastructure as art
The work operates across multiple layers
- Visual: Each trade leaves a mark
- Economic: A self-consuming coin that destroys itself as it's traded
- Extensions: A growing NFT series, each minted by burning the original coin
Visual layer: Rendering speculation as image
Each buy or sell modifies the image, stacking transactions as visual noise. The more liquidity flows, the more the original artwork disappears.
+ and – elements use a subtractive blend mode: when they overlap, they cancel out, turning black. Over time, these overlaps accumulate, erasing the image instead of revealing it.
Every transaction is a visual trace. But more activity doesn’t bring clarity. It brings void.
With enough volume, the image disappears entirely. Not in a sudden flash, but through slow erosion. A visual record of exchange, fading to darkness.
Economic layer: The self-consuming token
Liquidity Layer doesn’t just visualize speculation. It consumes itself through it.
Initially deployed with 1 billion tokens, the total supply is being slowly reduced as the token is traded.
The project earns 0.5% - 1% of all trading volume involving the token. These rewards are sent to a public, permissionless contract which swaps the rewards for Liquidity Layer tokens and permanently burn them.
This turns every trade, every movement of value, into destruction.
The more speculation there is, the faster the artwork erases itself.
This mechanism extends the core idea of Liquidity Layer. Turning speculation into both medium and message, until nothing remains but proof of participation.
Extension layer: Creation accelerates destruction
Layers is an ongoing series of ERC-1155 NFTs that expand the original artwork only mintable by burning the original coin
Each minted as a 24-hour open edition for 1 million Liquidity Layer tokens.
Each extension is a standalone piece, building on the logic and concept of Liquidity Layer. But they all share one core mechanic: minting requires 1 million Liquidity Layer tokens, and every token used is permanently burned.
The more these extensions are collected, the fewer Liquidity Layer tokens exist, accelerating the original artwork's self-destruction.
difference of opinion
Edition of 21
transactions stack in a difference blend mode, revealing and obscuring the image beneath, perception shaped by speculation
mood
Edition of 10
an evolving picture of collective sentiment the gradient evolves as the liquidity layer token is traded
Customer
Edition of 45 - guest artist: Jack Butcher
Liquidity, served cold A Jack Butcher & ripe collaboration
copy trade
Edition of 10 - guest artist: Derrick Kempf
Copy Trade explores the intersection of art, finance, and culture through the lens of tokenized community. Inspired by the Liquidity Layer token, the work reflects on how copying, whether of trades or artworks, creates entirely new perspectives. Each iteration, each interpretation, accumulates into a layered collage, revealing a visual narrative that is both derivative and original. The natural paper tears of the iconic Mona Lisa prints echo the patterns of token charts, linking the technicalities of financial markets with the organic processes of artistic creation. Simultaneously, the work comments on the cultural forces that shape narratives through repetition, bootlegs, and reinterpretations. This culture is defined by the contributions of artists, communities, and marketplaces… where ideas are born, shared, and transformed. For me, both Liquidity Layer and collage-making are acts of dedication, requiring time, energy, and careful curation to build a new story from existing elements. Copy Trade invites viewers and holders alike to consider how we spend our time and attention, and to reflect on what we choose to trade it for.
Visibility layer: Display Liquidity Layer in your art collection
One problem with putting art on ERC-20 coins is that most wallets and marketplaces won’t show ERC-20 artwork the way they do NFTs.
This means collectors miss out on showcasing Liquidity Layer in their collections.
The solution
The Liquidity Layer Contributor NFT bridges the gap between ERC-20 art and NFT display infrastructure so you can show off your Liquidity Layer participation just like any other onchain collectible.
It’s a non-transferable NFT that mirrors each collector’s share of the coin. Anyone holding at least the minimum balance of Liquidity Layer receives the NFT.
The NFT metadata and image are generated on-chain by a separate renderer contract and shows your real-time percentage of the total supply and the exact same image as the coin itself.
The NFT is non-transferable: transfer and approval functions are disabled. That way, it really just represents “I hold Liquidity Layer,” not a tradable asset.
If your token balance ever drops below the eligibility threshold, the NFT gets burned. If you later rebuild your balance, you can mint that same NFT again.
Proof of process
The code that powers Liquidity Layer’s image updates is fully open-source. Anyone can inspect, fork, or build on top of it.