The Lightbulb Man is a Non-Fungible Token (NFT) collection by Norwegian artist Bjarne Melgaard released in early 2022. The collection was Melgaard's first blockchain-based art collection.^[2]

Overview

First Drop: Genesis

The Lightbulb Man NFT collection by Bjarne Melgaard was released on Ethereum in January 2022. Heading up the project as a founder and NFT curator is serial entrepreneur and blockchain enthusiast Sam Farao, who's been an avid collector of Melgaard's art for years. The art drop of 1025 pieces is an evolution of Bjarne's 1998 creation, The Lightbulb Man, meant to represent the individuals of the grunge scene of New York City. It was originally a world-famous sculpture cast in bronze that has been reimagined in lucid colors and trippy visuals for the metaverse.^[10]

Melgaard decided to leave his creations unnamed for the first time in his career. This allowed new owners to select a name that they can identify with, enhancing the ownership experience.^[14]

The Lightbulb Man has already been digitized previously with the help of augmented reality through a mobile app. In this particular VR artwork, called My Trip (2019), the Lightbulb Man is sitting at a desk where he smokes DMT and watches a series of monitors in front of him. Later on, Bjarne decided to experiment with the Metaverse, creating the world of Skygge. Skygge is a virtual space where members can win competitions, get early access to sales, and claim prizes from community games.^[8][15]

Virtual Reality

Melgaard's virtual reality artwork, My Trip (2019) takes the viewer/user on a journey to the farthest reaches of the dark web. He created immersive virtual landscapes, partaking in a VR exhibition in Berlin where he utilized digital mediums to replicate the experience of the naturally occurring chemical DMT, a naturally occurring drug, which is produced by a gland in the brain. DMT is considered the strongest hallucinogenic chemical substance and is found in almost every living organism on Earth.

This program has first taken place at Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, in January 2020.
His work featuring characters that have recurred in the artist’s practice for over 25 years, including Lightbulb Man and Octo, is an addition to new mutants and personalities.^[4]

Second Drop: WAT Collection

WAT Collection is the second drop by Bjarne Melgaard that explores the theme of substance use and its effects. By owning any WAT NFT, one gains access to the community, as well as a chance to secure their LBM’s twin.^[13] The collection was described on the official Twitter account in the following way:

"The Lightbulb Men are reliant on a chemical compound known as 'WAT' which allows them to cope in the desolate and barren land of Skygge. The Watson Empire created the electrifying combination to power capital cities before the big bad wiped out."^[16]

Tech Rave

The Tech Rave, a virtual art party, celebrated the release of Melgaard’s The Lightbulb Man NFT collection and took place in Decentraland. The event featured Norway's DJs Prins Thomas, Lindstrom, Might be Twins DJ duo, and a kink event U OK HUN?. The event was live-streamed. Attendees were able to redeem a free collectible piece of art designed exclusively for the event by Bjarne himself through the POAP App. The POAP acts as a digital token and memento it can be stored in the digital wallet.^[12]