Digital Art Collaboration with Vectorvault
To celebrate their Centennial Anniversary, Canadian Tire has collaborated with Toronto Digital Visual Artist Vectorvault to create 20 of 100 commemorative NFTs. These one of a kind digital keepsakes are blockchain-verified and crafted in Canada.
Canadian Tire enters the Metaverse
You could win one of these exclusive Canadian Tire NFTs by visiting their VR Tree Decorator. Solve 5 challenges for your chance to *win one of 100 NFTs by 5 Canadian NFT creators.
*Rules at treedecorator.canadiantire.ca
Canada’s Brand
Canadian Tire Corporation, Limited (est. 1922) is a Canadian retail company which operates in the automotive, hardware, sports, leisure and housewares sectors. For a hundred years they have served as the benchmark for quality and customer service. For their very first NFT collection, Canadian Tire is collaborating with home grown digital creators Celine, Paul, Olya, Josh and Adam to capture the spirit of Canada’s Store on the blockchain – forever.
Canadian Creator
For over 30 years, Adam Jarvis has been creating digital art in Toronto under his artistic persona: Vectorvault. As a celebrated Creative Director, he has worked with some of the world’s most exciting brands and artists. Recognized by Canada Council for the Arts as an official Canadian Digital Visual Artist, he continues to produce acclaimed NFTs that punctuate moments on the blockchain forever.
20 one of a kind Canadian Tire NFTs created by Vectorvault
Along with 4 other digital artists, I was asked to create a series of 20 digital pieces. Ten that focused on the past 100 years and another ten that looked ahead towards the next century. Both halves of this collection complement each other.
The approach
For my portion of the collection, I decided to take a closer look at the Canadian Tire brand. Supplied with an assortment of vintage photos, logos and branding examples, I aggregated as much as I could into a series of hand drawn sketches. From there, I moved to the computer, crafting a multi-layered template that would not only display well in a digital art frame, but also look great on a mobile device. Each of these digital certificates are centred around a single word that embodies the brand. A gold plate at the footer carries the unique certificate number for each one of a kind original artwork.
Past 100 Years
For the first 10 “past 100” versions, I used vintage Canadian Tire photography as the foundation. From the bottom, a magical spire of stardust rises up into the classic CT 100 ornament. These details represent the wishes, wants and dreams of Canadians from across the country. That energy is processed within the ornament and then translated into a series of solutions represented by optimistic, climbing light flares from the top of the ornament. This flow then reverses, representing the energy that Canadian Tire returns to communities from coast to coast. This series is steeped in classic holiday memories.
Next 100 Years
The second set of 10 focuses on the next 100 years. Modern storefronts change the pace, but still maintain the qualities on which the brand was founded. The rising energy pillar in this version is far more organic. It also culminates within a metaverse inspired ornament that also translates requests into results and then reflects them back to Canadians. Although the future is difficult to illustrate, the intention to live up to the dreams of the past are evident.
The Process
Unlike most computer animation today that relies on artists instructing computer software to move objects, this entire collection was manually animated one keystroke at a time. Using traditional techniques akin to early cell animation, vector and raster frames were created and modified one frame at a time to produce the illusion of movement. This painstaking process gives the work a great deal of humanity and artistry.
Brand montage / NFT Inspiration:
The two main applications used to produce this collection are Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop. Anyone who works with this software combination knows that they complement each other seamlessly. And after working with them for over 30 years, I have yet to master either. They are quite simply the best imaging software duo ever created. This project has challenged me to push my own understanding of each and attempt to showcase my technique at the highest level.
Dedication
Together, these two halves form a collection of 20 NFTs that serve as a portrait of “Canada’s brand”. This collection is dedicated to the people who have made Canadian Tire what it is today and those who will help to shape it in the years to come.
Blockchain-verified NFT Collection
These 1 one of a kind digital collectables have been minted as NFTs or non-fungible tokens. How can the uniqueness of this art be verified? By the blockchain. An encrypted network that serves as an uneditable ledger of transactions and ownership of digital assets. This allows individuals to buy, sell and transfer digital art the same way that they would with traditional art. Because the blockchain is uneditable, the provenance (history of ownership) of these artworks will be captured for years to come.
Standing on guard for thee since 1993
For over 3 decades I’ve been making digital art in Toronto. Long before there was even a market for it. Blockchain technology allows artists like me to write their own history in permanent marker. My collection of NFTs are not only sound investments in Canadian art, they also serve as proof that I was here. A special thank you to Canadian Tire and Leo Burnett for this unique experience.
Adam Jarvis
As Principal and Creative Director for Juggernaut Illustration and Design Inc. (est. 1993), Adam works on projects for a small group of dedicated clients. Using his established network, he continues to provide premium quality creative, topped with old school Canadian customer service. He does what he says he’s gonna do, when he says he’s gonna do it.
Invest in the artist, not the art
Curious about NFTs and cryptocurrency, but don’t know where to start? Start right here. First establish a crypto wallet. Then explore the work of these Canadian Creators. Your purchase will be transferred into your wallet. And just like that, you’re an NFT collector.
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