The raffle project found its origins around 2021, as web3 and NFTs were first capturing the world's imagination. Mad King, being deeply inspired by the promise of a human-empowering decentralized technological future, set out to create a project in this new medium and harness the online community's enthusiasm to raise money for some good causes. A raffle seemed like a fun way to add a gamelike element to the experience while expanding its scale and reach, and that decision did indeed cause the project to bloom and blossom into all sorts of unexpected directions, necessitating the navigation of a number of logistical and legal challenges. As the dream grew, it was bolstered along the way by his enormously generous and supportive community, to whom the King is eternally and madly grateful.

Philosophically he wasn’t going to make any NFTs that didn’t tie into an actual physical object and if he was going to make something it was going to have to be something special and unique.  He set out to design a painting that could be animated and used for a variety of different pieces of merchandise. He enlisted the help of dear friend Kevin Kerndt, the first of many friends that he would have to rope into the project. Core to his early brainstorming and development of the project was also his “dream team” Rick Boykin, Andrea Li, and Kris Collins (AKA MOVAX).

TO THE STARS centerpiece and grand prize for the raffle, painted on mirror and wood veneer with a reverse intaglio CNC’d acrylic frame.  The single most expensive painting he has ever made.  Compositionally it is meant to resemble currency and because of his love of remixing some of his work he then made variations based on the color palettes of the world's various currency PLEASE HODL for the US green back, Huhmann TranceFur for the EURO, and s.h.I.b.a I.n.u (so her I be and I now understand) for the YEN and other golden currencies.

He then set out to make 28 different products of merchandise in 7 categories; Giclées, bandanas, pashminas, beach towels, Yoger mats, pins, Deciders.  Moving the project incrementally forward when time and resources allowed. One of the unexpected challenges to the project was just how to legally go about doing this.  He figured being a board member at the Phoenix Asylum, the 501c(3) maker space where his studio is located at, that getting a raffle license would be an easy thing… not the case.  It was only through the dogged persistence of his fellow board members Sam Ley and Madalene Fetsch that this was to be achieved.  This involved having to rewrite the Phoenix Asylum’s bylaws to include raising money for other charities, getting the game master certification, and applying for the raffle license on 5 separate occasions.

Through the course of the project he had to wear many new and different hats some of which were surprisingly ill fitting. Thankfully he was aided by his friends and community; PRYDE DESIGNS for believing in this crazy project and building the raffle site, Crissie Jackson, John Heenan and Erin Morgan with their photography and editing prowess, SP3KTR and Torae Amore aided in designing the pins and coins, Sean Gruchic of Tanzanite Productions tirelessly helped through numerous samples before they found products they liked, Brandon Brown and ((DIVERSE)) offering moral support and their musical prowesses, Eric Hegernes helped with building the frame for the painting, Oleksi Burdii with his moral support and keeping it all in perspective, Shana Boutté modeling the pashminas, Cassandra offering her sex priestess voodoo,  and Brian Smith supplying the giclées.  And of course none of this would have been possible without the help and support of his two very lovely and talented art assistants Cristal Aurelia and Juj Glosserman.