Extraordinary People. Honorary Arkanauts.

Project Ark
5 min readApr 21, 2022

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The Arkanauts collection features some honorary Arkanauts NFTs representing extraordinary people. Our Artistic Director, Harto, designed and rendered these 1-of-1 Arkanauts with input, feedback, and approval from each subject. The team chose to partner with these specific people for several reasons, including their alignment with our mission to combat climate change, their efforts toward building a better world more broadly, and their presence and contributions to art in all its forms.

Below are brief bios of each of our honorary Arkanaut partners, as well as an image of their Arkanaut:

Dr. Sian Proctor

From drsianproctor.com:

“Dr. Proctor is a geoscientist, explorer, space artist, and astronaut. She is the mission pilot for the Inspiration4 all-civilian orbital mission to space” and “spent 21 years as a professor teaching geology, sustainability, and planetary science at South Mountain Community College, Phoenix, Arizona.” “She believes that we need to actively strive for a J.E.D.I. space: a just, equitable, diverse, and inclusive space as we advance human spaceflight.”

“[Dr. Proctor] uses her afrofuturism space art to encourage conversations about women of color in the space industry. She’s also an analog astronaut and has completed four analog missions including the all-female SENSORIA Mars 2020 mission at the Hawai’i Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS) Habitat, the NASA funded 4-months Mars mission at HI-SEAS, a 2-weeks Mars mission at the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS), and a 2-weeks Moon mission in the LunAres Habitat. She believes that when we solve for space, we also solve issues on Earth. She promotes sustainable food practices used in space exploration as a way to reduce food waste on Earth.”

Katelyn Ohashi

From katelyn-ohashi.com:

Katelyn Ohashi is “an eight-time All-American and a four-time member of USA Gymnastics’ Junior National Team, the 2011 junior national champion was the winner of the 2013 American Cup, defeating Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles to clinch the title.” “At UCLA, Ohashi majored in Gender Studies and became very involved with homeless shelters, even spearheading a fundraiser for Bruin Shelter, a student-run shelter for homeless students at the university.”

Kelly Lovell

From lovellcorporation.com:

“Kelly Lovell is globally recognized for her expertise on “BridgingTheGap” to the next generation.

From speaking at the United Nations on future skills training and youth entrepreneurship for the Sustainable Development Goals, to advising on future of work and job creation policies for the G7, G20 and W20, Kelly’s leadership impact is far-reaching. In addition to serving as President to her two companies, Lovell Corporation and MyEffect, Kelly is a 3-time TEDx speaker, a contributing partner to multiple stakeholder working groups for the Sustainable Development Goals, Startup Canada’s Young Entrepreneur of the Year, and a Queen’s Young Leader winner — a prestigious leadership award presented in person by Her Majesty the Queen to exceptional young people under 30 across the Commonwealth who are using their skills to transform lives and leave a legacy of change.”

“Spearheading the [United Nations Blockchain Commission on Sustainable Development] Youth-Led Innovation working group mandate and implementation, Ms. Lovell’s objectives will include:

  • Representing the voice and needs of young innovators, ensuring they are included in the global blockchain ecosystem
  • Educating young people on Blockchain technologies and create opportunities for them to co-create solutions
  • Investigating the impacts of blockchain–both positive and negative– on the livelihoods and economic prosperity of young people”

Gabo Arora

From gaboarora.com:

“Gabo Arora is a world renowned multi-award winning immersive artist, professor, entrepreneur and former UN diplomat who works with the most cutting-edge emerging technologies, including virtual and augmented reality, to tell some of the most important stories of our time. Widely recognized as a pioneer of new documentary formats, his work, part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, has been described by the BBC and LA Times, amongst many others, as “game changing”, “powerful, moving and without precedent”, and “transcending all the typical barriers of rectangular cinema.” He has designed and led campaigns of significant measurable impact, raising many millions of dollars, for the United Nations, UNICEF, USC Shoah foundation and the Nobel Peace Prize committee.”

Harrison First

Artist, producer, and songwriter Harrison First has bridged the gap between the music world and Web3, balancing international music collaborations and NFT releases to innovate and diversify his hustle. First has racked up over 10 million plays on Spotify and launched a series of music NFTs across multiple marketplaces. He’s created his own token ($FIRST) to enable investment in his work and access to his hottest creations.

From jnryfirst.com/harrisonfirst:

“Artist, Music Producer, And Songwriter, Harrison First Primarily Based In Stockholm Sweden And New York Has Cultivated A Sound Personal To Him. Starting Out By Building A Sound For Other Artist Harrison Decided To Build A Sound For Himself And Invite Other Artist To Be Apart Of The Experience. Evolving Greatly In The Past Couple Of Years, Harrison Has Branched Off Into Multiple Genres Of Music During His Exploration In Different Places In The World. Today Harrison First Is Currently Working Closely With Music Collaborators Such As Stockholm Based Artist Angie, Australian Artist Nyne And New York Artist Kyle The Hooligan, Nbdy, And Malmo Based Artist Eliona. Along With Many Of His Releases Harrison First Is Also Kah Lo Tour Dj As Well.”

Soltan

Soltan has made his mark on the digital art world with striking singular pieces and collections minted across a number of blockchains, including on Solana, the chosen blockchain ecosystem of the Arkanauts. His mastery of trippy animation incorporates vivid color and geometry to yield unique 2D and 3D work.

See Soltan’s mind-bending artwork and follow his trajectory by visiting:

https://linktr.ee/cryptosoltan

Visit our website and join our Discord to learn more about the Arkanauts collection and discover how you can help us preserve, protect, and defend our planet.

Arkanauts/Project Ark:

Website: https://project-ark.co/

Arkanauts Website: https://www.arkanauts.io/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/WeAreProjectArk

Arkanauts Twitter: https://twitter.com/Arkanauts

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/weareprojectark/

Discord: https://discord.gg/arkanauts

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Project Ark

The Marketplace Using Digital Collectibles for Environmental Conservation. #NFTs #CONSV