Krista Kim is a metaverse artist and a zen philosopher. In her works she combines the power of consciousness and human intelligence with technology, where screens become a space of grace and reflection.

In 2014, Krista Kim started the <a href="https://www.riseart.com/article/2326/artist-interviews-krista-kim-understanding-techism">Techism</a> movement, encouraging artists to promote digital humanism. In 2020, she created the <a href="https://www.kristakimstudio.com/marshouse">Mars House</a>, the first digital house in the world. It sold for half a million dollars. She believes Web3 is the future of decentralization, to protect democracy, free will and individual sovereignty. Recently she co-founded [0] Metaverse with award winning director Peter Martin, a new collaborative project to promote mental health. I spoke with Krista over a zoom call.
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L'Officiel / Coco Dolle: Hi Krista, it&rsquo;s Labor Day weekend on a Sunday morning. I hope I am not interrupting a holiday happening. Krista Kim: Oh no, I am laboring! There is no vacation, not in Web3! The metaverse never sleeps.
L'O: Oh great LOL! I&rsquo;m so honored to speak with you. Let&rsquo;s start with you telling us about your new collaborative production studio, [0] Metaverse. You partnered with award winning director Peter Martin. In your mission you state your goal being to incorporate wellness and mental health on the blockchain. How are you going to create these healing spaces on the metaverse? KK: Zero (o) is an innovation lab, it's beyond just being a studio. We innovate, we collaborate with the leading technology partners to innovate the metaverse. We are always looking for projects that are pushing the boundaries of the utility of the metaverse to uplift human potential. I believe that the current state of the metaverse is very early. It is directly coming from gaming, so you will find that it's for kids! As an adult and an artist and a mother of two kids, two teenagers, I don't want the metaverse to remain just a video game or a multiplayer video game platform. What I want is for the metaverse to be a place where we will receive quality education and health and wellness experiences that will actually enhance our real lives. I see the metaverse as an extension of human consciousness and the next frontier for human civilization in a meaningful way. So when we curate our projects, we're always collaborating with experts, whether it's in health and wellness or in education. I'm very passionate about the capabilities of the metaverse to provide quality and accessible, mental health experiences that are scientifically proven to work. Bringing the healing arts into the metaverse. The inspiration for me began when I lived in Tokyo, from 2005 to 2008.&nbsp; I would frequent Kyoto&rsquo;s Gardens. Kyoto is my inspiration for the metaverse. I believe that Kyoto is a living metaverse because it is a place that is purely designed for beauty and for higher states of consciousness. Zen philosophy&nbsp; has informed every design decision in every artistic decision of Kyoto. This magical place is timeless and inspiring. I learned the core of this philosophy at the Ryoanji temple garden. The Ryoanji&nbsp; temple garden is one of the oldest and most revered Zen gardens in the world. And when I first encountered it, it was so plain and it was so minimalist. I didn't understand it, but I had to sit with it for an hour. And I began to experience Zen and meditation just by sitting there. I realized that it was the Zen monks over a thousand years ago that created this space as an intention to bring Zen into the viewer as a service to humanity.
L'O: This garden was your initial inspiration for the Mars House - first NFT digital house on the blockchain. KK: Yes, this was in my inspiration for the Mars house and my inspiration for the philosophy of building the metaverse itself. L'O: Your first meeting with (0) Metaverse co-founder, Peter Martin, happened in your Mars House during the lockdown, when there were travel bans. Tell us about this experience. KK: I invited Peter to meet me in the Mars house on Spatial. We had our headsets on our Oculus quests, we had such an engaging conversation that it lasted for 3 hours&mdash;the duration of the battery life of our headsets. Ever since that encounter, we have become collaborators and co founders of <a href="http://0.xyz/">zero XYZ</a>. Peter has been in the VR space for over 20 years. He truly is a futurist and a genius producer in XR - extended reality - and immersive technologies. So&nbsp; it's a real honor to build with such a great creator. L'O: How was your visual manifestation in the Mars House? Did you choose an avatar? KK: When you're in the metaverse as an avatar, and you encounter another being in the metaverse, it doesn't matter what you look like. Peter and I had our very early avatars on spatial, we only had the top torso of our bodies, no legs. Our faces were moving. They map a photograph of your face onto the avatar. So it looks like you, you had hand motions and you can actually move. Your avatar&nbsp; responds to the movements of your real body. So it was a fascinating experience because I never actually had such a meaningful encounter with someone in the Metaverse before. It was such a deep and profound connection because I didn't think that the metaverse would deliver that. You never expect that level of human to human connection.
L'O: Since you had not met Peter Martin in the flesh. Was this your first encounter on Spatial with someone prior to having met IRL? KK: It wasn't my first, but it was the first encounter where I shared profound ideas with a fellow futurist. L'O: It is fascinating. KK: Absolutely. And what's fascinating is when you meet in the metaverse, it's as if you met the person, because you really do have that true connection. When I'm in the metaverse, a lot of people don't understand that you can have real conscious connections with other human beings in the metaverse and that can be healing. You are not alone. And that's what also gave me the inspiration to pursue the project of health and wellness, because we have a mental health crisis around the world. And the metaverse itself is ugly right now. You've got Lego looking spaces and they look terrible. What we need to bring is beauty, humanity and human connection into the metaverse to make it meaningful, to make it worth going. Otherwise, people won't go, there's nothing to incentivize them. I believe&nbsp; that therapies and immersive experiences that are driven by beautiful art that inspires and heals are the key to bring mainstream users onto the metaverse, from outside of web3.

L'O: How will you give space for your collaborations to take place within [0] Metaverse? Will there be a curated program of experiences and events? KK: You're right. There will be curated experiences. I believe that once the metaverse can scale to thousands of people at a time, to millions of people, then you will have a very healthy and robust experience economy where individuals, even community members can organize their own events and activations on the platform. So you have to have beautiful spaces available for people to use, to rent, to activate with their community. And they can actually sell NFTs, as tokenized experiences to their communities. So it really is a collaborative space that is highly curated with quality content. Zero (0) is going to be not only our verse zero verse, but we will have other verses that we co‑create with our collaborators, like for example, Reulay,&nbsp; is a mental health VR platform that we're optimizing for&nbsp; the metaverse. We have partnered to create Reulayverse and this is in collaboration with<a href="https://drsrinipillay.com/meet-srini/"> </a><a href="https://drsrinipillay.com/meet-srini/">Dr. Srini </a><a href="https://drsrinipillay.com/meet-srini/">Pillay</a>, who is a renowned Harvard psychologist and neuroscientist. We are going to bring leading edge AI and data driven technology for mental health and healing through artistic immersive experiences. These verses are connected on zero. Our communities will be connected and then of course, Reulayverse&nbsp; community members can activate, meet and create, with support groups, workshops.. The experience economy is key. The creator's economy is also key because without creators and artists there is no metaverse, there's no life force to the metaverse. L'O: In a recent twitter space about coding, you mentioned code being in nature, as being a creative mechanism. I quote: &ldquo;Code is nature. Code is the language of creation and the language of the universe.&rdquo;&nbsp;Can you elaborate? KK: I believe that the language of the universe is code, that there are algorithms all around us in nature, from the smallest particle on earth, to the galaxies. Digital is a natural extension of the universe. It is the language of creation and it is nature. So when you look at the next frontier and the next stage of human civilization, it will be digital, and the Metaverse is the new frontier of human existence.&nbsp; But it needs to uplift humanity. So yes, it is nature. It is part of us. And the more we go into the future, the more we will have this natural&nbsp; hybridization&nbsp; of code in who we are, and a digital extension of our identity. Our bodies respond to code through biotech advancements.&nbsp; Brain computer interfaces and bionic body parts will become normalized.&nbsp; I believe that with advancements of quantum computing and AI, we will have superpowers at our disposal and truly expand the capabilities and the consciousness of human beings,into infinity through code into the metaverse. It's a powerful tool. L'O: Then code becomes somehow the new tool, the new artist&rsquo;s brush, like making marks on the canvas. The metaverse creative space becomes the canvas and the code the tool. KK: Yes, exactly. And eventually AI and quantum computing will become so powerful as the digital layer of the metaverse. I mean, think about the combination of quantum computing and highly advanced wearables, even contact lenses or bionic eyes. That will allow us to experience digital content seamlessly as if it is the natural part of our extension of our reality. It is reality because it is perceived as our reality. So when you think about the power of code to expand human consciousness into digital realms &hellip; I mean, this is the future of human consciousness, which is a direct expression of code itself. Code will be human expression. L'O: This is wonderful of you to become an ambassador of creative healing, positive spaces on the blockchain. Though what about the dark side?&nbsp; I'm thinking of Star Wars! Obviously there will be detractors and spaces created with darker intentions&hellip; KK: Yes, there will always be light and dark. It's Yin and Yang. And this is why I am an artist who is driven to start a company to guide the metaverse into enlightenment. I'm compelled to do it&nbsp; because I have to, I'm part of this pioneering generation. I know that my voice and my vision is going to contribute to the future of the metaverse and human civilization. L'O: You have recently participated in the inauguration of <a href="https://www.lacma.org/press/lacma-announces-new-acquisition-fund-digital-art-women-artists">LACMA</a>&rsquo;s new acquisition fund launched by <a href="https://www.instagram.com/parishilton/?hl=en">Paris Hilton</a> and her husband Carter Reum, a fund focused on acquiring digital art by women. You have donated your NFT piece &ldquo;Continuum&rdquo; as part of the museum&rsquo;s permanent collection. I love that you and Paris are leading a positive and feminine force in the metaverse. KK: It was an honor to be part of this event. When I wrote my master's thesis in 2012, I had studied James Turrell and Robert Irwin and many artists of the California light space movement. So to be accepted , and to be part of the permanent collection among these legendary artists at LACMA is one of the greatest honors for me, a true lifetime honor. L'O: What would you say about the place of women in Web3 today? How important is it for you that women are highlighted and not on the back seats of technology? KK: I am very inspired and very optimistic about female empowerment through Web3 three, because there's no barrier to entry. You are free to create a community no matter who you are, what your background is. This powerful blockchain technology is ushering in a new future of decentralization co‑creation and collaboration. The energies of community and collaboration are very female. We are&nbsp; naturally inclined to create community and to collaborate. I think this is a natural female strength. Women will find their power in Web3 because there are no policies to keep us out. I&rsquo;m actually very hopeful that all communities will have a voice and be able to express themselves freely and therefore find strength and support to create a world that they believe in.

Portrait of Women in Web3: Krista Kim Ambassador of well-being in the Metaverse

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