{ "schema": "ab5d-series-essay/1", "identity": { "chainId": 1, "contract": "0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069", "projectId": 471, "slug": "this-is-not-a-rock-by-nicole-vella", "title": "This Is Not A Rock", "artistCredit": "Nicole Vella", "artistDossierUrls": [] }, "revision": 2, "researchCutoff": "2026-09-19", "status": "published-with-research-limitations", "facts": [ { "id": "minted-count", "topic": "mint", "value": 350, "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S02" ], "status": "reported", "note": "Current index invocations, equal to maximum on this completed project." }, { "id": "max-invocations", "topic": "mint", "value": 350, "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S02" ], "status": "reported" }, { "id": "first-mint", "topic": "mint", "value": "2023-09-14T15:38:11+00:00", "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S02", "S04" ], "status": "reported" }, { "id": "activated-at", "topic": "mint", "value": "2023-09-18T18:48:35+00:00", "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S02" ], "status": "reported" }, { "id": "start-datetime", "topic": "mint", "value": "2023-09-27T17:00:00+00:00", "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S02" ], "status": "reported" }, { "id": "completed-at", "topic": "mint", "value": "2023-09-28T01:49:47+00:00", "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S02" ], "status": "reported", "note": null }, { "id": "license-label", "topic": "rights", "value": "NFT License 2.0", "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S02", "S06" ], "status": "reported" }, { "id": "script-type", "topic": "construction", "value": "js@na", "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S02", "S03" ], "status": "verified" }, { "id": "historic-unit-price-eth", "topic": "mint", "value": null, "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S01", "S02" ], "status": "unknown", "note": "No contemporaneous primary price table recovered this session." } ], "rights": { "artwork": { "reportedLabel": "NFT License 2.0", "category": "custom", "termsUrl": null, "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S02", "S06" ], "note": "Label copied from projects_metadata.license. Unversioned CC strings are not inferred as 4.0.", "unresolvedConflicts": [] }, "code": { "reportedLabel": null, "category": "unknown", "termsUrl": null, "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S02", "S03" ], "note": "No separate artist-code licence field was present on the project record.", "unresolvedConflicts": [] }, "thirdParty": [ { "name": "browser JavaScript (no declared library version)", "reportedLabel": "not declared on the project record", "category": "unknown", "termsUrl": null, "observedAt": "2026-09-19", "sourceIds": [ "S03" ], "note": "Runtime declared js@na. No p5 or three version string is attached to the indexed project record.", "unresolvedConflicts": [] } ] }, "sections": [ { "id": "work-context", "heading": "The work and its context", "bodyMarkdown": "This Is Not A Rock is project 471 on the Art Blocks V2 core contract 0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069, published under the canonical slug this-is-not-a-rock-by-nicole-vella and credited to Nicole Vella. The indexed project record reports a completed edition of 350 of 350 invocations, runtime js@na, and the official description: One day in 1991, I went swimming in a lake. Going out to the deepest point where I could still tippy-toe touch, I felt a large, smooth rock with my feet. I could barely dig it out and bring it to the surface. [That rock](https://express.adobe.com/page/yTCRoiQjChyRe/#rock) is still with me. I once thought I lost it. Six months later, I found it in the trunk of my car. I threw a party to celebrate its return, but it was just us two. The rocks you see here are not my rock. They are not rocks. They are not even images of rocks. They're code. But does that matter? If I were to show and ask you \"What is this?\", you'd probably say \"It's a rock\". So then, what is it? The title and imagery borrow from René Magritte's paintings [Treachery of Images](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Treachery_of_Images) and [The Castle of the Pyrenees](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Castle_of_the_Pyrenees). Like those paintings, *This is Not a Rock* acts as a gateway to introspection and encourages the viewer to question what they are looking at while thinking about the interplay between object, representation, and truth. *This is Not a Rock* continues my exploration into Quines (software which outputs its own source code). In the scene, a large rock hovers, defying gravity. Behind the rock, a backdrop of computer code; combining the digital and the physical. The code you see is is the actual code used to generate the scene. It is all created inside a single-pass fragment shader with Javascript and GLSL, and rendered using a technique called Raymarching. Keyboard Commands: Press [L] to save an image. Press [Z] to zoom in/out. [^S01][^S02]\n\nThose figures are current index observations retrieved on 2026-09-19, not a reconstruction of the original public sale announcement. Atlas position is a catalogue ordinal and is not the on-chain project ID. The live collection page and the Hasura projects_metadata row agree on title, slug, contract, and project ID after a filtered query that used the exact slug. [^S01][^S02]\n\nContract 0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069. Aspect ratio indexed as 0.75. Website https://nicolevella.com/thisisnotarock/.\n\nThis essay treats the stored artist program, four independently identified outputs, and a freshly checked AB5D holding (or an explicit collection gap) as primary evidence. Metadata traits are cited only when they were returned for the same V2 contract token IDs that were visually inspected. They do not replace looking at the pictures. [^S04][^S09]" }, { "id": "conception", "heading": "Conception and development", "bodyMarkdown": "The official project description is the development account used here. Interview or dossier sentences that name a different slug are not treated as statements about this series. One day in 1991, I went swimming in a lake. Going out to the deepest point where I could still tippy-toe touch, I felt a large, smooth rock with my feet. I could barely dig it out and bring it to the surface. [That rock](https://express.adobe.com/page/yTCRoiQjChyRe/#rock) is still with me. I once thought I lost it. Six months later, I found it in the trunk of my car. I threw a party to celebrate i\n\nThe development account used here is the specific source named in the citations, not a paraphrase of an artist-dossier page. Where that account is an official project description written in the artist's voice, that limit is stated rather than upgraded into an unpublished studio diary. Where an interview exists, the sentences that actually name This Is Not A Rock are the ones relied on. [^S07][^S01]\n\nSecondary pages that only repeat the marketplace listing are not treated as independent conception sources. [^S02][^S07]" }, { "id": "construction", "heading": "How the work was constructed", "bodyMarkdown": "The complete artist program for slug this-is-not-a-rock-by-nicole-vella was retrieved from projects_metadata.script filtered by that exact slug. The UTF-8 payload is 14302 bytes with SHA-256 1804a2917881db1fcd498ef77e3cf46651fb23378e24621a27586103e613440b. Runtime on the project record is js@na. The script was read in full; it was not executed in this research session. [^S03]\n\nThe stored generator is 14302 bytes, SHA-256 1804a2917881db1fcd498ef77e3cf46651fb23378e24621a27586103e613440b, runtime js@na. Detected source markers: draw, keydown, tokenData, hash. Named functions include no function keyword matches. tokenData.hash is read in source. Output then follows the drawing path those functions implement. Token 0 observation: Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, dark and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 51,57,55). File size 7031534 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Full Moon Lagoon; Colorize Noise; Background Black\n\nVisual claims come from inspected media-proxy PNGs plus indexed token features.\n\nSeed handling is visible in the retrieved program: tokenData.hash is read in source. Time and interaction behaviour in code is: Loop behaviour inferred only from source keywords. The inspected PNG is a static frame. A handler found in source is not the same thing as a control that was pressed in a live renderer during this session; tested controls are listed only when an actual key or pointer action was performed. [^S03][^S10]\n\nExternal dependencies are those declared by script_type_and_version plus any library identifiers inside the file. Public visibility of the stored script does not grant a right to redistribute the raw artist source in this package, so the analysis cites functions and byte length rather than reprinting the program. [^S03][^S06]" }, { "id": "mint", "heading": "The mint", "bodyMarkdown": "Indexed chronology for project 471 on 0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069 is as follows. First token minted_at is 2023-09-14T15:38:11+00:00. activated_at is 2023-09-18T18:48:35+00:00. start_datetime is 2023-09-27T17:00:00+00:00. completed_at is 2023-09-28T01:49:47+00:00. Invocations stand at 350 of a maximum 350, with complete=true on the retrieved row. [^S02][^S04]\n\nCalculated intervals from those timestamps: first mint to activation is 4.13 days; activation to start_datetime is 8.92 days; start_datetime to completion is 8.83 hours; first mint to completion is 13.42 days. These are differences of indexed clock fields, not a claim about when a web storefront button became visible to every collector. A first mint that precedes start_datetime is treated as an early or reserved mint unless a separate allocation record is produced. [^S02][^S04]\n\nIndexed clocks: first 2023-09-14T15:38:11+00:00, activated 2023-09-18T18:48:35+00:00, start 2023-09-27T17:00:00+00:00, completed 2023-09-28T01:49:47+00:00. Early first-mint timestamps are not labelled reserved without a separate allocation record.\n\nHistoric per-token ETH prices for the original public sale were not recovered from a primary price table during this session and remain unresolved. Any floor price visible on a marketplace page in 2026 is a current listing observation, not the 2021 ask. [^S01][^S02]" }, { "id": "rights", "heading": "Copyright and licensing", "bodyMarkdown": "The project record stores the artwork licence label 'NFT License 2.0'. That label is not a Creative Commons version string and is recorded as a custom or unknown artwork term. Code rights for the artist program are not separately labelled on the same field; they are treated as unknown rather than assumed identical to the artwork deed. [^S02][^S06]\n\nArtwork label copied exactly as 'NFT License 2.0'.\n\nThird-party runtime js@na is a separate rights object from both the artwork outputs and the artist source. p5.js, three.js, and ordinary browser JavaScript each keep their own licence texts. This package does not redistribute those libraries. [^S03][^S06]\n\nOriginal essay prose in this package is dedicated CC0-1.0 by the research operator. That dedication does not change the artwork, code, or dependency licences." }, { "id": "examples", "heading": "Close reading of examples", "bodyMarkdown": "This Is Not A Rock #0 is token 471000000 on 0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069, minted 2023-09-14T15:38:11+00:00. The canonical token page returned HTTP 200. The inspected media-proxy PNG is a static frame. Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, dark and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 51,57,55). File size 7031534 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Full Moon Lagoon; Colorize Noise; Background Black Indexed features returned for this V2 token: Palette Full Moon Lagoon; Colorize Noise; Background Black. [^S04][^S05][^S09]\n\nThis Is Not A Rock #1 is token 471000001 on 0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069, minted 2023-09-27T17:00:35+00:00. The canonical token page returned HTTP 200. The inspected media-proxy PNG is a static frame. Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, mid-tone and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 175,175,169). File size 7545798 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Pumpkin Field; Colorize Fill; Background White Indexed features returned for this V2 token: Palette Pumpkin Field; Colorize Fill; Background White. [^S04][^S05][^S09]\n\nThis Is Not A Rock #10 is token 471000010 on 0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069, minted 2023-09-27T17:45:47+00:00. The canonical token page returned HTTP 200. The inspected media-proxy PNG is a static frame. Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, dark and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 60,58,58). File size 5983446 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Cathode Ray Tube; Colorize Digital; Background Black Indexed features returned for this V2 token: Palette Cathode Ray Tube; Colorize Digital; Background Black. [^S04][^S05][^S09]\n\nThis Is Not A Rock #20 is token 471000020 on 0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069, minted 2023-09-27T17:51:11+00:00. The canonical token page returned HTTP 200. The inspected media-proxy PNG is a static frame. Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, mid-tone and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 158,159,159). File size 7294517 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Black & White; Colorize Fill; Background White Indexed features returned for this V2 token: Palette Black & White; Colorize Fill; Background White. [^S04][^S05][^S09]\n\nThe AB5D header candidate is token 471000108 (edition 108), currently indexed to 0xdd19308a9731cdecb67e0d80ca6823394208c045, which is one of the three linked addresses returned for username ab5d on 2026-09-19. That ownership match is a present-tense index observation, not proof of continuous custody since mint. Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, light and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 191,190,189). File size 6568190 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Lost Signal; Colorize Psychedelic; Background White [^S08][^S04][^S09]\n\nMotion, interaction, and audio: Loop behaviour inferred only from source keywords. The inspected PNG is a static frame. The static PNGs document halt or preview states. They are not by themselves proof that a live loop is still running, nor proof that a work is silent. No soundtrack was heard from these pages during this session. [^S09][^S10][^S03]" }, { "id": "significance", "heading": "Significance and limitations", "bodyMarkdown": "This Is Not A Rock is project 471 by Nicole Vella on 0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069. The close readings above are the evidence for what the stored program outputs.\n\nUnresolved research questions that remain after this pass: (1) What was the exact public-sale unit price in ETH at start_datetime, supported by a contemporaneous primary source rather than a later floor? (2) For tokens whose live renderer was not stopwatch-timed, what is the measured wall-clock period of one full cycle or one completed progressive draw? (3) What contemporaneous primary source records the original public unit price in ETH? (4) Incomplete Control aside, do any of the three current AB5D wallets later acquire or dispose of the header token used above after 2026-09-19? [^S02][^S08][^S10]\n\nThis package is a draft for human review. Structural validation tests file shape, not the truth of seeing or of licence interpretation." } ], "examples": [ { "id": "E01", "chainId": 1, "contract": "0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069", "tokenId": "471000000", "url": "https://www.artblocks.io/token/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000000", "sourceIds": [ "S04", "S05", "S09" ], "selectionNote": "Specified candidate invocation 0.", "observationNote": "Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, dark and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 51,57,55). File size 7031534 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Full Moon Lagoon; Colorize Noise; Background Black" }, { "id": "E02", "chainId": 1, "contract": "0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069", "tokenId": "471000001", "url": "https://www.artblocks.io/token/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000001", "sourceIds": [ "S04", "S05", "S09" ], "selectionNote": "Specified candidate invocation 1.", "observationNote": "Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, mid-tone and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 175,175,169). File size 7545798 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Pumpkin Field; Colorize Fill; Background White" }, { "id": "E03", "chainId": 1, "contract": "0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069", "tokenId": "471000010", "url": "https://www.artblocks.io/token/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000010", "sourceIds": [ "S04", "S05", "S09" ], "selectionNote": "Specified candidate invocation 10.", "observationNote": "Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, dark and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 60,58,58). File size 5983446 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Cathode Ray Tube; Colorize Digital; Background Black" }, { "id": "E04", "chainId": 1, "contract": "0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069", "tokenId": "471000020", "url": "https://www.artblocks.io/token/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000020", "sourceIds": [ "S04", "S05", "S09" ], "selectionNote": "Specified candidate invocation 20.", "observationNote": "Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, mid-tone and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 158,159,159). File size 7294517 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Black & White; Colorize Fill; Background White" } ], "mediaIds": [], "provenance": { "operator": "Grok research session for coordinator handoff", "agent": "Grok", "model": "Grok 4.6", "modelVersion": null, "tools": [ "Hasura GraphQL", "media-proxy PNG retrieval", "canonical token HEAD checks", "full script read" ], "humanEditorialInvolvement": "Commissioned by Phil; website publication authorized by Phil on 2026-09-17. No claim of line-by-line human fact checking.", "originalProseLicense": "CC0-1.0", "generation": { "schema": "ab5d-essay-generation/1", "model": "Grok 4.6", "displayName": "Grok 4.6", "scope": "Supplied Grok remaining 168 complete essay package", "essayCount": 1, "usage": null, "perEssayUsage": null, "usageDetail": "Model name is the actual operator. Version string, token counts, and timezone-aware start/cutoff telemetry were not supplied by the host; values left null rather than estimated.", "submittedUsage": { "provider": "xAI", "model": "Grok 4.6", "modelVersion": null, "measurement": "unavailable until telemetry supplied", "scope": "per-essay telemetry not exposed to this operator", "startedAt": null, "cutoff": null, "inputTokens": null, "cachedInputTokens": null, "outputTokens": null, "totalTokens": null, "reasoningTokens": null, "perEssayAvailable": false, "telemetrySource": null, "note": "Model name is the actual operator. Version string, token counts, and timezone-aware start/cutoff telemetry were not supplied by the host; values left null rather than estimated." }, "importReview": "Structural package, identity, citation and build compatibility checks. Supplied prose preserved; no independent research audit." } }, "codeInspection": { "url": "https://artblocks-mainnet.hasura.app/v1/graphql", "locator": "projects_metadata.script where slug=_eq this-is-not-a-rock-by-nicole-vella", "sha256": "1804a2917881db1fcd498ef77e3cf46651fb23378e24621a27586103e613440b", "retrievedAt": "2026-09-19T00:00:00+00:00", "method": "graphql-post-full-script-read", "executed": false, "chainBlock": null }, "editorialExceptions": [], "presentation": { "editionSize": 350, "maximumEdition": 350, "mintDate": "2023-09-14T15:38:11+00:00", "mintDateMeaning": "first indexed mint", "mintDateLabel": "First mint", "artwork": { "project_id": "0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069-471", "token_id": "471000108", "invocation": 108, "owner_address": "0xdd19308a9731cdecb67e0d80ca6823394208c045", "preview_asset_url": "https://media-proxy.artblocks.io/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000108.png", "live_view_url": "https://generator.artblocks.io/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000108", "canonicalUrl": "https://www.artblocks.io/token/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000108", "mode": "image", "copyrightStatus": "NFT License 2.0", "copyrightUrl": null, "displayBasis": "AB5D collection example under the artwork licence label stored on the project record; not a newly created derivative." } }, "observationImages": [ { "id": "E01", "chainId": 1, "contract": "0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069", "tokenId": "471000000", "url": "https://www.artblocks.io/token/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000000", "sourceIds": [ "S04", "S05", "S09" ], "selectionNote": "Specified candidate invocation 0.", "observationNote": "Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, dark and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 51,57,55). File size 7031534 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Full Moon Lagoon; Colorize Noise; Background Black", "previewUrl": "https://media-proxy.artblocks.io/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000000.png", "liveUrl": "https://generator.artblocks.io/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000000" }, { "id": "E02", "chainId": 1, "contract": "0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069", "tokenId": "471000001", "url": "https://www.artblocks.io/token/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000001", "sourceIds": [ "S04", "S05", "S09" ], "selectionNote": "Specified candidate invocation 1.", "observationNote": "Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, mid-tone and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 175,175,169). File size 7545798 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Pumpkin Field; Colorize Fill; Background White", "previewUrl": "https://media-proxy.artblocks.io/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000001.png", "liveUrl": "https://generator.artblocks.io/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000001" }, { "id": "E03", "chainId": 1, "contract": "0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069", "tokenId": "471000010", "url": "https://www.artblocks.io/token/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000010", "sourceIds": [ "S04", "S05", "S09" ], "selectionNote": "Specified candidate invocation 10.", "observationNote": "Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, dark and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 60,58,58). File size 5983446 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Cathode Ray Tube; Colorize Digital; Background Black", "previewUrl": "https://media-proxy.artblocks.io/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000010.png", "liveUrl": "https://generator.artblocks.io/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000010" }, { "id": "E04", "chainId": 1, "contract": "0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069", "tokenId": "471000020", "url": "https://www.artblocks.io/token/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000020", "sourceIds": [ "S04", "S05", "S09" ], "selectionNote": "Specified candidate invocation 20.", "observationNote": "Inspected media-proxy PNG is 1800x2400px, mid-tone and muted or near-neutral (mean RGB 158,159,159). File size 7294517 bytes. Indexed features: Palette Black & White; Colorize Fill; Background White", "previewUrl": "https://media-proxy.artblocks.io/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000020.png", "liveUrl": "https://generator.artblocks.io/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000020" }, { "tokenId": "471000108", "chainId": 1, "contract": "0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069", "previewUrl": "https://media-proxy.artblocks.io/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000108.png", "url": "https://www.artblocks.io/token/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000108", "liveUrl": "https://generator.artblocks.io/1/0x99a9b7c1116f9ceeb1652de04d5969cce509b069/471000108" } ], "publication": { "date": "2026-09-20", "url": "https://ab5d.xyz/series/this-is-not-a-rock-by-nicole-vella/", "authorization": "Phil requested website publication on 2026-09-17.", "reviewSnapshot": "/docs/series-essays/production/this-is-not-a-rock-by-nicole-vella/record.json", "unresolvedResearchQuestionsRetained": true } }