MARCUS CONNOR | The artist behind The Bitcoin Roller Coaster Guy | #020

Episode • Oct 8, 2023 • 46m

"It's a message of emancipation... free ourselves, help each other to be free. That's the message of Bitcoin. That's the message of the art."

— Marcus Connor

Marcus Connor joins me to discuss his most famous creation, The Bitcoin Roller Coaster Guy as well as some of his latest work and ideas around design, artistic discipline and of course, bitcoin. With some time to reflect on my chat, I was reminded of a saying that "the muses have to find you working" and Marcus is a great example of just that, plus, he's a wonderful dose of optimism.

Marcus' now iconic roller coaster guy is a perennial fixture on X and NOSTR and alike when bitcoin's volatility kicks in. One you've likely seen, it's an animated cartoon bitcoin, bright orange and smiling with stick-like arms held high while riding in a single red car of a roller coaster as it quickly rises and falls on a wooden track. It's a joyful looped gif that was created in 2013 and as you'll hear, took on a mimetic life of it's own.

Today, Marcus continues to explore and express his understanding of bitcoin and his ongoing relationship with his roller coaster guy at bitcoincoaster.com. There you'll find illustrations, sculptures, animations, paintings and consumer products that tap emotions familiar to even the most fresh-faced bitcoiner.

Marcus and I were discussing how artists aren't always the best marketers and I chose that as the best place to cut into our conversation. Because these rips don't offer the standard introductions and closing thoughts it's on me to remind you to check the show notes or to visit thebitcoinmuse.com to find links to all my guests, their respective websites and social streams.

Please share this podcast on your feeds. Just a simple repost of the episode on X, NOSTR or Vero, helps a ton. I'm 20 episodes in so new listeners have lots to explore. And if you're listening on a podcasting 2.0 app like Fountain or Breez, you should know that 10% of all those streams and boosts split to help @OpenSats fund bitcoin and other free and open-source projects. Sharing this pod helps everyone!

Guest Links

Website: https://bitcoincoaster.com/

X: @MarcusConnorNH

NOSTR: npub1x7052nmux83n6ywe59jjpxtaw5vh5r7dsf4lrrkfhek3r7cfyu8swdz7u4

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCU2289ov6RgmLveQKPAVakA

Telegram: https://t.me/bitcoincoaster

Odysee: https://odysee.com/@BitcoinRollerCoasterGuy:1

Mentioned In This Episode

Brainless Tales | Website

Nico | X

Nico | NOSTR

Mandrik | X