Protocol as Poetry: A Case Study of Pak's Smart Contract-Based Protocol Art

Abstract

Protocol art has recently proliferated through blockchain-based smart contracts, building on a century-long lineage of conceptual, participatory, interactive, systematic, algorithmic, and generative art practices. Few studies have examined the characteristics and appreciation of this emerging art form. To address this gap, this paper presents an annotated portfolio analysis of protocol artworks by Pak, a pioneering and influential pseudonymous artist who treats smart contracts as medium and collective participation through protocol as message. Tracing the evolution from early open-edition releases of The Fungible (2021) and the dynamic mechanics of Merge (2021) to the soul-bound messaging of Censored (2022) and the reflective absence of Not Found (2023), we examine how Pak choreographs distributed agency across collectors and autonomous code, demonstrating how programmable protocols become a social fabric in artistic meaning-making. Through thematic analysis of Pak's works, we identify seven core characteristics distinguishing protocol art from other art forms: (1) system-centric rather than object-centric composition, (2) autonomous governance enabling open-ended control, (3) distributed agency and communal authorship, (4) temporal dynamism and lifecycle aesthetics, (5) economy-driven engagement, (6) poetic message embedded in interaction rituals, and (7) interoperability enabling composability for emergent complexity. We then discuss how these features set protocol art apart from adjacent movements such as conceptual, generative, participatory, interactive, and performance art. By analyzing principles grounded in Pak's practice, we contribute to the emerging literature on protocol art (or "protocolism") and offer design implications for future artists exploring this evolving form.