Reddit Collectible Avatars
Reddit Collectible Avatars (RCA) are limited avatars that give Redditors on the platform unique benefits such as standing out in the comments section and being able to mix and match with other avatars to create interesting combinations within the Reddit avatar builder. In addition, they work as NFTs and can be traded/sold through Reddit and the blockchain.
The RCA program started in April 2022 and first went live in July 2022. I was asked by Reddit alongside 28 other artists from around the world to jumpstart the program and create exclusive avatar designs and I’ve been doing so ever since. Within 2 years the program has evolved significantly, allowing all Reddit users to become avatar artists as well as avatars becoming more groundbreaking, thought-provoking, and game-changing.
The outcome:
Handpicked by Reddit to participate in Generation 1
Created 24 unique avatar designs and 3200+ total avatars sold
Over 251 total ETH volume garnered across all Opensea collections
Appeared in Times Square as a billboard feature
Created a community with 950+ total members across Reddit and Discord
Generation 1 video trailer
Generation 2 video trailer
Generation 3 video trailer
Generation 1 trailer in Times Square
To create a Reddit Collectible Avatar, artists utilize the Snoo, Reddit’s mascot, to base their designs on. Artists have multitudes of artistic liberty when creating their designs, but following the template is recommended to promote mashability.
Avatar artists are also required to follow Reddit’s branding guidelines, RCA guidelines, and the overall structure and confines of the avatar builder.
With avatars being mashable, Redditors can create exciting concepts by combining traits that wouldn’t be normally thought of:
Being in this space for over 2 years, my avatars have seen exponential growth with an increase in conception and execution.
RCA Avatar BRAND COLLABORATIONS
Reddit x Jarritos: I was commissioned to create 4 unique avatar designs utilizing Jarritos’ brand that would be released in the Reddit shop to celebrate Dia Del Los Muertos 2024. Alongside this, Jarritos also announced a scavenger hunt for community members to participate in and a video game where players can win PCs, custom Jarritos sneakers, PS5s, Xboxes, and more for maintaining their spots in the leaderboard.
RCA Avatar Thumbnails: a new way to see avatars
Using the outermost trait layer in a Reddit avatar, the right-hand accessory trait, I discovered a way to turn the Snoo-style design into something of my own, by recreating the design in my own art style while blending perfectly into the background card. Redditors buy this by receiving personal artwork from me as well as a Reddit avatar they can play around with in the avatar builder.
When wearing an avatar mashup, it appears in any Reddit comment section inside a hexagon shape. This right-hand trait breaks the hex and turns it into a upside pentagon-like shape instead.
Promotional material I made to market my avatars:
