https://etherscan.io/address/0xa7d8d9ef8d8ce8992df33d8b8cf4a...
The tokenURI is this, which is a metadata URI: https://token.artblocks.io/233000985
The image linked from there is this: https://media.artblocks.io/233000985.png
Unless I'm missing somethings these Artblocks NFTs are all entirely centralised around their servers.
The artblocks.io site is just a convenience. You could build your own site that derives exactly the same data as what it provides entirely from contracts.
Their docs are pretty good if you want a better understanding of what's going on under the hood https://docs.artblocks.io/creator-docs/creator-onboarding/re...
Here's what Artblocks is accomplishing:
1. The JS source for a particular artwork is uploaded to the contract on publish. It is immutable and available available as long as ethereum exists. Even if artblocks itself disappeared tomorrow, all the art is still preserved.
2. The algorithm for the art requires a source of randomness that the artist uses to control what the output would be. The actual pieces are created on "mint", the transaction hash is used as the seed for the algorithm and the piece is transferred to the user who paid the mint fee. The hashes are random and immutable, once created they cannot be changed.
3. The smart contract ensures there cannot be more pieces created than what the artist intended.
4. The smart contract also defines the royalties the artist wishes to collect on secondary sales.
5. Now you have a brought into existence a limited supply generative art collection created (and stored) natively on the blockchain that can be traded 24/7, globally, in a single currency (ETH in this case), available on multiple platforms (OpenSea, Rarible, LooksRare), with perfect provenance, and the artist receive royalties on every re-sale automatically.
I do not think you can build this without the help of blockchains.
Just look at the description of one of the piece
THE SOURCE CoDE is a new techno-mystical framework that channels knowledge from source creation to our digital present. The medium of this knowledge is a set of unique 1024 “karma” cards minted in the Genesis phase of THE SOURCE CoDE. The Hash is a unique entity that drives all aspects of a single card.
What is this even doing.
Just like I did with zefrank.com, but that stuff was free!