Legacy is a big word and one that often brings with it a sense of responsibility. As the granddaughter of the late great Charlie Chaplin, Kiera Chaplin understands the importance of carrying a legacy – something she does, impeccably and inspiringly —through her charitable NFTS.

CryptoChaplins is Kiera’s way of using her passion for the arts to give back to those in need. Launched with Digitfully, the campaign offers series of 888 cards based on a ‘Kiera’ animé character based on her likeness. She has also partnered with The Desert Flower Foundation to launch ‘Savvy Kiera’ to help build schools in Sierra Leone and educate young women.

Amidst all this, Team Coco catches up with Kiera to dig deeper into her charity work, the lasting power of NFTs and how she is reinventing her grandfather’s legacy.

Tell us a little bit about yourself – what made you fall in love with art?

I’ve always been a dreamer and art has a way of making you escape reality into different dimensions of creativity. I find it very appeasing to the soul. I don’t know exactly when my love for art started, as I grew up around eccentric artists but one thing is for sure and it’s that it has always attracted me.

Could you tell us more about Cryptrochaplins and your partnership with Digitfully?

I met Paab Pruchniewski from Digitfully a while back. A few months ago, he contacted me to tell me about this whole new world of NFT campaigns that he was working on with Digitfully. I found it fascinating and after brainstorming we came up with CryptoChaplins.

What started as just making a few images and giving back to charities has now turned into creating a community of likeminded people. People who like art and entertainment, trendsetters and innovators that care about the future of the planet. CryptoChaplins will be a series of 888 cards of “Kiera” who is an Animé character that fights different causes that we suffer today. When you hold one of these cards, you become a member of the CryptoChaplins community which will unlock many cool surprises.

Charitable work is such a huge part of everything that you do – could you tell us more about The Desert Flower Foundation and your work there?

I started working with The Desert Flower Foundation in 2018 after meeting the founder, Waris Dirie, and hearing her tell her story. She has been fighting against female genital mutilation for over 20 years. After hearing that it still so present all around the world, even in Europe, and being a big advocate for women empowerment I had to join forces with her. After a few discussions we realised that the best way to eradicate this barbaric assault on women was through education. As the places where it is the most practiced usually has the highest rate of illiteracy and poverty. With education we give kids a chance at a better future in more ways than one.

Tell us more about your latest ‘Savvy Kiera’ NFT series?

Savvy Kiera is a series of 8 NFT’s that go towards Desert Flower Foundation to help build schools in Sierra Leone. ‘Savvy Kiera’ is a knowledge hungry student that is shown in images learning math, geography, music, sports etc. In the overall story, Kiera the Hero travels back in time from the year 2888 to help push education to save the future of planet earth, because knowledge is power, and we need future generations to be as savvy as possible to not end up corrupted by evil dark forces.

Do you think NFTs are here to stay?

Absolutely! Without a doubt. There are too many passionate people for it to just disappear. But mostly an NFT is a digital certificate of ownership, so in the future you will see it being used for many transactions such as real estate. Right now, we mainly hear about it in the art world but soon it will be used for so much more.

Beyond NFT’s you also have several high-profile collaborations with Jagre Le Coultre, Janavi India and Hogan – how do you go about finding the right brands to partner with?

I only like to work with brands that I respect and that I like to wear. With that, it’s all about seeing eye to eye and creating something beautiful and fun together. I’m very lucky in that sense to be able to bring my artistic touch to these incredible brands.

The name ‘Chaplin’ brings with it a massive legacy – how are you ensuring that your famous family’s legacy lives on?

So far it seems my grandfather’s legacy lives on regardless. It’s incredible how much he is still loved, but I do my part by trying to see him today as more of a brand than a person. My father hates it when I say that but I know that we must find ways to reinvent ourselves or the legacy could disappear, and my grandfather would hate that. I’ve done my part by creating the Chaplin Awards and doing other various things. I enjoy it. He’s my biggest source of inspiration.

What advice do you have for aspiring artists looking to make a name for themselves in the art world?

Never be scared to show your truth. You must sometimes dig deep in the ugly to bring out something beautiful.

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