Gary Cartlidge: Keys to the Building

Gary Cartlidge is one of cryptoart's most raw and unfiltered voices. Known as "The Janitor," he's built a body of work that swings between deeply personal confessions and sharp political commentary, often in the same breath. From gambling debt to government corruption, from guns as symbolism to streaming as salvation, Gary doesn't flinch. Rejected by the traditional art world at eighteen, he found in cryptoart not just a platform, but a lifeline. We sat down with him to talk about keys, triggers, and what keeps him going.

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You've called yourself the janitor for a while now. When did that figure first show up in the work and what's he cleaning?

I made the persona around 2022/23. It was never a personal ego trip, "I'm ridding the space of mess." The janitor was conceptual for all of crypto and cryptoart. Like a janitor in a corporate building, we're the least respected operators in this matrix... yet we hold all the keys and can go anywhere we like within this foundation. It's up to us to use it right.

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Crimson Gallows and a lot of your writing trace back to being rejected by a gallery at eighteen. What did the traditional art world miss about you, and what did cryptoart give that it couldn't?

The traditional art world is mostly a front for money laundering and a cult for exclusively promoting a select group... at least at a high level. Outsiders rarely get in, which is a shame because a lot of beautiful work gets lost through lack of nourishment to nurture their craft.

I'm living proof of this. After rejection and spotting the collusions, I quickly fell into born circumstances and obligations. Had to do a 9-5 with little time for art... if it wasn't for NFTs and cryptoart, as an average lad from the midlands I never would have gotten this much time or the chance to fully nurture my craft. I can't help but wonder if that time and input with art completely changes its depths for the better.

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Guns show up as their own visual language across your work, glocks, snipers, uzis. What are the guns doing for you, and why are they paired differently?

The guns are similar to the janitor, using symbolism for world issues. When we break it all down, it's going to come to the people pulling the trigger after understanding the information given to them.

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You've been deeply honest about dark chapters, gambling, debt, low moments. Pieces like "The Bottom" and "I Just Want to Create, I Just Want to Live" sit alongside more pointed political work like "Shut Up AI" and "Bank Cursers." Are those two threads, the personal and the political, the same fight for you, or separate?

Separate. The political is an absolute, whereas my personal problems and battles are subjective, something I need to release as copium. Not always being correct or factual, just a moment. I'm thankful people can relate to both sides as they do slightly overlap to show my personal experience in a flawed society.

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The streaming idea, The Janitor's Closet, artist streaming as a way to make NFT careers actually sustainable across cycles. It feels like it's pointing at a real problem the whole scene has. Where is that thinking now?

The idea still has a lot of merit. Using ad revenue to fund artists, it's a perfect symbiotic relationship, as artists can't rely entirely on sales. The advertising budgets of large brands demand far less return than the average NFT holder and can put up much larger numbers. This way artists can make a living just making art, hanging out with their collectors and friends, and it eases the weight off everyone in the space. I still have my eyes set on doing this. Honestly it's mostly confidence holding me back, but also waiting for the space to pick back up.

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Cryptoart in 2026 is in a strange place. The hype cooled, marketplaces are struggling, but the people who care are still here. What do you think the next chapter looks like for artists who refuse to leave?

Marketplaces were always going to struggle for an extended period after a bull run. We always predicted we would lose at least half of them between 2021 and the next decent cycle. It's not just accounting for bear market but human sentiment and adaptation. There's an inevitability, as more time goes on in the digital landscape, a decentralised ecosystem will be more and more craved... this also includes marketplaces.

It's not going to be easy for those who refuse to leave, but hey, when has it ever been besides 2021/22? We love this shit. It's cypherpunk as fuck and the reason some of us get out of bed in the morning... not a monkey PFP but that original ethos of crypto, taking power away from the corrupted and broken system of control. If I didn't have cryptoart I probably wouldn't be here. This is everything to me now. I'll be here until the end.

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Gary Cartlidge doesn't make art to be comfortable. He makes it because the alternative, silence, compliance, disappearing back into the 9-5, was never really an option. The janitor holds the keys, and he's not giving them back.