A blockchain protocol is the technical framework that enables data and value to be recorded and transferred across a decentralized network. In the provided context, it appears as the underlying infrastructure for smart contracts, ERC-20 tokens, and the minting of works on chains such as Ethereum and Tezos. In Kevin Abosch’s "I AM A COIN," the artist tokenized himself as a cryptocurrency and issued 10,000,000 divisible ERC-20 tokens on the Ethereum blockchain. The project also links bodily material, namely blood, with a decentralized digital protocol, setting the finitude of the body against the apparent permanence of cryptographic space.
Within this context, a blockchain protocol is not merely a payment or transfer system. It functions as a framework that determines how value is validated and how an artwork can exist as a digital entity. A key point is that value is not certified by traditional financial institutions or centralized art institutions, but instead is sustained through distributed consensus among network participants. The context also notes Tezos-based NFT minting, suggesting that different chains can shape the technical conditions, community atmosphere, and perceived character of digital art. However, the passages do not provide a strict standalone definition of "Blockchain Protocol"; they mainly present it as the basis for crypto art and decentralized value systems.