The show grew from one simple question:
How do I bring these gold coin paintings to life?
This would be my first significant foray into sculpture. It was important to me that each gold coin would feel heavy in the hand, magnetically attracted to one another, stack awkwardly like a cartoon, and be both physical and digital like real money. This quest turned into a 2 year project made possible with the help of my collaborator, sculptor Jonathan Michael Johnson @jmj3
Click the video below to see the making of:
We were able to make 220 gold coins for the 2021 edition.
The next step was to make the coins digital. No small feat, but with a few smart people, we put together a company called Trove ID:
a blockchain platform extending all the benefits of NFTs to physical artwork: an unbroken history of ownership, a marketplace to buy and sell work on the secondary market, and royalties for artists on secondary market sales.
Art Basel seemed the perfect place to unveil this coin project and the Trove blockchain. Spectrum Miami was one of the only fairs at Basel that individual artists were allowed to create and present a show independently. We applied and we were accepted. Now to create an engaging installation for the audience.
Along with the coin sculptures, I wanted to create a new set of coin paintings. Time, money and value are all tightly intertwined. Visions of clocks filled with coins started to pop up in my head.
Multiple clocks hung in a row seemed right. They reminded me of the stock market showing all the time zones for cities across the world. This idea of trading value and money with others across time and space felt like the right environment.
With all this white and yellow, the show really needed a pop of red. I’d been thinking about creating tufted velvet paintings for a long time. Their simplicity and symmetry along with the bold red color exudes an almost religious aura. In an investigation into objects that convey value, the tufted velvet paintings were an important addition to the show.
Tufted Velvet No 1 / 36 x 36 in
Lastly was the safe painting. A safe is a functional object to store one’s valuables. Conceptually I find it a beautiful idea for a painting, as art can also be used as a store of value. With the help of Dana Fisher at Flax Art and Frame, we figured out a new way to hang the painting as close to the wall as possible. This made it feel less like a painting and more like a built-in wall safe.
The show was a hit. All the physical coins sold out quickly, along with the majority of the paintings. I met a number of fascinating people and had days filled with great conversations. It was a rewarding experience and I’m very glad I had the chance to participate in it.
