Money in Art

A survey of engaging contemporary artworks in which money is the subject or material, from old-fashioned pennies to digital tokens

As an inescapable aspect of everyday life, money has appeared in art throughout its history. Many modern artists have used currency to reflect on various economic, political and social concerns. Some use physical money—banknotes, coins, checks and credit cards—as an actual art material to subvert notions of value, while others have embraced digital currencies, looking forward to a possible future where money is wholly intangible. Money in Art: From Coinage to Crypto is an accessible yet thought-provoking publication that features an intriguing selection of modern and contemporary art. David Trigg gathers a selection of over 90 works presented chronologically from Pop art onward, and provides engaging texts contextualizing the role of money in the history of art.
David Trigg has written widely on contemporary art for books and major art journals including Studio International, the Art Newspaper, Art Monthly, ArtReview and Frieze. He is the author of Reading Art (Phaidon, 2018).