Natasha Lelenco, Currency #220, 2024, Acrylic Painting

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This sculptural acrylic painting by Natasha Lelenco, part of her Currency Exchange series, is created on a two-centimeter thick wooden … Read more This sculptural acrylic painting by Natasha Lelenco, part of her Currency Exchange series, is created on a two-centimeter thick wooden circle with a 26-centimeter diameter. The artwork features red, orange, and ochre tones and depicts a profile portrait of an anonymous woman, surrounded by the Spanish phrase “Poder ser yo sin tapujos”—translated as “To be able to be me without hesitation.” The phrase references an interview with a migrant in Spain, who cited the ability to openly express their sexual identity and orientation as one of the reasons for migration. This piece is part of a broader exploration of foreignness and the experiences of individuals who navigate the challenges of migration and identity. Natasha Lelenco, an artist of Moldovan origin, explores themes of foreignness and delves into the well-trodden subject of the value of art with this series. While conventional coins have a fixed value and typically depict a national figure, Natasha's coins showcase anonymous faces and offer variable, often arbitrary, selling values. These coins can function both individually and as panels alongside others from the same series, allowing for the creation of installations as vast as desired. As an interesting curiosity, the artist offers her collectors the possibility to exchange the equivalent value of the percentage that would have been due to the artist from the sale of these coins for future works of her own creation. Therefore, beyond acquiring a wonderful piece of art, they acquire the opportunity to visit the artist's studio and consider the purchase of another work using this as a form of payment. Natasha Lelenco says of this project: "This series is about value and price. I propose to the public the acquisition of a currency as a transfer value only valid for future work of my authorship. This moving value, which has nothing to do with determining the value of the work itself (the currency itself), is decided, in addition to being completely arbitrary in nature, except for a reasoned valuation between the price of one currency and another. These currencies transfer the enhanced value of the artistic object for future work, deliberately leaving aside any symbolic overvaluation that derives from the creative work. However, each piece is a unique work elaborated with deliberate technical flaws, signed, and serves as a certification of original work. The norm is that the faces on currencies belong to kings, presidents of republics, or individuals who represent clear national identification. These currencies, by contrast, present a collection of anonymous profiles enveloped in disconcerting phrases that allude to the concept of a vast community of citizens who live in a state of 'not belonging,' characters who inhabit the depreciation that so often defines origins, laws, and inequality." Signed by Maker See less