Paris Exhibition Explores the Controversial Link Between Art and Money

The exhibition 'L'argent dans l'art' at the Monnaie de Paris, open until September 24, 2023, examines the fraught relationship between art and money across 20 centuries. Curated by Jean-Michel Bouhours, former chief curator at the Centre Pompidou and director of the Nouveau Musée national de Monaco, the show features around 200 works arranged in six thematic sections. The Monnaie de Paris, the oldest continuously operating institution in France and one of the world's oldest factories, has been minting coins since 864 AD. The exhibition includes ancient coins like a Lydian stater from the 6th century BC, alongside contemporary pieces such as Tracey Emin's photograph 'I've got it all' (2000) and Yves Klein's performance of throwing gold into the Seine. Other highlights include Marcel Duchamp's 'Obligation for the Roulette of Monte Carlo' (1924), John Heartfield's photomontage 'Adolf the Superman Swallows Gold and Spouts Junk' (1932), ORLAN's 'Le Baiser de l'artiste' (1977), and Andy Warhol's 'Dollar Sign' (1981). The exhibition also addresses the impact of capitalism, featuring a copy of the first French edition of Karl Marx's 'Das Kapital' (1867) and exploring themes such as Christian morality, finance, and the value of art after Duchamp. The final section is dedicated to Bitcoin and NFTs, highlighting new challenges for artists and the art market.