Anko Chang

In Money We Trust: Fiction
oil, metal, currency, glass, and linen on wood
22 1/4 x 20 1/8 in.

In the course of human history, currency has shifted from precious metals to fiat (paper). This past century has seen a further shift from physical currency to systems of credit and debt. At its core, this intangible system is based all on our trust in each other. Now, money is not gold, but trust. However, trust can be manipulated. It can be made fiction. It can be distorted. Trust can be created just as it can become destroyed.

Art has told a parallel story to economy. Painting has never been without identifications of value and worth. Just as money only has value when it flows, paintings gain value when collected and resold. In many ways, art has been as much an intangible construct as economic systems.

Just as we shifted our currency from gold to fiat to credit, with the advent of cryptocurrency and virtual reality, how reliable is the trust we place in our own inner value systems?

© Anko Chang