Fenomenet «fantasy notes» i kunst og notafili
Har dere noen gang tenkt over hva dere egentlig har i lommeboken, bortsett fra betalingskort? Sedler. Penger. Rent fysisk sett er det bare en blanding av bomull, papir og farge, som i seg selv ikke har noen reell verdi utover den vi som samfunn har blitt enige om. [1] Penger er i bunn og grunn menneskehetens mest vellykkede fiktive byttemiddel. Men hva skjer når kunstnere bryter denne strengt bevoktede samfunnskontrakten?
Illusjonen om suverenitet og verdien av et imaginært «stykke papir»
Fiktive sedler, kjent i internasjonal terminologi som «fantasy notes», utgjør et unikt fenomen der den nøkterne verdenen av matematikk og økonomi møter menneskets fantasi og behov for skjønnhet. For selv i denne spesielle samlerverdenen handler det ofte ikke bare om kuriositeter og sjeldne eksemplarer (for eksempel nødbetalingsmidler fra ulike institusjoner og samfunn), men også om hva som er avbildet på det lille papirstykket. Hvordan det hele passer sammen.
Penger som samfunnskontrakt og fantasy notes som den perfekte illusjonen
Forholdet mellom penger og kunst har historisk sett først og fremst vært definert gjennom mesenatvirksomhet, der den velstående klassen kjøpte kunst som et uttrykk for sin status, eller gjennom markedsorientert kommodifisering. I andre halvdel av det 20. århundret og i begynnelsen av det 21. århundret etablerte det seg imidlertid et parallelt, svært subversivt fenomen: skapelsen av fiktive sedler, også kalt fantasy notes. [2, 3] Fantasy notes er objekter som formelt og estetisk perfekt etterligner de strukturelle egenskapene til statlige betalingsmidler – de benytter giljoš, portretter, serienumre, spesifikke fargepaletter og er ofte trykt på papir med vannmerke. Den vesentlige forskjellen ligger imidlertid i at de i de fleste tilfeller ikke er knyttet til reell markedsomløp og er merket med «Not legal tender» eller for eksempel «Art only – Non negotiable» og lignende. [2, 3]
Mens det i filatelien finnes en lenge anerkjent, men snarere dekorativ ekvivalent i form av fiktive frimerker (cinderella stamps), utgjør fiktive sedler i notafilien et langt mer komplekst fenomen. De overskrider grensene for ren samlervirksomhet og trenger direkte inn i sfæren for konseptkunst, performance og institusjonskritikk. [3, 4, 5, 6] De er et perfekt kunstnerisk verktøy som avslører pengenes illusjon. Fantasy notes påpeker at pengenes reelle verdi utelukkende er avledet av vår kollektive tro på institusjonen som utsteder dem. [6, 1]
Historier om mot og motstand: Fra domstolssaler til performance på gata
Å lage fiktive betalingsmidler er ikke bare en harmløs estetisk øvelse. I mange tilfeller har det vært, eller kan det være, en direkte handling av opprør og personlig mot, som ikke sjelden bringer kunstneren i direkte konflikt med statsmakten. Å betale med tegnet penger fordi jeg ikke har råd til å kjøpe mat, krever ikke bare en viss kløkt, men også en god del mot og vilje til å ta risiko.
En pioner på dette området var den amerikanske kunstneren J. S. G. Boggs. I 1980-årene tegnet han ikke bare sedler for hånd med stor presisjon, men han forsøkte også å betale med dem i virkeligheten. Boggs’ «performance» besto i at han tilbød tegningen sin som betaling for mat eller tjenester, til den nøyaktige pålydende verdien av varen. Deretter krevde han at selgeren skulle gi ham vekslepenger i ekte penger. Denne konseptuelle kunstneriske tilnærmingen, som i en viss periode bokstavelig talt hjalp Boggs med å overleve, brakte ham ikke bare berømmelse, men også arrestasjon og langvarige rettssaker mot etterretningstjenestene og Bank of England. [12, 14, 15, 16]
Like fascinerende er saken om den japanske avantgardekunstneren Genpei Akasegawa fra 60-tallet i forrige århundre. Han utformet et av sine verk ved å trykke ensidige kopier av en 1000-jen-seddel. Likevel tiltalt staten ham for forfalskning, noe som resulterte i en legendarisk rettssak, der Akasegawa og hans forsvarere forvandlet selve rettssalen til et kunstgalleri, og fremtredende japanske historikere og kunstkritikere forsvarte Akasegawa. [17, 18] Retten godtok imidlertid ikke argumentene og dømte kunstneren til tre måneders betinget straff. [18] Akasegawa reagerte på dommen ved å skape verket Greater Japan Zero-yen Note (1967). [10]
From Childhood Fascination to a Lifelong Concept: Matej Gábriš and His Brand
While artists like Boggs or Akasegawa used banknotes primarily as a tool for one-off institutional critique or performance, there is another, more systematic approach to this medium. In a local, yet today globally respected context, it is represented by the Slovak creator Matej Gábris and his brand GABRISNOTE® . [20, 22, 23] For Matej, fantasy notes were not just a form of protest or social critique. Already in his childhood, he discovered that drawing and creating his own monetary systems was his lifelong passion. While other children abandoned their fictional worlds as they grew up, Matej subordinated his entire professional life to this specific field. He studied printing technologies, penetrated the secrets of professional "security design" and protective element technology, ensuring that his visions were not merely naive drawings, but professional security documents. This uncompromising approach shaped him into an internationally recognized master whose works hold a firm position in the portfolios of global collectors.
The Market Paradox and Collecting Passion
When studying the phenomenon of fantasy banknotes, however, we encounter an exceptionally fascinating paradox. It is an irony (though not entirely uncommon in art) that these originally anti-systemic artworks that question the very essence of money eventually become commercial blockbusters. [7, 19] The most brilliant example of this paradox is the iconic ten-pound note by the anonymous British street artist performing under the pseudonym Banksy.
Banksy and Di-Faced Tenners
The fantasy notes named "Di-Faced Tenners" were created in August 2004. Legend has it that these banknotes were created in collaboration between Banksy and his fellow street art scene colleague named D*Face. In this case, however, the name "Di Faced" is actually a play on words derived from the word "defaced" and refers to the fact that Banksy altered the well-known 10-pound banknote by replacing the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II with the likeness of the late Princess Diana. This work can be seen as a commentary on Diana's estrangement from the royal family, her critique of the British royal institution, and her subsequent hounding by the press. Instead of "Bank of England", the banknote reads "Banksy of England". Below the inscription, it states: "I promise to pay the bearer the ultimate price upon request," a reference to the late princess's fate at the hands of the media. The back of the print remains essentially unchanged, except for the motto "Trust No One" written in the lower right corner under the portrait of Charles Darwin. The banknote is printed with ink on paper almost identical to that used for official currency issued in Great Britain. In August 2004, Banksy printed at least 100,000 "Di Faced Tenners"—a total of £1,000,000 in counterfeit currency. Banksy created them for a public art event where he dropped a suitcase full of fake banknotes into a crowd at the Notting Hill Carnival and the Reading Festival. Some of these counterfeit notes were used by festival-goers as actual currency. Unlike the American artist J. S. G. Boggs, who is known for his hand-drawn depictions of banknotes, Banksy was never prosecuted for counterfeiting. The suitcase containing the "Di Faced Tenners" was also exhibited at the Santa's Ghetto exhibition, which took place in December 2004 on Charing Cross Road [19]. With the success of the project, a massive number of counterfeits appeared on the internet, which prompted Banksy's authentication organization, Pest Control, to introduce an unprecedented method of verification. Original Di-Faced Tenners are authenticated by Pest Control staff (Pest Control is the sole certification authority that can verify and recognize his work as genuine) physically tearing the banknote in half. They keep one half in their archive and staple the other half to the official certificate of authenticity. [19] This destructive process paradoxally confirms the integrity of the work and increases its value on the secondary market. The definitive final touch to the legitimization of this street artwork came from the British Museum, which in February 2019 acquired a Di-Faced Tenner for its permanent collection of coins and paper money, institutionally placing it on the same level as official historical currencies. [19] Today's market success of fantasy notes reveals the paradox of the commodification of subversive art. [7] Projects that originated as a mockery of the capitalist fetish of money have themselves become highly valued commodities today, purchased by investors as alternative assets with demonstrable annual growth. [7, 19] This fact highlights the deepest point of not only money art: art can transform any value (including fictional "pieces of paper," a banana taped to a wall by Maurizio Cattelan, or an old toilet bowl exhibited by M. Duchamp) into real wealth. And collecting passion possesses the exact same power and meaning. But more on that another time in a future post.
Bibliography
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