Relative Value by eerieum_

This sheet of Canadian one-dollar banknotes was purchased from a currency dealer on eBay in the summer of 2022.  This currency predates the Canadian government"s move to the $1 coin called "The Loonie" in 1987 which replaced the paper version of the Canadian dollar (CAD). This replacement was done both as a cost-saving measure and under pressure from vending machine operators and transit groups. 

Relative Value is eerieum_"s 4th collection of 1/1 physical paintings created on canvases of uncut sheets of international currency, fractionalized into individual NFTs.  The number of NFTs in each collection will depend on the number of bills making up each uncut sheet. 

The collection explores art, value and how centralized currency impacts citizenship, patriotism, self respect and self deprecation through the eyes of a 16 year old witnessing a global transition from FIAT to crypto.  

The story behind this painting is one from my first time in the deep woods in Canada. I had been canoeing all day, and me and my uncle were floating through a river when we saw a moose. And my first thought was wow this is probably the most Canadian thing that has ever happened to me..  This is the feeling I was trying to put into this piece. 

Canadian Dollar 1973 (X/40)

This sheet of 5 uncut 10,000 Iraqi Dinar featuring former President Saddam Hussein was created in 2001 and is considered contraband in the US (like a Kinder Egg).

During the Saddam Hussein dictatorship, the US claimed that Iraq was developing weapons of mass destruction to rationalize an invasion after the attacks of Sept. 11. In reality, Iraq had no such thing-- but they DID have lots of oil, which the US wanted-- any people believe that OIL was the real reason the US invaded. 

I wanted this piece to show that money is the real weapon of mass destruction, and WMD only exist because of a constant greed for money and power.

Iraqi Dinar - Weapon of Mass Destruction (X/5)

Like NFTs, rugs are one of the main exports of Kyrgyzstan, though the average lifespan of a KYRGYZ rug is only about 100 years.  Kyrgyzstan rugs have traditionally been among the most valuable things owned by a Kyrgyz family and are an indispensable part of a girls dowry.


For this painting, I converted two separate sheets of uncut Kyrgyzstan Som into a rug because as a play on calling NFT collections rugs.  

I think this one really stands out of the collection because the IRL piece is the only mixed media piece. I was very skeptical about gluing the tassels to the dollars, but I love the end product.