The Citi Money Gallery at The British Museum

Money gallery in the British Museum

Visiting the British museum in order to see their money gallery was a unique experience in that it was strange to see money behind glass. It was like it was a work of art! Protected from grubby hands in order to keep its pristine condition. The barrier of money, worth and value appear blurred I feel like everything I have learnt socially about money and value changes throughout this project.

Money in society today has utmost value. It’s something almost everyone longs for in life however when it came to getting my hands on out of circulation notes, well, this was easy. They gave it away for free! This led me to believing that money has a value one moment and none the next. Of course it has a shelf life but they money in the museum is out of circulation too. What is the difference between this ‘old’ money and my ‘old’ money? Well, there shouldn’t be but there is. The money in the museum is very old therefore more valued than my disused notes. All of this gives me conflicting views of money and its worth. I know ultimately an object whether it be money or a glass has value of whom ever values it most but I struggle with these conflicting concepts on currency. Can my paper I make go in a museum one day when it is deemed old enough?

The British museum also have an interesting blog focused on MONEY!

This visit has made me contemplate value not only in money but in people too. If a person does not feel valued by themselves this doesn't mean I will not value them as a person. Vulnerable people often feel a lack of value, a sense of worthlessness. My thoughts on money has helped me to think about value in a therapeutic situation, I hope I can help a person from feeling worthless.

I’m reflecting on the idea of worth and why I’m adding value to notes, which lack just that. Is my longing to heal vulnerable people using art therapy seeping into my art practice?

To answer this question, yes, I think it might just be...

Money gallery in the British Museum (2011), (2013) [image online] Available at: http://bmtrainingprog.wordpress.com/2011/11/16/the-money-gallery-project/ [Accessed on 7 December 2013]