Taking the enigmatic relationship between art and money to a new level, C.K. Wilde creates figurative collages from tiny bits of real paper currencies. His compositions are based on found images, such as New York cityscapes, iconic paintings like Jacques-Louis David’s Napoleon Crossing the Alps (1801-05), re-imagined scenes from mythology and of American slavery, and antique maps. The work also engages contemporary global issues ranging from the politics of war to food supply. With group exhibition titles like “Alternating Currency” and “Money Changes Everything” and individual work titles such as “Atla$”, Wilde’s work is driven by the image and symbolism of money as the ultimate representation of power. He sometimes collaborates with the fellow currency collagist Mark Wagner.
Taking the enigmatic relationship between art and money to a new level, C.K. Wilde creates figurative collages from tiny bits of real paper currencies. His compositions are based on found images, such as New York cityscapes, iconic paintings like Jacques-Louis David’s Napoleon Crossing the Alps (1801-05), re-imagined scenes from mythology and of American slavery, and antique maps. The work also engages contemporary global issues ranging from the politics of war to food supply. With group exhibition titles like “Alternating Currency” and “Money Changes Everything” and individual work titles such as “Atla$”, Wilde’s work is driven by the image and symbolism of money as the ultimate representation of power. He sometimes collaborates with the fellow currency collagist Mark Wagner.