If you enjoyed Scott Campbell’s cut currency art (or you happen to be a huge George Washington fan), then you’ll probably also like Mark Wagner, whose amazing dollar bill collages can be found in the collections of institutions like the Museum of Modern Art, The Walker Art Center, and the Smithsonian. “The one dollar bill is the most ubiquitous piece of paper in America,” he explains. “Collage asks the question: what might be done to make it something else? It is a ripe material: intaglio printed on sturdy linen stock, covered in decorative filigree, and steeped in symbolism and concept. Blade and glue transform it — reproducing the effects of tapestries, paints, engravings, mosaics, and computers— striving for something bizarre, beautiful, or unbelievable… the foreign in the familiar.” Click through to check out a slide show of select pieces, and head to Wagner’s website to see even more of his work (which we spotted thanks to iGNANT), as well as some fascinating detail shots.
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery
Image credit: Mark Wagner. Courtesy of Pavel Zoubok Gallery