ULTRA VIOLET
ART
This specially commissioned work is printed in UV reactive inks on an uncut sheet of US Dollars. This is a series of articles, each addressing issues defining Luxury brands now, and in the near future.
‘The Great Wave Off Kanagawa’ (1833) is perhaps one of the most famous woodblock prints, by Japanese artist Hokusai. It’s the first in Hokusai’s 36 prints that depict Mount Fuji. By combining this iconic image with the US Dollar, this private art commission highlights the connection between Hokusai’s print, and our maritime sense of money: economic waves, liquidity, sunk costs, slush fund…
Hokusai’s original print is translated into lithograph and flexography – both processes used in banknote production – and over-printed on an existing sheet of US Dollars.
Usually, this combination and standard of printing processes would be reserved for the mass-production of banknotes. One – and only one – will ever be produced. Not only does this combine the precision and technical capabilities of banknote production with the exclusivity of an irreplaceable work of art, those same techniques make it virtually impossible to reproduce.
As part of this unique work, the piece also includes microtext in UV-sensitive ink, to be customized with a personal message.
