too much? by amarist + alejandro monge questions the value of money

too much? by amarist + alejandro monge questions the value of money
all images courtesy of atelier amarist

‘too much?’ by atelier amarist and alejandro monge is an example of when contemporary art and design become one. the sculptural dining table, consists of a glass cube containing partially burnt notes with a thin biofuel flame rising above its surface. each intricate detail was taken into consideration as the artist meticulously reproduced the bills by gluing and coloring each individual piece of paper. yet, according to the artist, ‘the most complicated part of the process was to simulate the effect of burnt paper eaten by flames never using fire to achieve it.’ this required the use of a hyper-realistic technique which simulated the effect of a burning fire morphing and petrifying ashes with resin. consequently, the furnishing is meant to provoke deep thoughts within the mind of the viewer about the significance and value of money, time, and people. ‘a note is a dyed piece of paper that represents a number, 10, 20, 50 dollars, yens, euros. a figure that we exchange in order to acquire something wanted. a figure that within itself has no more value than the one given to the job or the time traded,’ said monge.

view of the table in the darkness

the fire is created with a thin biofuel

the hardest part of the process was recreating the appearance of burning banknotes

detail of the replicated bills

details of the euros

view of the artist steadily painting

unlit view of the table

each individual bill was created by hand

work in progress with stacks of paper

monge spraying the bills with grey paint

work in progress

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.