The Central Bank of Argentina (BCRA) has unveiled a unique art exhibition at the Hector Carlos Janson Historical and Numismatic Museum with a spotlight on Bitcoin. The exhibition, titled “Art, Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Economics,” represents the first global case in which actual destroyed currencies from various countries are displayed alongside Bitcoin miners working within a central banking institution.
The Argentine Central Bank mines Bitcoin
The innovative display, curated by Argentine artist Alberto Echegaray Guevara, fuses tangible elements of ancient paper money with the dynamic presence of Bitcoin and Ethereum mining operations. We developed the exhibition in cooperation with the Central Bank. It tries to show different types of currencies. It has been to more than 17 central banks in the past 12 years, destroying money. “The message is about the disappearance of paper money and new financial systems linked more to technology.” He cites Echegaray Guevara.
The artist emphasizes the shift towards decentralized financial systems interconnected with artificial intelligence. “For the first time, we will find in the Central Bank Museum Bitcoin and Ethereum currencies. What I want to say is where the financial and monetary systems are heading, which are moving towards decentralized systems, which have a close connection with artificial intelligence.”
Echegaray Guevara, who describes himself as a cryptocurrency artist, destroyed currencies from 17 different central banks, including amounts as large as 1 million Swiss francs, 1 million euros, 1 million reals, and 100 million rubles, each encased in transparent spheres.
Despite Argentina’s continued reliance on physical currency, Echegaray Guevara highlighted a notable digital shift in the use of the dollar: “Although Argentina still uses a lot of paper money, if we talk about the dollar, less than 10% is printed, and the rest is digital.” “In full.”
The exhibit showcases not only the destroyed physical coins, but also operational mining hardware that has produced more than 250 Bitcoin and 3,000 Ethereum in over three years.
To highlight the importance of Ethereum, a ball containing 800 real Ethereum was signed by Vitalik Buterin, the creator of blockchain. In addition, the exhibition incorporates works by pioneering creative artists of the 1960s, such as Gyula Kossisi, Julio Le Parc, and Miguel Ángel Vidal, who initially harnessed computational power for their artistic endeavours.
The opening ceremony, attended by Santiago Boselli, President of the Central Bank, along with government officials, prominent Argentine coin collectors and key figures from the cryptocurrency sector, demonstrates the importance of the event. “This exhibition seeks to lead visitors to think about the transition from an economy focused on physical money to one in which cryptocurrencies and digital assets are starting to make gains,” the organizers stated.
The exhibition is scheduled to continue until March 2025, and aims to become a landmark in the artistic and financial fields.
The unveiling sparked huge reactions from the global Bitcoin community. Anthony Pompliano, Founder and CEO of Professional Capital Management, Comment Via
Likewise, Patrick Lowry, CEO of Samara AG, said, subscriber His take on
At press time, Bitcoin was trading at $70,949.
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