The artist who once sold a photo of a potato for $1 million just sold a cryptocurrency-inspired artwork called 'YELLOW LAMBO' for more than the price of an actual Lamborghini
- Conceptual artist and photographer Kevin Abosch recently sold a blockchain-inspired artwork called "YELLOW LAMBO" for $400,000.
- The artwork is inspired by the hashtag #lambo, which is often used in cryptocurrency forums online.
Kevin Abosch's technology-inspired artwork and photography challenge the traditional perceptions of value.
In 2016, Abosch sold a photograph of a potato for more than $1 million.
In February, a group of 10 collectors purchased his virtual artwork "Forever Rose" for $1 million in cryptocurrency.
And just last week, Abosch sold another digitally-inspired artwork called "YELLOW LAMBO" to former Skype COO Michael Jackson for $400,000 - more than the starting price of an actual Lamborghini.
The artwork is composed of 42 inline alphanumerics in yellow neon representing the blockchain contract address for a crypto token called YLAMBO, which Abosch also created. Abosch named the artwork after the hashtag #lambo, which cryptocurrency enthusiasts often use in online forums.
"When I first became aware of the use of #lambo on social media, it struck me as vulgar," Abosch told Business Insider. "But the more I thought about it, I realized that it's actually just a declaration acknowledging the insanity around the crypto zeitgeist."
The coveted Italian luxury car is a prized commodity in the cryptocurrency community, and in recent years, it's become a symbol for easy, cryptocurrency-acquired affluence. It's the Lamborghini's symbolic trappings that inspired Abosch to create a conceptual artwork which he describes as a meditation on value.
"Depending on who you speak to, one person might ask, 'Why would someone spend $400,000 on bitcoin?' Another person might ask, 'Why would someone spend $400,000 on a car or a piece of artwork?'" said Abosch. "It's a cause for discussion on why and how we value anything at all."
After Abosch sold his blockchain artwork "Forever Rose" earlier this year for what is thought to be the largest sum ever paid for a piece of virtual art ("Forever Rose" is an ethereum-based token called ROSE that's inspired by a photograph Abosch took of an actual rose), Absoch said he received several confused inquiries regarding the nature of the piece.
"There is no physical or visual manifestation of the work," said Abosch. "Someone asked me, 'How is it possible that something that you can't see or touch can have value?" Abosch's answer: "I have to wonder whether or not people who ask this question have an unhealthy relationship with material things."
In May, Abosch will present another blockchain-inspired artwork at the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg.