Conceptual Surrealist Profile Migrant Portrait on Coin. Moldovan. Currency #231

"Currency #231" from Natasha Lelenco’s Currencies series is a striking conceptual work, created with acrylic on a 26 cm circular wooden panel. This piece features a surrealist profile portrait in vivid yellow, set against a warm magenta background. The character’s face is marked with delicate, tattoo-like insect shapes around the eyes and mouth, adding layers of meaning related to identity and transformation. Encircling the figure is a handwritten inscription in orange, making reference to migration and Moldova, which ties into the piece’s central theme of foreignness and displacement.

This artwork plays with the arbitrary value assigned to human life, symbolized through the varying prices attached to each piece in the Currencies series. While the craftsmanship remains consistent across the series, the prices differ, mirroring the unpredictable ways society assigns worth based on factors like nationality and social standing.

The artwork can be appreciated individually or as part of a larger installation, offering a reflective commentary on migration and identity.