STORY: This Argentinian artist paints celebrities on banknotes to boost their value

Lionel Messi (arrow)

Bob Ross (arrow)

(Sergio Guillermo Diaz, Artist)

"When I started painting banknotes, people said to me, 'But it's money, how are you going to paint money?' Nowadays it's sometimes better for me to paint on the biggest banknote here in Argentina. I paint on it and I can sell it for a lot more than what I could spend with that banknote."

The Argentinian peso has been suffering under record-breaking inflation levels

In December 2022 the country's poverty rate was at nearly 40%

with many having to tighten their belts as cost-of-living prices increased

"So this also reflects how inflation is being experienced, how it's growing, and how it's affecting all of us, totally affecting our lives and our purchasing power as well. It shows how we are living through this economic crisis, let's say."