Money to Burn (performance art)

Money To Burn
Artist	Dread Scott
Year	2010 (2010)
Type	Money burning
Coordinates	40°42′25″N74°0′40″W / 40.70694°N 74.01111°W / 40.70694; -74.01111
Website	www.dreadscott.net/portfolio_page/money-to-burn/

Money to Burn was a work of performance art executed on June 22, 2010, in which Dread Scott burned $171 ^[1] in US dollar bills in front of the New York Stock Exchange.

Scott filmed himself repeatedly singing "money to bur-rn, money to burn" while burning one bill at a time with a Zippo lighter, both from the $250 in small bills attached to his clothes, and from bills solicited from passers-by. ^{[2] [3] [4]}

Describing the performance, Scott said "I did the one thing you shouldn't do with money: burn it. Burning it is the one thing that everyone thinks is just crazy. But I was doing in extremely small form what happens on the stock exchange daily on a much grander scale." ^[3]

After 25 minutes, the New York Police Department intervened and issued Scott a summons for disorderly conduct, which he fought in court. ^{[3] [5] [6]}

See also

• K Foundation Burn a Million Quid

References

1. "Dread Scott". Artspace. Retrieved 19 September 2024.
2. Vartanian, Hrag (24 June 2010). "Dread Scott Burned Money in Front of the NY Stock Exchange". Hyperallergic . Retrieved 19 September 2024.
3. "Dread Scott is a revolutionary artist whose work takes an unflinching look at Black lives in America". Creative Exchange. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 19 September 2024.
4. Lucas, Julian (9 September 2019). "Muskets! Axes! Revolt! Here Are the Plans for a Reenactment of an Actual 1811 Rebellion". Vanity Fair . Retrieved 19 September 2024.
5. Levitt, Aimee (28 October 2013). "The art of making history". Chicago Reader . Retrieved 19 September 2024.
6. Litt, Steven (23 December 2022). "Battling oppression with capitalist 'blood money': Radical artist Dread Scott spreads revolutionary message at CWRU-Cleveland Museum of Art symposium". Cleveland.com . Retrieved 19 September 2024.