DEFACED!

Defaced! Money, Conflict, Protest at The Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge explored how currency has been used as a tool of protest and change over roughly the past 250 years. The show brought together coins and banknotes that had been punched, scratched, over-printed or otherwise altered to carry messages of dissent or resistance.

It ranged from early pieces tied to events like the French and American Revolutions, to modern works by contemporary artists addressing issues such as race, power and inequality. Highlights included suffragette-stamped pennies, defaced notes from the Troubles in Northern Ireland, and even the famous “Di-Faced” tenner by Banksy.

Set across three rooms, the atmosphere was gritty and immersive scaffold-style supports, bold graphics and reclaimed materials gave the space a raw edge that matched the defiant spirit of the objects. The exhibition asked visitors to consider: what happens when we alter money, and what does that alteration mean for authority, value and freedom?

Free to enter, the show ran from 11 October 2022 to 8 January 2023.