The Art of Gold: A collaboration with the money maker, Tom Badley
Renowned banknote designer Tom Badley delivers an inspired collection, but this time, for coin.
Bullionix is thrilled to reveal the results of our collaboration with Tom Badley, the world’s premier banknote specialized artist. Badley masterfully employs the graphic and print techniques that we see and hold in our hands everyday. At one time head-hunted to design banknotes for central banks, Badley exercises techniques developed for this specific craft throughout his works, whether they be in print or digitally as NFTs.
The Liberty Collection — Tom Badley x Bullionix
Badley is well known in the cryptoart space for his banknote designs. Less well known, is the story of how he entered the world of numismatics — coin collecting — some time before being recruited by a currency printer.
“Whilst living in London, I would make regular trips to Spink — London’s oldest auctioneers & dealers in coins, medals, stamps and banknotes — mostly out of convenience, because I lived not too far away. When I saw a job opening in the antique banknote department, I applied, and the customer became the employee. Working in close proximity to the coin department only increased my curiosity in gold and silver. Having access to the wealth of knowledge from the appraisers working there, and seeing the beauty of rare coins close up, witnessing auctions and attending exhibitions; all this lead to an appreciation of numismatic history, and a habit of collecting gold and silver milled coins.”
When Bullionix was first announced, Badley was one of the very first people to react to the news. He immediately recognized the potential of gold-staked NFTs and from there it was only a matter of time.
“It’s my pleasure to share NFTs like never seen before: Gold-Backed, non-fungible tokens, that honour numismatic history, investment gold, and the innovator in tokenised bullion, Digix. Far from a one-off experiment, I see these designs as a springboard into a new field of commodity-backed art, that will extend into both digital and physical worlds.”
The innovative nature of Bullionix NFTs presents a new canvas for Badley and the collection should make for a very fine addition to his catalogue of works. Some of his most notable designs include the Los Deplorables banknotes (as NFTs and prints) and his intaglio and engravings series.
Inspiration
The design borrows from two points in numismatic history: on the front, the coinage of Switzerland, with the wreaths, communicating stability, a financial safe haven. On the back — one of Badley’s favourite portraits — Lady Liberty, first used on an unissued $50 Gold piece, it was eventually adapted for the famous Morgan Dollar — a symbol of Americana and constitutional money. The result is a traditional and quality design that stays true to the essence of gold, in a format that is at the cutting edge of the commodity and art market, gold backed digital art.
When asked about his inspiration, Badley explains:
To honour and celebrate — this is always my starting point with art. I want to amplify and memorialize, whether in the form of a banknote or a coin. This was the starting point for this series.
Badley and our team worked closely for months fine tuning this particular collection and the results speak for themselves. The detail work, 3D sculpting, and experimentation with multiple finishes has led to a final piece that is truly a premium work of art.
Collect Liberty
This Thursday, June 25th sees the release of the 10 DGX staked piece from the Liberty Collection. The ten gram coin is the series’ heaviest and rarest. The other coins in the collection will be released in the coming week. Each weight comes with its own wreath designs and subtleties. The result is a cohesive and beautiful NFT collection unlike any other!
About Bullionix
Bullionix is a first-of-its-kind dapp where YOU are the goldsmith. You choose the casting mould, you melt down the gold, and you own the resulting collectible to display, share, or sell.
All powered by Ethereum’s NFT standard and Digix smart gold.
