photo: Brett Sayles, https://www.pexels.com
The drawing was set ablaze in a cocktail glass at a Miami party.
Depictions of Frida Kahlo appear nearly everywhere in the retail world, from t-shirts and sneakers to perfume and tequila brands, all bearing the likeness of the famed Mexican artist. Now, the commercialization of Kahlo has extended into the world of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), in a highly-criticized publicity stunt.
Martin Mobarak, a Mexican-American tech entrepreneur, claims he burned an original Frida Kahlo drawing at a Miami party in July in an attempt to bring attention to his launch of 10,000 NFTs depicting Kahlo’s artwork.
In a video detailing the event, Mobarak sets the drawing ablaze in an oversized martini glass, surrounded by party-goers, flamethrowers and a mariachi band.
“The painting was permanently transitioned into the Metaverse,” reads a website dedicated to Mobarak’s NFT endeavour, which claims the artwork in question is valued at $10 million. The NFT sales will supposedly benefit charitable organizations, such as the Autism Society and Children’s Craniofacial Association, according to Mobarak’s site.
One of the institutions listed as a donee, Mexico City’s Palace of Fine Arts, is refusing to accept proceeds from Mobarak, according to a press release from Mexico’s National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature. The organization also announced an investigation into the destroyed Kahlo piece. “In Mexico, the deliberate destruction of an artistic monument constitutes a crime in terms of the Federal Law on Archeological, Artistic and Historical Monuments and Zones,” reads the press release, which said the authenticity of the burned artwork has not yet been confirmed.