A KIRKUS OBSCURA PRODUCTION

ART. DISSENT. AND A LITTLE COPPER.

Big Zinky

A pecuniary circus of thought

LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIAAN INVITATION TO QUESTION VALUE
The illuminated Jones gallery windows at night, with artwork and a handmade Free Currency sign

THE MAIN ATTRACTION / FROM THE STREETS OF LONG BEACH

Money or currency?
Step right up.

Before the question became a copper token, it went out into the street. Ringmaster Jones meets the public with the idea at the heart of the Big Zinky circus: what is the difference between money and currency?

BIG ZINKY TAKES TO THE STREETSTHE ORIGINAL FILM
LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA · ARCHIVE FILM · 6 MIN 28 SECWatch on YouTube ↗

A paper promise.
A piece of copper.
What gives either its value?

This is the question that set the whole circus in motion. Big Zinky took an argument about material, promises, and belief out of the gallery and into everyday conversation. The street became the stage. Anyone passing by could join the show.

Explore the past shows

STEP RIGHT UP!

What’s your
money worth?

A copper penny. A paper promise. A whole lot of questions. Big Zinky brings art and money into the same ring, then asks you to look a little closer.

GET THE ORIGINAL TOKEN

A piece of the show. A conversation in your pocket.

THE ORIGINAL COPPER TOKEN
Original Big Zinky copper token with a balancing seal, sunrise, and the denomination 1/100
STRUCK IN 20118 GRAMS OF CONVERSATION
ARTMONEYCURRENCYVALUE

ACT I / THE SWITCH

Same face.
Different story.

1982THE COPPER-TO-ZINC
TURNING POINT

The penny kept its face.
What was inside changed.

In 1982, the U.S. Mint shifted the cent from a mostly copper composition to copper-plated zinc. Both types were minted that year. That quiet change inspired the name Big Zinky.

For us, it became a much bigger question: what happens when the value we assign to something drifts away from the substance behind it?

Big Zinky brought that question into art and conversation in Long Beach. The Kunst AmeriCOnia presentations at the EXPO Arts Center in 2011–2012 explored money, debt-based currency, corporate power, and Antarctica as art. We gave away copper tokens at the shows so the conversation could leave the room with you.

FROM THE BIG ZINKY ARCHIVE

A question worth tuning in for.

The original Big Zinky promo. Art, dissent, and a question worth asking.

1 MIN 07 SEC

ACT II / THE PAPER PROMISE

The greatest
show on paper.

BACKED BY WHAT?

Big Zinky challenges a system that asks us to trade our time and labor for paper promises. We question debt-based currency, the power behind it, and what remains when confidence wears thin.

U.S. dollars are fiat money: they are not redeemable for gold or silver. Their purchasing power rests on institutions, policy, and public acceptance. To Big Zinky, that makes the difference between tangible material and a promise worth holding up to the light.

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY

Reverse of the original copper token, with Antarctica as Art, a map of Antarctica, radiating lines, and the year 2011
ANTARCTICA AS ART / 2011

ACT III / TAKE THE SHOW HOME

Small token.
Big questions.

Once a giveaway at the shows. Now a collectible piece of Big Zinky history. The original 2011 copper token carries the project's questions into another pair of hands.

Material
Copper
Weight
8 grams
Diameter
1.102 inches
Original edition
2,500 tokens

Specifications from the seller's listing.

BUY YOUR TOKEN ON EBAY

See eBay for current price, availability, shipping, and seller terms. Purchase is completed on eBay.

Behind the curtain: the history & sources

This page brings together the original Big Zinky site's history, the show's story, and the token's seller description. Big Zinky's critique of currency is the project's artistic viewpoint.

Full original photograph of the Jones gallery front at night, including all five windows and the Free Currency sign

Art in the windows. Questions on the street.