Artist selling painting for £10k in Monopoly money

James Grant
BBC News, Northamptonshire
Bethany Gwilliam/BBC A woman holds up a canvas with a blue background. There is an abstract face with "value" written vertically coming out of the left eye. The face is made up of pink and blue lines.Bethany Gwilliam/BBC
Tara Roskell is selling her painting for £10,000 but only accepting Monopoly money

An artist is offering to give away her latest painting in exchange for £10,000 in Monopoly money.

Tara Roskell from Broughton, Northamptonshire, described the project as a "slightly bonkers experiment" and a playful way to explore how value is placed on art.

She invited people to send in £10,000 of the board game currency along with a "weird, quirky, funny or poetic" note explaining why they wanted the painting.

Ms Roskell said: "It's not 'match your sofa art', it's for someone who wants something a little bit different."

Getty Images Two dice on the CHANCE space on the British version of the Parker Brothers board game of Monopoly. Getty Images
Tara Roskell came up with the idea after reading about a new cashless version of the board game Monopoly

The painting of a face, created in a graffiti style, was layered with references to money and had a pound sign in the eye.

The idea came to Ms Roskell after reading that Monopoly was releasing a cashless version of the game.

She told BBC Radio Northampton's Annabel Amos: "My mind went to the money they no longer need. You see these barmy things like someone selling a banana for millions - so why not do a fun play on that? It's almost like fake it till you make it."

The artist began painting again after years as a graphic designer.

She had stopped until a creative challenge with a friend helped her rediscover her style, moving away from traditional landscapes to more expressive, abstract work.

"I love it now - I've sold pieces to America, Finland, and lots through social media," she added.

Since bidding opened on 1 July, Ms Roskell said she had already received several colourful bids in Monopoly money.

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