Claire Salvo’s da Vinci transforms Leonardo’s Lady with an Ermine into a delicate and witty study of art and value. Painted in acrylic on a U.S. dollar bill, the piece inserts one of the Renaissance’s most refined portraits into the rigid, symbolic geometry of American currency - merging the grace of humanist art with the impersonality of monetary design.

Salvo captures the poise and subtle intelligence of Leonardo’s sitter, her contemplative gaze offset by the gentle form of the ermine nestled below. The soft chiaroscuro and masterful restraint of the original painting are reinterpreted through Salvo’s miniature scale, imbuing the dollar with unexpected depth and tenderness.

In da Vinci, Salvo continues her exploration of the relationship between cultural and economic worth. By immortalizing one of art history’s most celebrated images on the world’s most common unit of exchange, she reframes the dialogue between genius and commerce, reverence and reproduction, creating a meditation on how value is both created and perceived.