How to Build a Pay-What-You-Want Art Installation
Art Basel Miami. Three kiosks, Ethereum receipts, split-flap P&L display. 5,837 receipts. $114,706 profit. Open source.
April 11, 2026
The concept
Three self-checkout kiosks at Art Basel Miami Beach. Pay whatever you want. Starting at $1. Your payment prints as a receipt. The receipt is the artwork.
Each dollar prints as a separate line item. Pay $1, short receipt. Pay $100, it unrolls to the floor. The amount you pay is the medium.
A split-flap display starts at -$74,211. The exact, itemized cost of the booth, fabrication, shipping, equipment, labor, travel. Every payment updates it in real time. Transparency as mechanism and critique. See the full project page.
The numbers
5,837 receipts. Average payment: $11.41. Revenue: $188,917. Net profit: $114,706.
The installation was sold to X-Museum, Beijing.