In 2022, Pussy Riot’s Nadya Tolokonnikova co-founded UnicornDAO, a decentralised organisation with a mission to push back against the overwhelmingly-male, frequently cringe-filled state of art in the Web3 space. With links to the likes of Beeple and Grimes, the organisation has already raised millions of dollars to empower women and LGBTQ+ creators, but this International Women’s Day it’s turning its focus on sexual and reproductive healthcare in the US.
Yesterday (March 7), UnicornDAO launched My Body, My Business, an auction of physical and digital artworks that “seeks to celebrate and empower women-identifying artists”. Curated by Tolokonnikova, the sale includes artworks by iconic artists including Jenny Holzer, Cindy Sherman, Ellen von Unwerth, and Marina Abramović.
Spanning film, photography, and even candles (see: the phallic eggplant from the front of Pussy Riot’s debut mixtape) the Sotheby’s auction also includes work by digital art pioneers such as Holly Herndon and Sofia Crespo, alongside performance and conceptual artists like Vanessa Beecroft and Michele Pred.
Proceeds from the auction – which runs until March 14 – will support benefit US-based organisations that champion sexual and reproductive health care, education, and rights, including Planned Parenthood. “My pussy, my riot,” says Tolokonnikova. “I spent 2 years in jail fighting for feminism in Russia, and it hurts me to see reproductive rights being taken away in the US.”
Besides pushing back against oppression in the US, Tolokonnikova is currently facing criminal charges in Russia, in connection with Pussy Riot’s debut solo show, Putin’s Ashes. Revisit her conversation with Dazed about casting a spell to kill Putin here, and view some of the artworks featured in My Body, My Business in the gallery above.