Russia-born artist Olive Allen, who lives in the U.S, burned her native countryโs passport in front of the Russian consulate in New York. Her art piece โ captured in video form โ represents a protest against the war in Ukraine and Putinโs brutality against innocent people, and the destruction of Ukraineโs cities and villages.
The artwork was sold as an NFT in an auction held on โSuperRareโ for 3.66 ETH, or $9,767 USD at the time of purchase. The buyer was UnicornDAO, which was created by the feminist activist group โPussy Riot.โ The DAO invests in women-identifying and LGBTQ+ creators; โPassport Burningโ NFT marked its first purchase.
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Allen pledged to donate all proceedings raised from her art to โSave the Children’sโ Ukraine fund in order to support people affected by the war.
โI burned my passport not because I do not love my country, but because I do not believe in Putinโs Russia,โ
the artistย explained after her defiant action.
Allenย said that if she ever returns to Russia, she would be facing 15-years of imprisonment.
โI wouldnโt have done anything differently,โ
she stated, firmly standing by her decision.