http://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/currency-design
Here's another one on alternative designs to US currency and innovative designs of other currencies. The Norwegian new currency is pretty cool! Note also the commentary on the proposed modernist/humanist designs by MA student Travis Purrington:
"In his MA thesis WORTH: The Aesthetics of Global Interest, Basel School of Design student Travis Purrington designed a proposal for an updated US Dollar note. Inspired by the Swiss Franc’s 20-year design cycle, Travis developed a new iconographic system that better represented advancements and culture within American society.
His design played on the theme of human discovery, connecting achievement, theory and the fundamental properties of life. Bearing in mind that this started as an MA project in 2011, Travis’ designs have been doing the rounds all over the internet in the last six months. With all its popularity, on Wired, Slate and Foreign Policy as well as all over Tumblr, Travis recognises that the American Dollar is almost remarkable for its lack of innovation. Unlike the colonial legacy pushed by the current design, Travis’ proposal was for notes that reflect human reason and a humanistic, secular, scientific outlook on the world."
Perhaps less to do with aesthetics and more to do with how a society sees (or doesn't see) itself reflected in its currency---There is an organization called W20 (Women on 20s) which is lobbying hard to get a women on the US $20 bill. Becoming a hot item on social networking sites these days! See for yourself: http://money.cnn.com/2015/03/05/news/economy/20-bill-women/
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