The appearance of monoliths around the world — in Utah, Romania, California, the Netherlands, and the UK — has captivated a global audience eager to see where the next structure will turn up. And, of course, when it will disappear, as structures in Utah, Romania, and California have.
Throughout it all, people have been searching for explanations about the nature, origin, and purpose of the structures, which typically stand around three meters tall, have three sides, and are made out of silver-colored metal.
There are several theories about where the monoliths (or, at least, some of them) came from. They range from the whimsical hypothesis that they were dropped by aliens, to speculation that the sculpture artist John McCracken, who died in 2011, created them.
Now, a new player has entered the scene. A New Mexico-based artist collective named The Most Famous Artist has now been linked with the phenomenon after it announced on Instagram it would start selling monoliths, suggesting it is responsible for the structures.
The reality, however, is not as clear.
"I'm here to say: I didn't do the monolith, but I didn't not do the monolith," the collective's founder, artist Matty Mo, said in a Monday Instagram Live with art podcaster Heidi Zuckerman. "I am both the originator and the guy who is just capitalizing on it as a result of the artifacts that were created to seed the story which propagated the myth."
Mo is known for creating art that performs well in the digital space — think murals that beg for Instagram attention or media attention-grabbing projects. One of his projects was an installation that allowed people to take photos as if they were at the notorious Fyre Festival.
One of his most famous collaborators, Zach Fernandez, is known for the 2017 "Hollyweed" sign prank, in which he altered the iconic Hollywood sign's letters.
In a 2019 interview with ABC News, Mo said: "The Most Famous Artist is an idea. Anyone that believes that they're the most famous artist is the most famous artist … The whole idea is that you think you can be, and so one day a few years ago I decided I wanted to try to be the most famous artist, and I became it."
On December 4, The Most Famous Artist's Instagram account posted a photo of a monolith, partially covered, on a dolly, with the caption, "Checking in... any collectors interested in an official alien monolith? Asking $45k. Includes documentation and signed TMFA."
That same day, TMFA posted a photo that showed the Utah monolith as part of a listing selling monoliths for $45,000 each.
With quantity listed as three monoliths (plus an artist proof), the posting said that each monolith is 10 feet tall and made of "museum quality materials," comes with delivery and installation and a blockchain certificate of authenticity, and is signed and dated "The Most Famous Artists 2020."
One comment on that post asked: "Was it you?"
In response, the account didn't explicitly take credit for the monoliths erected around the world, replying cryptically: "If by you you mean us, yes."
As of now, the listing on TMFA's website shows that those monoliths are sold out. Mo told Insider via email that the collective has "reservations from dealers and collectors to purchase the monoliths," leading to their being listed as sold out as they work to close the deals. He said that one monolith had already been acquired and is set to be installed later this week at Blue Cloud Movie Ranch.
Blue Cloud Movie Ranch did not immediately respond to Insider's request for confirmation.
Mo also told Insider that The Most Famous Artist is currently working on "mini-moni's," aiming to produce 333 of them to sell for $3,333.33 each.
Insider explicitly asked Mo whether TMFA had installed any of the monoliths that appeared in Utah, Romania, the Netherlands, and the UK, or if had installed any of the monoliths that had appeared around the world. (Another group of artists has taken credit for the monolith that appeared in Atascadero, California.
"Yes, I can confirm, we have installed monoliths," Mo told Insider, adding that for legal reasons he could not say more.
He gave Mashable's Rachel Kraus a similar statement, saying: "I can say we are well known for stunts of this nature and at this time we are offering authentic art objects through monoliths-as-a-service. I cannot issue additional images at this time but I can promise more on this in the coming days and weeks."
In a Monday afternoon Instagram Live broadcast with Heidi Zuckerman, the host of the podcast "Conversations About Art," Mo talked about becoming part of the monolith discourse.
Mo told Zuckerman he knew that the original creator — whether it was The Most Famous Artist, the late John McCracken, or aliens — likely wouldn't take credit due to legal ramifications, given that the Utah monolith was illegally installed on public land.
He then said that he had to think about the headline that "inserts me directly into the discussion," and start a conversation around whether or not he was "the guy that did it."
The solution, Mo said, was announcing on Instagram that it was selling monoliths at $45,000 ("there's also a hidden Easter egg around Trump and the 45th president in there," he added) and label it as "monoliths as a service," a parody of the tech world.
From there, Mo told Zuckerman, it was just a matter of who would pick up the story. He said that Mashable bit, writing the first article about TMFA selling monoliths. While Mashable's reporting was clear that Mo was not explicitly taking (or denying) credit for the monolith, Mo said that he was able to "construct enough digital artifacts that told a narrative that the press wanted so desperately to break," therefore becoming the center of discourse around the monoliths' origin.
Those comments suggest that TMFA didn't install the original Utah monolith. Insider's Haven Orecchio-Egresitz and Aylin Woodward reported that the Utah monolith found south of Moab seems to have been installed sometime between August 2015 and October 2016, according to Google Earth imagery.
At this point, The Most Famous Artist has posted about making and selling monoliths, and Mo told Insider that one of them has been acquired. That's relatively clear.
And based on Mo's comments on Zuckerman about inserting himself "into the discussion" as well as a general lack of evidence that he built the monoliths around the world, it doesn't seem likely that TMFA installed the Utah monolith.
Then again, Mo hasn't explicitly denied that, either.
Other monolith appearances and disappearances have been attributed to individual actors. Andy Lewis, an extreme-sports YouTuber, posted a video that appeared to show him and several others dismantling and removing the Utah monolith.
Four separate artists also took credit for installing the monolith in Atascadero, California, The New York Times reported, putting up a sturdier version after a group of men livestreamed themselves taking the first one down and replacing it with a cross.
Still, the digital artifacts tying TMFA to the monolith are continuing to pile up, becoming part of the myth and spectacle without offering any definitive proof. As Mashable reported, Mo tweeted an image of what he said was "early concept art" timestamped to August 2020. It appears in what seems to be a rendering of a remote desert.
Early Concept Art — August 2020 pic.twitter.com/3tdcj5PvgL
— Matty Mo (@morewoke) December 4, 2020
Mashable also reported that TMFA has also engaged with possible collaborators, Carlos Estrada and Erik Junke, on Instagram, responding to or reposting posts speculating about the origin of the monolith.
Estrada reportedly made a post asking: "Did me and @themostfamousartist make the monolith?" to which the account responded on its own story: "NOT NO."
Still, Mo is withholding details or specific information about which monoliths TMFA has installed, and not explicitly taking credit for anything. TMFA's Instagram page and Mo's Twitter are full of screenshots of cheeky responses to reporters and posts saying that he's offering podcaster Joe Rogan the "exclusive on the monolith story."
FYI — this is our official statement. pic.twitter.com/ME8P0g8cHX
— Matty Mo (@morewoke) December 5, 2020
So, is The Most Famous Arist responsible for the monolith craze? "Not no" is perhaps the best answer to that question. The creator of the Utah monolith still remains unknown, and although it seems unlikely, it's still possible that the collective could be responsible.
What TMFA is clearly responsible for, however, is this particular strain of discourse around whether or not its $45,000 monoliths signify any kind of authorship over the trend. A quick Google News search for "The Most Famous Artist" shows that it's undeniable that the collective — and Mo — have become at least a temporary fixture in the mythos surrounding the monolith.
"We are the brains behind this global media phenomenon. That I can confirm," Mo told Insider.
