FIVE EURO GREY 2024

FIVE EURO GREY – the subdued grey of the €5 bill

As part of her ongoing Nail Polish Edition (2022–2024), Janine Mackenroth introduced FIVE EURO GREY in 2024 – a plant-based nail polish whose hue is directly drawn from the subdued grey of the €5 banknote. Produced in Germany from 90% plant-derived ingredients, this fully 100% wearable polish functions as both a sustainable everyday object and a conceptual artwork.

By translating the understated, almost utilitarian tone of the lowest-denomination Euro bill into an adornment historically tied to beauty culture, Mackenroth engages in a subtle play on perceptions of value – questioning how colour, currency, and status intersect. The cool neutrality of FIVE EURO GREY carries connotations of humility and practicality, yet in this context becomes an empowered personal statement, inviting the wearer to carry a fragment of the European economic system directly on their hands.

Just like the other colours in the series, FIVE EURO GREY turns nails into portable canvases, merging body, economy, and art into a living form of expression.