In many cultures, money can be difficult to talk about. Thankfully, 17 artists have lent their hand to the topic as part of a new group show from KesselsKramer London and the Bank of England Museum, whose works will no doubt spark some conversations.

The Currency of the Future exhibition brings together a mixture of styles and stories, from Can Sun’s bank note collage reflecting on global economic integration to Ferry Gouw’s alien future where humans are extinct and used as fossil fuels by extraterrestrial life.

Other pieces use symbolism to tackle very real phenomena, like PutPut’s silver spoon piece and Sebastian Koenig’s use of an egg timer to reflect time being the most valuable thing we have.

Elsewhere, Simona Mehandzhieva leans into Brat fever with a lime green note fronted by Charli XCX, gesturing at the idea of virality corresponding directly to value.

This idea of unconventional – but not unimaginable – currencies recurs in probably the most relatable piece in the show, created by artist and former Pentagram designer Harriet Richardson.

Her coy piece, Exposure, imagines a future where exposure (in exchange for creative services) is a viable form of currency, and comes in “direct response to an unpaid commission request from KesselsKramer on behalf of the Bank of England”.

All of the artworks have been formatted in the shape of large-scale bank notes to create a “disruption within the iconic space of the Bank’s museum”, says KesselsKramer London’s senior art director Vangeli Moschopoulous.

The show is taking place as part of London Design Festival, during which the agency is also staging another week-long satellite experience called Barter Bank – an interactive installation inviting participants to produce a piece of digital art and exchange it with another person, provoking questions around how we determine equal value.

Currency of the Future is at the Bank of England Museum in London until September 21; londondesignfestival.com