In Blue Phase, Leirner has strung together thousands upon thousands of devalued Brazilian cruzeiros, cruzados, and cruzados novos. According to the artist, the work is not about the inflationary economy in Brazil, relations between artworks and the art market, or the circulation of things, but is instead about "a physical presence totally impregnated by them." While their original function has now been altered, these bank notes, once transported in wallets, pockets, and hands, possess a strange intimacy as embodiments of modern human interactions.

In Blue Phase Leirner has strung together thousands upon thousands of pieces of devalued Brazilian money--cruzeiros, cruzados, and cruzados novos--that for economic reasons were taken out of circulation. Although the artist has altered their original function, these banknotes, once transported in wallets, pockets, and hands, possess a strange intimacy as embodiments of modern human interaction. Years earlier the banknotes could have been exchanged for useful and necessary goods, but by the late 1980s they were useless. Leirner transforms the debris of human life into curiously elegant sculptures.

Inflation is a continuous rise in prices in a nation's economy. It is calculated as an average of all prices, since some may rise while others fall. Inflation occurs when prices increase for most major items, such as houses, automobiles, food, and gasoline.

The rate of inflation is measured by indexes, which compare prices today with those of an earlier period. In the 1980s, Brazil experienced hyperinflation, meaning inflation sped upward at a rate that inspired the word "hyper." In 1985, inflation in Brazil reached 235 percent.

Jac Leirner's work uses the model of Minimalism to contradict, rather than create, a masculine, authoritarian intent. The objects used in Blue Phase were indeed manufactured by an ultimate authority: the Brazilian government. But Leirner chose the objects for their failure to symbolize power and industry. The banknotes are, in fact, powerless. Leirner inverts the values of authority and power, and uses her work to critique Minimalism's associations with industry, technology, size, and weight.