Damien Hirst is a modern British artist. Much of his work is controversial. Hirst has been shocking and offending the art world since the late 1980’s. His work has included glass displays of dead animals. Medicine cabinet sculptures. And “spot” paintings.
Damien Hirst was born in Bristol, England, on June 7, 1965. In the late 1980’s he became a leading figure in the Young British Artists movement. His works have sold for exceptionally high prices. In 2008, his one man sale at Sotheby’s raised more than $170 million U.S. dollars. He’s easily one of the world’s richest living artists.
Hirst’s Early Years
Damien Hirst grew up catholic in Leeds. His religious upbringing would later become a huge factor in his artwork. As a boy he showed interest in the grisly. And the gruesome. In fact his mom described young Damien as a “morbid” child.
As a teenager, Hirst held on to his fondness for the morbid. He enjoyed looking at illustrated pathology books. Pictures of disease and injury fascinated him.
He also showed an interest in drawing, something that was supported by his mom. Damien’s father left the family when he was only 12 years old. This is probably what lead to some of his “wild” behavior as a teen.
By all accounts Hirst was a troubled teen. He was twice caught shoplifting. But his wild behavior didn’t keep him out of college.
He studied art at the Goldsmith’s College, University of London. While a student at Goldsmith Hirst put together a ground-breaking exhibit entitled “Freeze” in 1988. The show featured the works of Fiona Rae. Sarah Lucas. And others.
Hirst and classmates were part of an emerging movement. The Young British Artists. They were known for two things. Using unconventional materials. And challenging art concepts.
One of Hirst’s early works showed his interest in death and his desire to shake up the art world. “With Dead Head,” is a photograph of the young artist. Wearing a wide grin, he poses next to a severed head in a morgue.
Soon Hirst was noticed by famous art collector Charles Saatchi. Hirst received financial support from Saatchi. He also helped the young artist’s reputation by collecting his pieces.
His Big Break
In 1991 Damien Hirst had his first solo show at the Woodstock Street Gallery in London. In 1992 he was a part of the Young British Artists show at the Saatchi Gallery. There he displayed “The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living”. This work is a 14-foot-long glass tank. In the tank is a shark preserved in formaldehyde. The shark was caught by an Australian fisherman.
The Venice Bienniale is one of the world’s leading art shows. There, in 1993, Hirst showed “Mother and Child Divided”. This piece featured a cow and calf split into. They were displayed in four glass cases filled with formaldehyde.
By showing gruesome and somewhat disgusting artwork, Hirst soon became one of the best known artists in Britain. He won the Turner Prize in 1995. This is one of the most important art awards. When accepting the award, Hirst said “It’s amazing what you can do with an E in A-Level art, a twisted imagination and a chainsaw”.
In the world of art exhibitions, things don’t always go as planned. Hirst wanted to bring rotting cattle for a show in New York City in 1995. But the city’s health authorities stopped him. Hirst did manage to have a successful show at New York’s Gagosian Gallery the following year.
Hirst does work besides glass tank installations. He’s also a painter and sculptor. He explored his interest in drugs with such canvases as “Controlled Substances Key Painting” (1994). This is part of his “spot paintings” series. But Hirst only painted a few of them himself. He had other artists do the actual painting of his designs. Much like Andy Warhol had done.
Givin em’ The Business
Damien Hirst isn’t just a famous artist. He’s also a very smart businessman. Hirst has built an empire based on his ability to demand huge prices for his work. You could say he uses shock and awe to his advantage.
In 2008 Hirst had a great idea. He went around the gallery system to auction his work directly to the public. The auction was called “Beautiful Inside My Head Forever”. It took place at Sotheby’s in London. It was a raging success. It took in roughly $198 million.
Hirst has also made a ton of cash selling prints and other items bearing some of his signature styles and images through his company, Other Criteria.
Recent Work
Hirst continues to give em the business, pushing all kinds of boundaries. In 2007, he created “For the Love of God”. This was a shining, diamond-encrusted skull made of platinum.
A lot of critics weren’t impressed. Others marveled at his gall. Hirst demanded $100 million for his masterpiece. Initially, nobody bought the piece. This could be a sign of declining interest in his work. It could also be the insane asking price. I think’s it’s more of the later.
The skull was later bought by a group that included Hirst and London’s White Cube gallery.
In 2009, Hirst exhibited a group of paintings, No Love Lost, Blue Paintings. Some critics called the pieces “dull” and “amateurish.” However, many of these paintings were inspired by one of his favorite artists, Frances Bacon. This revelation led to some unfavorable comparisons.
Today, Hirst shows no signs of slowing down. He’s still shown in exhibits around the world. He launched his own skateboard line in 2011.
Hirst and Charity
Hirst is a supporter of Survival International. They’re a human rights group fighting for the rights of native peoples all over the globe.
In September of 2008, Hirst raised cash for the group. He donated his work, “Beautiful Love Survival” at the Sotheby’s London sale.
Later, he helped to write a book in support of Survival. We Are One: A Celebration of Tribal Peoples. This was released in October 2009. It explores native cultures around the world. And threats to their existence.
Authenticity
At the start of his career there’s no doubt Damien Hirst physically made his artwork. But he always needed help. Carl Freedman helped with the first vitrines.
Today, the sheer volume of his output requires a factory – like set up. This had led many to question the authenticity of Hirst’s work.
In 1997, a spin painting that Hirst said was a “forgery” appeared for sale. He had said previously that he often had nothing to do with the creation of these pieces.
Hirst said that he only painted five spot paintings himself. He described his efforts as “shite”—”They’re shit compared to … the best person who ever painted spots for me was Rachel. She’s brilliant. Absolutely fucking brilliant. The best spot painting you can have by me is one painted by Rachel.”
Hirst tells the story of a painting assistant who was leaving. She asked for one of the paintings. He told her to, “‘make one of your own.’ And she said, ‘No, I want one of yours.’ But the only difference, between one painted by her and one of mine, is the money.'”
By February 1999, two assistants had painted 300 spot paintings. Hirst sees conception as the only true creative act. Not execution. He originated the idea, he is therefore the artist.
“Art goes on in your head,” he says. “If you said something interesting, that might be a title for a work of art and I’d write it down. Art comes from everywhere. It’s your response to your surroundings. There are on-going ideas I’ve been working out for years, like how to make a rainbow in a gallery.
Appropriation or Plagiarism?
One plagiarism claim against Hirst came in 1999. Chef Marco Pierre White said Hirst’s Butterflies on Mars is a copy of his own work, Rising Sun. He then replaced Hirst’s work with his own in the restaurant Quo Vadis.
In 2000, Hirst got into trouble over his sculpture, Hymn. This was a 20-foot (6.1 m), six ton, enlargement of his son Connor’s 14″ Young Scientist Anatomy Set, designed by Norman Emms. This is a very successful product. Toy maker Humbrol sells 10,000 of these sets per year.
Hirst settled out of court with two charities. Children Nationwide. And the Toy Trust. He also made a “good will payment” to Norman Emms. The charitable donation was less than Emms had hoped for. Hirst also agreed to limits on further reproductions of his sculpture.
Robert Dixon is a graphic artist and author. In 2006 he accused Hirst of stealing one his designs. He said the Hirst print Valium,was very similar to one of his.
Hirst’s manager disputed this by claiming Hirst’s piece was from a book. The Penguin Dictionary of Curious and Interesting Geometry (1991). He didn’t realize Dixon’s print appeared in that same book.
Hirst has even been targeted by former friends. In 2007, artist John LeKay said he was a friend of Damien Hirst between 1992 and 1994. He said he gave Hirst a copy of a Carolina Biological Supply Company catalog.
He said the Cow Divided is on page 647. It’s “a model of a cow divided down the center, like his piece.” He’s talking about Hirst’s work Mother and Child, Divided. The piece is a cow and calf cut in half and placed in formaldehyde.
LeKay also claimed Hirst stole another idea from him. He said Hirst’s “For the Love of God” piece is based on crystal skulls he made in 1993.
Copyright lawyer Paul Tackaberry reviewed images of LeKay’s and Hirst’s work side by side. He saw no basis for copyright infringement claims.
In 2010 Charles Thomson said there were 15 cases where Hirst had plagiarized other work. He gave examples. Joseph Cornell made a similar piece to Hirst’s Pharmacy in 1943. Lori Precious made stained-glass window effects from butterfly wings in 1994. Way before Hirst. And John LeKay did a crucified sheep in 1987.
Thomson said that Hirst’s spin paintings and installation of a ball on a jet of air were copied from pieces made in the 1960’s. A Hirst spokesperson said he would rebut these claims fully. So far he hasn’t.
In 2013 Artist Jim Starr accused Hirst of stealing his Medusa idea. Hirst put a picture of pop star Rhianna as the snake-headed monster on the cover of GQ magazine. Of course, Medusa has been depicted in artwork for centuries. Did Hirst really steal his idea from Satrr? You be the judge:
Wrap Up
Damien Hirst continues to be a very successful and controversial artist. His ideas may not always be original. He may need help bringing his artistic vision to physical reality, (he’s not the first artist to need such help. Much of work may seem gross or even disgusting. But, somehow he’s made us rethink the definition of art. Even in the 21st century. Like it or not he’s got the art world by the short hairs. And he’s not letting go. Not for you. Not for me. Not for anybody.
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