Український Раціональний Націоналізм

way from the flock
who is Damien Hirst?

Damien Hirst was born in Bristol, England in 1965. By the time he'd graduated from Goldsmiths College in London in 1989 he'd already organized the exhibition 'Freeze', which is now considered the first major exhibition by the generation of British artists that shot to international fame in the 90s.

This little piggy went to market, this little piggy stayed at home, 1996
Hirst's 1991 solo exhibition at the ICA brought his work to a wider audience, but it was another exhibition the following year that brought him to the general public's attention - via unprecedented coverage in the tabloid press. The exhibition was the first of The Saatchi Gallery's 'Young British Artists' series, and one of Hirst's contributions was the now-iconic 'shark piece', titled The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living.

From this point, Hirst's fame grew exponentially, well beyond the bounds of the artworld, his work helping to define a generation. He is now one of the very few artists in the world who can truly be said to work within the gaze of the mass media and the public beyond the artworld.

in and out of love
ten things you need to know about Damien Hirst

1, He's a driving force of his generation.

A Thousand Years, 1990
Hirst was instrumental in the rise of British art throughout the 90s. For example, the 1988 exhibition he organized, 'Freeze', is now widely regarded as the first expression of a new generation in British art, launching the careers of such artists as Mat Collishaw, Ian Davenport, Anya Gallaccio, Gary Hume, Sarah Lucas and Fiona Rae.

2, He doesn't always make his own artworks. In the tradition of the great artists' workshops - like Leonardo, Rubens, Andy Warhol - Hirst has a large studio team working on his grand-scale projects. It wasn't always this way though; photos from the mid-90s show him in protective suit and gasmask, up to his knees in formaldehyde.

3, His artworks are genuine cultural icons. The animals in glass tanks (the shark, the cows, the sheep); the spot paintings named after pharmaceuticals; the circular 'spin' paintings produced on a giant turntable; the dead butterflies embedded in paint… all of these are instantly recognizable as Hirst artworks.

4, He isn't just 'Mr Death'. The famous photograph With Dead Head shows the 16-year-old Hirst apparently sharing a joke with a decapitated head. In fact, his grin is pure nervousness - he later admitted to being terrified at the situation. While the media associate Hirst with work about death, he actually makes just as much work about love, and his approach is as poetic as it is analytic.

5, He makes more than visual art. Hirst often works outside of the traditional confines of fine art; he has made a pop video for Blur, designed an album cover for Dave Stewart, and is a member of the pop group Fat Les who stormed the British charts with their World Cup anthem 'Vindaloo' in 1998. He also designed and co-owns the elaborate Notting Hill restaurant, Pharmacy.

6, He keeps his lawyers busy. Hirst often finds himself dealing with issues of law: sometimes through public order disturbances - springing from his enthusiasm for undressing in public - and sometimes through copyright issues. His vast sculpture, Hymn, was based on a children's toy, which the toy designer took issue with (particularly since the press reported that the edition of three sculptures were selling for £1m each). Hirst settled the matter amicably by making a donation to charity.

7, He put art on the map again. Not since David Hockney captured the public imagination in the 60s has art had such a high profile in Britain. Hirst was the first real art star of his generation, paving the way for others to follow. (When newspapers started using Hirst's work as a metaphor in reports of soccer matches, you knew he'd brought about a sea change in attitudes towards art.)

Isolated Elements Swimming in the Same Direction for the Purpose of Understanding , 1991
8, His art is enormously influential. Over the last decade, Hirst's work has been cited, referenced, copied, plagiarized and downright ripped-off by any number of individuals, advertising agencies and corporations.

9, He loves his mum. Hirst takes his mother to all his important openings. In turn, she has become a minor celebrity, frequently talking to the media about her son's work. When she complained to him that she didn't have the 'right kind of house for contemporary art', he famously made her a small Renaissance-style drawing based on a painting by Eugene Delacroix, far removed from his usual style.

http://www.eyestorm.com/hirst/read_first.asp