The most expensive artist of our time is called a genius and a psycho. Focused on the aesthetics of death, he earned 300 million euros by selling to collectors the corpses of animals drenched in formaldehyde.
The work associated with the death of many cause disgust, but nevertheless exhibited in fashion galleries and go for fabulous money at auctions. The author, shocking with his works, was called the "fiend of art" (from the word art - "art"), which reflects its inner essence. You can have a different attitude to the strange work of this provocateur from art, but you can not deny that his creations cause a strong resonance.
Craving for the image of death
Damien Hirst was born in 1965 in the UK. The boy grew up naughty, and after his father left the family he completely lost himself at the hands of a strict mother. He was even arrested for petty shoplifting.
The early talent for painting led the 21-year-old to Goldsmith College, which was considered highly innovative. It is believed that it was here that the future artistic genius had an unusual craving for rethinking death. Hurst created in not the most favorable times for creativity. In London, galleries closed one after another, and unknown creators had no chance to put their works on public display.
Acquaintance with the patron
When a college graduate was commissioned to organize an opening day, he was very concerned about the venue. Choosing abandoned premises for the event, the young man did not lose. The exhibition was successful, and the work of Hurst and his classmates surprised the audience.
The next show took place at an abandoned factory, where a wealthy collector came, dreaming of new interesting works. Seeing the installation of a young artist, which is a huge number of cardboard boxes painted with paints by hand, the rich man was struck by the unusual composition. He offered the young talent cooperation for decent money and for many years became his patron.
Sign installation
Damien Hirst, whose career after this meeting rapidly went up, with a considerable amount of money the collector creates another installation that has become a landmark in his work. He understands that contemporary art is, first of all, an unusual idea, and to realize it is much more profitable than just drawing.
Hurst was grateful to his patron who explained to the ambitious aspiring artist that provocations were most valued.
The work, which was a huge aquarium filled with formaldehyde instead of water, brought the artist one of the most prestigious awards in the world.
Inside the vessel rested a dead shark more than four meters long, caught off the coast of Australia and personified the impossibility of death. The work sold brought the author six and a half million pounds, and this was only the beginning.
World fame
Having gained instant fame in the country, Damien Hirst, whose biography becomes a topic of discussion in a secular party, dreamed of world fame. And she found him - after the Venice Biennale.
In 1993, the shocking master presented another variation on the theme of death to the audience, calling it “Separated Mother and Child”. In two transparent aquariums there were dismembered bodies of a cow and a calf, which frightened and fascinated at the same time. Visitors to the exhibition admitted that contemplation of such an unusual sight caused a feeling of compassion and sympathy.
Another motive in the unusual work of a shocking artist is the butterflies, whom Hirst Damien considered a real symbol of death. The work caused fierce criticism from animal defenders, outraged by the inappropriate behavior of the Briton. His installations with thousands of fluttering moths dying before the eyes of the audience were exhibited in a London gallery.
The most expensive work
2007 was marked by the creation of work that has become a symbol of creativity and big money, recognized as one of the most expensive in the world. The skull made of platinum is encrusted with diamonds, the number of which exceeds eight thousand. And in the center of the forehead, a huge pink pear-shaped stone stands out as a bright spot.
A skull with human teeth was bought for fifty million dollars. Damien Hirst thought that decorating death is an excellent reason not to be afraid of it and to come to terms with the inevitable.
Life and death
If we talk about the shocking sculptures and installations of the most expensive artist, then the theme of death in them is the main one. It carries the ideological burden of the confrontation between the denial of death and its inevitability. “It’s too hard for people to realize that you can’t live forever, and all my works are devoted to this thought. But this is not a gloomy view of the world. I want death to be an inspiration to my viewers, ”Damien Hirst explained his position.
The artist’s painting is deprived of this theme, with the exception of the Kaleidoscopes series, in which dead butterflies stuck to the canvas, creating the most amazing patterns.
Hurst is proud of his abstract works, consisting of multi-colored circles, the shades of which are not repeated. Each picture is called a narcotic or stimulating drug.
Source of idea
The controversial artist Hirst Damien has recently been accused of not creating all his creations himself. Many assistants work on it, performing eccentric work on a massive scale. An influential person in the world of art said that he is physically present at the birth of all works and is the source of the idea, therefore his authorship is undeniable. And the creative process, according to Hurst, is a concept, not fulfillment.
Awareness of the inevitability of one's own death
The artist singing about death was never afraid of her. He used drugs, as if trying to bring his end closer, balancing on the brink. Having made a bright and selling show out of human fears, Damien Hirst only once thought about the chosen path.
When his best friend died of a heart attack, the artist felt that he himself was mortal, while experiencing real horror. He stopped experimenting with his life and dedicated it to his common-law wife and children. Damien acknowledged the truth of his authoritarian mother, realizing that raising bully hooligans is a very difficult task.
Creativity or money?
In 2008, Damien Hirst was officially recognized as the most wealthy artist, gaining at auction 110 million pounds. His controversial work, causing conflicting emotions, exhibited in fashion galleries around the world and more expensive every year.
However, the shocking artist claims that he is only interested in creativity for the sake of the people of the future, and not money or fame. Few people believe in his sincerity, because once he already announced his unwillingness to dismember the corpses of animals and expose them to the audience. However, at the next exhibition he again presented the inanimate flesh in formaldehyde, realizing that his provocative creativity is now in price.
Money rules the world
Damien Hirst, whose photos often appear on the pages of various magazines devoted to art, is so popular that other artists use his figure in his work. The installation of the Spanish author, depicting the suicide of a brilliant brawler, is known.
Hurst lovers believe that after his death, the already expensive creations will rise in price several times.
And the famous British critic concluded that our world, in which money rules, deserves just such an artist.