Damien Hirst Spin Painting
Biography

Born 1965 in Bristol, England, Damien Hirst is one of Britain's most celebrated artists around today.

Painter, sculptor and installation artist Hirst was ecouraged by both his mother & art teacher, and studied Fine Art at Goldsmiths College, London from 1986-9. During his second year at Goldsmiths, Hirst organized the renowned independent student exhibit "Freeze," which launched the careers of the artists later dubbed the "Young British Artists,"(YBA) including Hirst, Sarah Lucas, Gary Hume, Tracy Emin and Ian Davenport amongst others.

After graduating, Hirst’s work was shown in a New Contemporaries show at Kettles Yard Gallery in Cambridge.

In 1991, Hirst’s showcased his first solo exhibition, entitled 'In and Out of Love', at the Woodstock Street Gallery in London, filling the entire gallery with live tropical butterflies.

The following year, Hirst paired with art collector Charles Saatchi, who was highly influential to Hirst’s career between 1992 and 2003. In 1992 Hirst exhibited what would become his most iconic work – The Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living – in which he immersed a 14-foot shark in a showcase filled with formaldehyde. The work was part of the first major exhibition of the YBA at the Saatchi Gallery in London.

In 1992, Hirst was nominated for the esteemed Tate Gallery Turner Prize; although it was awarded to Grenville Davey, Hirst later won the award in 1995.

Hirst is most well-known for his ‘Natural History’ glass tank installations, including The Impossibility of Death (1992) and Mother and Child Divided (1993); the Pharmacy series, including medicine cabinet sculptures, imaginary drug labels and Spot Paintings: paintings of meticulously placed colored dots with titles that refer to pharmaceutical chemicals; and key [6964056] doesn't existSpin Paintings – works created by centrifugal force by steadily poured paint onto a spinning canvas.

His more recent work once again incorporates butterflies in complicated canvases referencing religious stained glass windows and mandalas.

Certainly the most prominent of a bold generation of British artists that emerged during the late eighties and early nineties, Hirst continues to challenge the role of art in the world.

“Drawing on movements such as Pop and Minimalism in provocative ways, Hirst challenges us to look at the wonders and horrors of the world in which we live. Blurring traditional boundaries & exploding their limits, Hirst's art is sensational in the true meaning of the word." ~ Christie's, New York, November 15, 2006.

Biography

Born 1965 in Bristol, England, Damien Hirst is one of Britain's most celebrated artists around today.

Painter, sculptor and installation artist Hirst was ecouraged by both his mother & art teacher, and studied Fine Art at Goldsmiths College, London from 1986-9. During his second year at Goldsmiths, Hirst organized the renowned independent student exhibit "Freeze," which launched the careers of the artists later dubbed the "Young British Artists,"(YBA) including Hirst, Sarah Lucas, Gary Hume, Tracy Emin and Ian Davenport amongst others.

After graduating, Hirst’s work was shown in a New Contemporaries show at Kettles Yard Gallery in Cambridge.

In 1991, Hirst’s showcased his first solo exhibition, entitled 'In and Out of Love', at the Woodstock Street Gallery in London, filling the entire gallery with live tropical butterflies.

The following year, Hirst paired with art collector Charles Saatchi, who was highly influential to Hirst’s career between 1992 and 2003. In 1992 Hirst exhibited what would become his most iconic work – The Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living – in which he immersed a 14-foot shark in a showcase filled with formaldehyde. The work was part of the first major exhibition of the YBA at the Saatchi Gallery in London.

In 1992, Hirst was nominated for the esteemed Tate Gallery Turner Prize; although it was awarded to Grenville Davey, Hirst later won the award in 1995.

Hirst is most well-known for his ‘Natural History’ glass tank installations, including The Impossibility of Death (1992) and Mother and Child Divided (1993); the Pharmacy series, including medicine cabinet sculptures, imaginary drug labels and Spot Paintings: paintings of meticulously placed colored dots with titles that refer to pharmaceutical chemicals; and key [6964056] doesn't existSpin Paintings – works created by centrifugal force by steadily poured paint onto a spinning canvas.

His more recent work once again incorporates butterflies in complicated canvases referencing religious stained glass windows and mandalas.

Certainly the most prominent of a bold generation of British artists that emerged during the late eighties and early nineties, Hirst continues to challenge the role of art in the world.

“Drawing on movements such as Pop and Minimalism in provocative ways, Hirst challenges us to look at the wonders and horrors of the world in which we live. Blurring traditional boundaries & exploding their limits, Hirst's art is sensational in the true meaning of the word." ~ Christie's, New York, November 15, 2006.