Brit art superstar DAMIEN HIRST has built his career around a long-term shock and awe campaign that has catapulted him to the highest echelons of the modern art world. His latest offering, a diamond-encrusted human skull priced at $98,000,000 (£50 million) unveiled today in a grand preview at London’s WHITE CUBE GALLERY eclipses all of it.

The centerpiece of a new solo show “BEYOND BELIEF” spread between White Cube’s two London gallery spaces, Hirst’s skull, titled “For the Love of God,” sets a new record for contemporary art sales with its otherworldly pricetag (the work has not yet been purchased). Inspired by ancient turquoise-encrusted ceremonial Aztec skulls, Hirst had the platinum cast skull of a 35-year-old 18th century European male (the teeth are real) adorned with a reported 8,601 pave-set diamonds covering every visible surface of the object, inside and out. The focal point of the anatomical work is a massive $8,000,000 pear-shaped pink diamond which the artist named “The Skull Star Diamond,” set into the skull’s forehead, and surrounded by 14 smaller flawless white pear-shaped diamonds.

According to Hirst, the diamonds are all “ethically sourced” from conflict-free zones and cost the artist a whopping $28,000,000 USD (the work is entirely self-financed). The skull is missing one tooth which Hirst originally had replaced with a cast gold version, but later decided to leave it out after the 18 month-long process was completed. When asked at a press conference today about his motivation in creating the skull, Hirst explained “I hope it makes the people who see it feel good, that it’s uplifting, that it takes your breath away … I wouldn’t mind if it happened to my skull after my death.” He also joked that “It works much better than I imagined. I was slightly worried that we’d end up with an Ali G ring.”

In the remainder of the significant exhibition which includes a great array of paintings and sculptures created by Hirst and his formidable team of assistants, the artist continues his unending exploration of the themes of life and death in great spectacle: a group of large-scale oil paintings chronicles the birth of his new son Cyrus by cesarean delivery; a new butterfly painting called “Extolment” continues his recent thematic series, a collection of “Biopsy Paintings” recreates biopsy images of thirty different forms of cancer and other terminal illnesses; and seven major formaldehyde works from the ongoing Natural History series including a new shark piece, “Death Explained,” provide further musing on the grim fate of us all.

Critics of Hirst’s methods and public persona will surely lash out at this latest exhibit, most notably for his extensive use of assistants to execute his vision, but remember, architect’s don’t BUILD buildings, do they?…

“For the Love of God” (platinum, diamonds and human teeth)

Hirst with the biggest piece of Hip-Hop jewelry ever created

“Death Explained”

“Extolment” (butterflies and household gloss on canvas)

“Self-Portrait as Surgeon”

“Epidural Kit (Open)”

“Three Nurses”

“Baby Born by Caesarean Section (Cyrus)”

“Birth (Cyrus)”

“Caesarean Birth (Cyrus)”

“Closing the Wound III”

“Breast Feeding (Cyrus and Maia)”

“The Adoration” (glass, steel, silver skeleton, children’s toys, praying sheep and hospital equipment)

“The Adoration” (detail)

“Saint Sebastian, Exquisite Pain” (glass, steel, bullock, arrows, crossbow bolts and formaldehyde)

“Saint Sebastian” (detail)

“The Incomplete Truth,” Edition of 3 (glass, aluminium, dove and formaldehyde)

“M132/818 Cancer of Fat Cells light_micrograph_SPL.jpg” (Inkjet and household gloss on linen with glass and blades)

“P520/211 Small intestine cancer, SEM_SPL.jpg” (inkjet on canvas with household gloss, glass and blades)

FURTHER RESOURCES: White Cube Gallery, BBC.com…  

This entry was posted on Friday, June 1st, 2007 at 12:26 pm and is filed under Art Crimes, Booksmart. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.