British artist Damien Hirst is widely considered the enfant terrible of contemporary art. He is the most prominent of the so-called Young British Artists, or YBAs, a group, largely composed of Hirst’s classmates at Goldsmiths, in London, that began exhibiting together in warehouses and factories after 1988 and is known for the use of unconventional materials and “shock tactics” in his paintings, prints, sculptures and other works.
In the 1990s, Hirst said, “I can’t wait to get into a position to make really bad art and get away with it.” And indeed, he is notorious for piquing critics and baffling the public with such pieces as his signature glass vitrines containing dead sheep or sharks in formaldehyde, and his diamond-encrusted skull, For the Love of God.
Working primarily in sculpture, Hirst takes after French modernist master Marcel Duchamp in his use of ready-made objects and materials, which he combines to ironic effect. He often creates in series, as with "The Cure (Violet)" and "The Cure (Turquoise)," both from 2014, which are among several pill paintings referencing Andy Warhol’s embrace of mass production.
Belonging to Hirst's ongoing series of “spot” paintings, begun in the 1980s, the 2005 piece Xylene Cyanol Dye Solution is striking for its machinelike, industrial uniformity and almost childlike simplicity, a seeming rebuke to the idea of the artist-as-genius.
In addition to making art, Hirst has launched stores that sell editioned works (Other Criteria), a restaurant (Pharmacy2) and even his own London museum (Newport Street Gallery).
Find original Damien Hirst paintings, prints and other works on 1stDibs.
$9,518
H 22.45 in W 27.56 in D 0.79 in
DAMIEN HIRST (b. 1965) "Butterfly" Signed and Stamped on the Back
By Damien Hirst
Located in Madrid, ES
DAMIEN HIRST (b. 1965) "Butterfly," acrylic on paper. Signed and stamped on the back. "This painting was made to celebrate the opening of Damien Hirst's Requiem at the PinciukArtCen...
Acrylic
$10,396Sale Price|20% Off
H 21 in W 26.75 in D 1 in
Original Damien Hirst Butterfly Spin Painting, 2009
By Damien Hirst
Located in Seattle, WA
This is an original painting by Damien Hirst, created with public collaboration at the Damien Hirst Spin Workshop to celebrate the opening of Requiem at the PinchukArt Centre, Ukrain...
Acrylic, Paper
$291 / item
H 11.82 in W 13.39 in D 1.19 in
Contemporary Italian Hand Colored Leucippe Butterfly Print with Mirror Frame
Located in Scandicci, Florence
Artistic decorative hand water coloured print representing a Leucippe butterfly. This print has been pressed with an ancient press called "a Stella" and entirely hand water coloured...
Mirror, Paper, Wood
$291 / item
H 11.82 in W 13.39 in D 1.19 in
Contemporary Italian Hand Watercolored Apollon Butterfly Print with Mirror Frame
Located in Scandicci, Florence
Artistic decorative hand water coloured print representing a butterfly. This print has been pressed with an ancient press called "a Stella" and entirely hand water coloured by a ski...
Mirror, Tulipwood, Paper
$291 / item
H 11.82 in W 13.39 in D 1.19 in
Contemporary Italian Hand Colored Butterfly Print with Mirror Frame
Located in Scandicci, Florence
Artistic decorative hand water coloured print representing a butterfly. This print has been pressed with an ancient press called "a Stella" and entirely hand water coloured by a skilled draftsman. The frame is in tuliper wood covered with polished edge mirror finished. 8 different butterflies available to create a bright composition. Completely produced in Florence Italy by Artecornici design...
Mirror, Paper, Wood
$291 / item
H 11.82 in W 13.39 in D 1.19 in
Contemporary Italian Hand Colored Polydamas Butterfly Print with Mirror Frame
Located in Scandicci, Florence
Artistic decorative hand water coloured print representing a Battus Polydamas butterfly, also known as the gold rim swallowtail butterfly. This print has been pressed with an ancien...
Mirror, Paper, Wood
Untitled - Scorpion By Damien Hirst
By Damien Hirst
Located in Dubai, Dubai
Untitled - Scorpion By Damien Hirst Damien Hirst is a British contemporary artist known for his provocative and often controversial works that explore themes of life, death, and th...
Paper
$291 / item
H 11.82 in W 13.39 in D 1.19 in
Contemporary Italian Hand Colored Swallowtail Butterfly Print with Mirror Frame
Located in Scandicci, Florence
Artistic decorative hand water colored print representing a scarce swallowtail butterfly. This print has been pressed with an ancient press call...
Mirror, Paper, Wood
$69,000
H 53 in W 48 in D 2 in
Damien Hirst "The Souls on Jacob’s Ladder Take Their Flight (U.P.)" Etching
By Damien Hirst
Located in Boston, MA
Artist: Hirst, Damien Title: The Souls on Jacob’s Ladder Take Their Flight (U.P.) Date: 2010 Medium: Unique Etching on Hahnemühle paper Unframed Di...
Etching
$291 / item
H 11.82 in W 13.39 in D 1.19 in
Contemporary Italian Hand-Colored Silver-Washed Butterfly Print with MirrorFrame
Located in Scandicci, Florence
Artistic decorative hand water coloured print representing a silver-washed fritillary butterfly. This print has been pressed with an ancient press called "a Stella" and entirely han...
Mirror, Paper, Wood
Once built for curbs and handrails, these boards now hang beside blue-chip works in major museums and collectors’ homes.
Fierceness and fragility coalesce as the British artist revisits a cherished motif — the butterfly.
