Hugh Allan Libri

This collection features bold, surprising, often humorous, and insightful quotations from renowned artist Damien Hirst. Known for his provocative work that examines the intersections of art, religion, science, life, and death, Hirst emerged in the 1990s as a prominent figure among the Young British Artists (YBAs). He gained notoriety with his controversial pieces showcasing dead animals preserved in formaldehyde-filled tanks. The quotations, sourced from interviews and organized by subject, delve into Hirst's early life, family background, and his initial fascination with art. They address major themes in his work, his influences and heroes, motivations, creative processes, and reflections on the art world, fame, and money. This compilation offers a comprehensive and nuanced perspective on a significant contemporary artist. Highlighted quotes include thoughts on the nature of art and personal identity: "The less I feel like an artist, the better I feel," and "I like it when people love my art. I like it when people hate my art. I just don't want them to ignore my art." Hirst's reflections reveal his interest in the interplay between art and life, as well as the necessity of pushing boundaries in his creative endeavors.

This book is a creative guide to the making of arguably the most extraordinary art object to be made in the 21st century. Published to accompany the 2007 exhibition "Damien Hirst: Beyond Belief" at White Cube, it gives a fascinating pictorial insight into how Hirst's diamond skull piece "For the Love of God" was conceived and produced. Illustrated with candid behind-the-scenes photographs by Johnnie Shand Kydd, the book includes a number of preparatory drawings by Damien Hirst and a fold-out image of the diamond skull. Accompanying this is an essay by the art historian Rudi Fuchs, who writes, "The skull is out of this world, celestial almost. I tend to see it as a glorious intense victory over death." A number of leading experts in the fields of archeology and dentistry have also contributed detailed studies on the diamond skull, including analyses of its age and ancestry.

The visual candy paintings' were made between 1992 and 1994. The works showcase the ways in which Damien Hirst used the signifier of candy during the early 1990’s, exploring questions of pure aesthetics. Addressing the viewer on a deliberately emotional and instinctive level, these works, abetted by their exuberant titles, among them Some Fun (1993) and Dippy Dappy Dabby (1993), set out to question the implication that aesthetically pleasing art is inherently insignificant.0.