Fake, Talentless, A Con-Artist -Damien Hirst

Fake, talentless, a con-artist, a national disgrace.But perhaps the artist this generation deserves.Who else could I be speaking of other than the great, Damien Hirst.

Upon entering a room of Hirst’s work you will be faced with a vicious shark, teeth bared, ready to attack, but lifeless cloudy eyes will stare back at you.The flies now come into view, creeping over the severed cow’s head. Fulfilling their destiny of eating, breeding and dying.The cycle of life condensed into one box. A crystal skull that will never move again. Dead,dying and long dead. There is no end to the end. According to Damien Hirst that is.

In 1991, Hirst presented “The Physical Impossibility Of Death In The Mind Of Someone Living”.

A piece that was nothing short of sheer genius, in my view. A 14ft Tiger Shark injected and preserved in formaldehyde.The shark itself cost a mere £6000. The formaldehyde process alone cost thousands more. In total coming with a lovely £50,000 price tag. It is referred to as the £50,000 fish, without the chips. The shark, once a flesh eating monster capable of eating you or me for breakfast, now lays still. The jelly like formaldehyde acting as a window to us, but a barrier to him.

He is now nothing more than an exhibition. A creature that would once paralyse us with fear, we now have all the power over. But in my opinion, who's to say we, as humans, will not be the same ? At my funeral people will come to see me too. However, will I be nothing more than an exhibition? If someone was to put me in that tank, the question I am asking you is; would it be any different?

I personally would hope it would be. However, this shark is known by more people than I am. He will be remembered just as long as I, if not longer. So why are we not the same? Does that sharks life mean more than mine ever will? And Damien Hirst is presenting you with these questions. The only problem, is that I don’t have the answers to them. Which, ironically, is one of the main reasons that I love this work so deeply. Not only does it make me question such important matters in life but it sets me on edge. It is the sky dive of art installations.

“The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living”. So why is it so impossible for us to comprehend that things end? I believe the answer is staring us right in the face. We want to be timeless. We don’t want to end. Because, how can the things we love and the people that we love, just cease to exist? I don’t believe that they do. I don’t believe that I will ever let go of the people that I love. I don’t believe that death will ever make a difference to that. However, that doesn’t mean that I am not scared. Because maybe saying this just proves Damien Hirst right. Maybe it is physically impossible for me to comprehend death when I am in fact living. Damien Hirst is presenting you with these questions. But the truth is, none of us have the answers. And we will always be scared.