Damien Hirst — Entomology Cabinets and Entomology Paintings, Scalpel Blade Paintings, Pie Charts and Colour Charts.

A$180 · Offered by Douglas Stewart Fine Books

London : Other Criteria and White Cube, 2013. First edition, new copy. Quarto, boards, pp. 160, illustrated (some fold-out). Published on the occasion of Damien Hirst’s exhibition at White Cube in Hong Kong in the spring of 2013. Amongst many new works illustrated in the publication are pieces from some of Hirst’s latest series: the ‘Entomology’ paintings and the ‘Blade’ paintings. Hirst began work on the ‘Entomology’ paintings in 2009. Each piece is made by placing hundreds of varieties of insect and beetle species into household gloss paint, in intricate geometric patterns. The series is reminiscent of Hirst’s iconic series of butterfly wing ‘Kaleidoscope’ pieces, dating from 2001, which were originally inspired by Victorian tea trays. As with the butterfly – one of Hirst’s most enduring ‘universal triggers’ – the insects’ appeal derives largely from the appearance of life they retain in death. However, whilst the iridescent beauty of the wings in the ‘Kaleidoscope’ series evoke stained glass windows, and are often assigned spiritual titles, the ‘Entomology’ paintings are named after phases and characters in Dante Alighieri’s tortuous vision of the afterlife: The Divine Comedy. The works also allude to Hirst’s long term interest in the nineteenth century fascination with natural history and the irony involved in having to kill something in order to look at it. The ‘Blade’ paintings are amongst the newest series of works in Hirst’s practice. Thousands of variously shaped sca

• Binding: Hardcover

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