Damien Hirst Superstition

I always love love love rain, but it was really terrible that one of our few California downpours had to be on the night of the Damien Hirst opening at Gagosian Gallery. I take a big interest in gallery openings because they are such a great watering hole for the who's who of the art world - and you can always see the hierarchy. Thursday night was, however, a rather disappointing show. Tom Crow and his usual crowd from the Getty were there, but I think a lot of people decided to skip because of the rain. That is, unless you count the local celebs milling about - since when is Lance Armstrong into contemporary art? Kirsten Dunst decided to be completely disrespectful and come looking like she stopped by on her way to the gym. A shame, because this show is really phenomenal. I never liked much about Hirst, except his erratic and charming British accent, but his work this time around is really different than what I've seen from him, and entirely beautiful. The butterfly motif is so delicate and matches wonderfully with the glass medium.

It's a bit difficult to see all the details here, but I'm sure the intricate patterning can be appreciated nonetheless. I last saw him use butterflies [and motif patterning] in a wallpaper design at the Tate Modern, but usually find him to be out of his mind with the dead cows, etc. Although his work is almost always latent with religious themes, his new use of English poetry for titles is fantastic. A lot of his thinking behind this project reminds me of Colin McCahon's earlier concepts, drawing from Biblical texts and embedding the imagery in a natural exposé. I would be very excited to see more explicit focus on the text itself, which could be tied into his apparent fascination with mortality. Larry Gagosian is quite the visionary for repeatedly giving Hirst the solo shows he deserves, and having enough of a sense of humor to take his crazy antics. If you don't have time to go visit, drive by and take a glance at some of the works in the vitrine; a few circular pieces are being housed in there.