DAMIEN HIRST, MESCALINE, SPOT SERIES, SIGNED LENTICULAR PRINT, EDITION OF 100, 2014
Mescaline is a lenticular print from 2014 by Damien Hirst that shows a large grid of colourful spots set against a white backdrop. Unusual within Hirst’s artistic output, this print is created with lenticular technology and thus the spots move from side to side as the viewer moves. Mescaline is based on Hirst’s famous Spot paintings, a series of over 1,400 works on canvas that depict coloured dots in grid-like compositions set against white backdrops.
The Spot paintings are amongst Hirst’s most broadly recognised works. Stretching as far back as 1986, the Spot paintings recur thematically throughout Hirst’s career in a number of mediums and were first displayed at the landmark group show Freeze in London’s Docklands. As with other spot works on paper, Mescaline delivers stark, cynical satire using a visual language that is, on the surface, joyous and carefree. This work also uses movement as a means to communicate its meaning.
Discussing the aesthetic of the Spot paintings, Hirst has proclaimed “I believe all painting and art should be uplifting for the viewer. I love colour. I feel it inside me. It gives me a buzz.” At his best, Hirst packs multiple layers into the seemingly simple and Mescaline is no exception. The print recalls the absurdity of Dada and gently mocks the processes of pointillism.
Read more about Spot by Damien Hirst.
ABOUT DAMIEN HIRST
Arguably one the most successful and well-known artists in the world to date, Damien Hirst is a creative visionary, his brand as prolific as his artwork. Exhibited internationally, he works across sculpture, painting, drawing or installation to create artworks that are characterised by their intensity and tension. Taking inspiration from a range of sources, including Abstract Expressionists John Hoyland and Willem de Kooning, he has cultivated a style recognisable for its brash monumentalism and unapologetic gall. Learn more about Damien Hirst.
