Damien Hirst, Suiko [H10-4] , 2022

Damien Hirst’s Suiko [H10-4] translates Empress Suiko’s transformative reign into a meditation on cyclical renewal and spiritual transcendence. The radiating symmetry of this composition—concentric rings of butterfly wings emanating from a central void—evokes Buddhist mandalas, mirroring Suiko’s role in institutionalising Buddhism across 6th-century Japan. The crimson butterflies slice diagonally through the composition, their arterial glow tracing paths from core to periphery, alluding to both the empress’s political influence and the fragility of life. Hirst’s use of butterfly wings, suspended against ared ground of shimmering glitter, oscillates between impermanence and vitality, their concentric arrangement echoing the Chinese calendar system Suiko introduced.

The piece reveals its transformative duality through perspective: the intimate view emphasises intricate wing patterns, while distance coalesces them into a molecular lattice—a nod to biological impermanence. External wing clusters disrupt the central symmetry, their irregular density recalling Suiko’s navigation of patriarchal power structures.

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Damien Hirst's striking Empresses series is constructed of beautiful images of red butterfly wings intricately arranged with a filigree of red glitter to produce visually intoxicating kaleidoscope-like effects. The prints are named after five exceptionally influential female rulers: Wu Zetian, Nur Jahan, Theodora, Suiko and Taytu Betul. Their characters and stories are enhanced by the dominant red tone of the series, which deals with themes such as life, war, power, anger, love, joy and luck.

Since the beginning of his career, Hirst has interacted with the butterfly, one of his best-known motifs. Inspired by a chance encounter in his studio and the intricate patterns found on Victorian tea trays, The Empresses Hirst develops on the complex compositions he invented in his Kaleidoscope Paintings and Mandalas series.

The works in The Empresses series are symmetrical, asymmetrical, and spiral patterns of meticulously organised butterflies that nonetheless exude hope and life – the butterflies feel like they are taking flight. This effect is partly aided by the material, laminated Giclée print on aluminium composite, screen printed with glitter, which allows the butterfly wings to be presented in such detail that they appear lifelike. The images of wings inspire awe and are framed by glitter, a fantastically tactile material previously used by Hirst in his paintings. Glitter is loved for its playfulness and joy – a sentiment echoed in the play-on-words of the series title itself, which alludes to female rulers and the Empress Butterfly. Hirst has consistently used butterflies for their association with freedom, religion, life, and death. The Empresses illuminates and sheds light on these themes.

Through this new series, these themes become intertwined with glory, female power and the development of nations, visible through the entrancing twists and turns of these five dazzling and vital visual celebrations.

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Hirst/Kapoor

Hirst/Kapoor

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Damien Hirst U. K. , 1965

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