Damien Hirst

DAMIEN HIRST (Bristol, UK, 1965).
"Eternal Sleep (Satin Crystal Clear)." 2017.
Sculpture in Lalique glass on Corian base. Lost wax technique.
Exemplary 30/35.
Signed and numbered.
Measurements: 16,5 x 20 x 22 cm.

"Eternal Sleep" condenses with special forcefulness one of Damien Hirst's great obsessions: the transformation of death into an image of beauty, desire and permanence. Made in satin-finished glass, the sculpture takes up the motif of the human skull as an emblem of the inexorable passage of time, but distances it from the traditional drama of the vanitas to turn it into a cold, translucent and almost spectral presence.

The work is part of Hirst's long-running reflection on the tension between beauty and disappearance, life and death, luxury and fragility. The crystalline finish transforms the skull into an object of powerful ambiguity: relic, jewel, memento mori and minimalized sculpture. Its clean and luminous appearance contrasts with the crudeness of the anatomical motif, generating an image of great symbolic force.

The edition, limited to 35 pieces, stands out for the technical precision of its execution using the lost wax process, which preserves the formal complexity of the skull and its anatomical details. The Corian base reinforces the sober and objectual character of the piece, accentuating its presentation as a collector's sculpture.

Damien Hirst is one of the central figures of contemporary British art and a leading member of the Young British Artists. He achieved international recognition by winning the Turner Prize in 1995 and consolidated his career with major exhibitions and the backing of influential galleries. Known for his conceptual ambition and his reflection on death, beauty, fame and the mechanisms of the art market, Hirst became a key figure in contemporary art. His work is represented in leading museums such as the MoMA in New York, the Tate in London and the Victoria & Albert Museum, among other international institutions.