BREAKING NEWS
June 4, 2007
Hirst $99 Million Skull Is Bling Art
By Martin Gayford
Is Damien Hirst's ``For the Love of God'' -- the 50 million pound ($99 million) diamond skull on display in London's White Cube gallery -- a significant work of modern art? Or is it a sign of worrying contemporary decadence?

I suggest that it's simultaneously real art, conceptual art and, what's more, it's a clever joke.

In the diamond skull, Hirst has created an object that's both highly traditional and all about what's happening right now -- the enormous sums acquired by financiers and football players, the astronomical bids for artworks such as the $72.8 million Rothko painting sold by David Rockefeller Sr. at Sotheby's in New York on May 15.

Obviously, the piece by Hirst, 41, is all about death, which is highly traditional. That's a subject that has preoccupied human beings from the beginning. Some of the earliest works of art in existence are decorated skulls.

At one level, I'm sure Hirst is sincere when he says that he wants the skull to give people hope, and take their breath away. It's hard not to gasp at least inwardly when you first encounter that small, sinister object glittering in the gloom.

Hirst's skull is not only a symptom of excess, it's also a witty comment on the situation. Like Hamlet, he's holding up the head bone and saying, this will be you too. The fact that Hirst and his team will laugh all the way to the bank -- perhaps an off- shore account -- does not make it any the less darkly amusing.
Bloomberg

Something about the juxtaposition of so much wealth chasing art, and the nature of Hirst's works, seems to call out about today's times.  [Another article notes], “A 4 million-pound diamond decorates the crown, and stained teeth protrude from the mouth.” And, “Gallery officials initially tried to divide them into groups, then gave up and spent the rest of the 10-minute session trying to stop people backing into Hirst paintings, including ones showing biopsy procedures.” We're shown depictions of the mere bones, flesh and blood of our mortality, with enduring precious jewels and metals fetching more money than most mortals see in a lifetime!
--Tiane

The ultimate top indicator?
--Ben G.