Year: 2021
Medium: Laminated giclée print in colors, flush-mounted to aluminum with metal strainer on the reverse (as issued) contained in the original foam-lined cardboard packing box
Dimensions: 120 x 95.9 cm (47 1/4 x 37 3/4 in.)
Edition: No.546 of 1005
Acquired from PHILLIPS, 2022
In the late ’80s, Hirst was regarded as the most radical and strategic artist among the YBAs (Young British Artists), a generation of artists who were taken up very often as provocateurs to the art market. He managed to maintain this attitude to this day and still attracts attention all over the world whenever he releases a shocking artwork. This work was displayed at his solo exhibition at The National Art Center, Tokyo and is a print based on a “handwritten” canvas that is very rare for Hirst. Although it is seen as a painting of cherry blossom, it is Hirst’s honest approach to confront painting his own handwork, which is something he has been avoided in the past. As the artist describes his nostalgia for his beloved grandmother as the psychological starting point, it can be said that this artwork has a rather emotional touch for Hirst. The trace of paint applied in scattered dots like droplets (it was practically drawn by throwing paint from afar), stands out vividly emerging on the blue sky. The dark branches and the rough deformation of this painting are suggestive of Van Gogh’s Flowering Plum Orchard (after Hiroshige).
