Damien Hirst has chosen an unlikely setting for his next retrospective, Kiev in Ukraine. He’s picked up on the former Soviet Republic’s ‘newly discovered interest in contemporary art’ and plans to bring over 100 sculptures and installations, plus oil paintings to the city. Many of these works have never been seen before, but as Hirst feels his current audiences are growing tired of his work he sees an audience farther afield can view his work with fresh eyes:
“I’ve always thought that museums are for dead artists and I kind of was afraid of that. But I think because in Ukraine the audience is so new … to contemporary art at least … that makes it exciting, that makes me want to do it.” – Damien HirstThis move sees Hirst considering an audience reaction to the content of his work more than the market value. Last year his £138million auction grabbed headlines only because of the prices of the work during an economic downturn, the work itself was almost overlooked. One of Hirsts newer paintings ‘Requiem’ provides the title for the exhibition.
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