The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living…and other works

1. Damien Hirst The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living…and other works

3. You walk past any butcher’s and it’s full of cows and pigs and sheep, and then you suddenly take one out of that context, and it’s bought from exactly the same place, and you’re making a statement in a way against it. You’re trying to put the personality back into the animals and all of a sudden everybody’s up in arms. Context is the surroundings, which determine the meaning of an event or object

4. The name of this artwork is “Some Comfort Gained from the Acceptance of the Inherent Lies in Everything” Consider the title of this work and any possible meanings.

5. Hirst’s art often uses found objects and raises questions about death and morality(what is right and what is wrong).

6. Our first reaction is one of shock that these are real animals presented in such a way in an art gallery.

7. The glass cases of cow parts in formaldehyde solution seem to be more suited to a zoological museum. Formaldehyde This preserves the body and stops it from decomposing.

8. Their confronting presence makes us consider what the artist is trying to say.

9. Damien Hurst’s paintings and sculptures are concerned with the relationship between life, sickness and death. People look at his sensational works and presume he is consumed about the notion of death. However he is also concerned with life and the way in which we use it.

10. Hurst’s work can be disturbing. In ‘A Thousand Years’ (1990), the event of death is represented in a direct way by the exhibition of a cow’s head. Fly’s buzz around , eating the corpse. Thus Hurst also represents the life cycle and we are reminded about the battle of life against death.

11. In 1991 Hurst created his most famous work with a dead five meter Tiger shark, placed in a glass case suspended in formaldehyde solution. The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living Being presented like an exhibit in a natural history museum, it suggests conservation as well as death.

12. It is at once terrifying yet intriguing like its title. Viewers are both shocked and confronted as they peer into the tank at the shark. Fear is felt at the realisation of our own mortality, possibly our own nightmares and personal fears. There is also a fascination similar to the way motorists slow down to look at a car accident.

13. The History of Pain (1999) relates to work made in 1995. One involved a brightly coloured beach ball bobbing up and down on a column of air, called Loving in a World of Desire.

14. Your life. The optimistic works have been replaced by a feeling of dread in The History of Pain as a white ball is suspended above a box pierced with several dozen sharp knives. The fragility of existence is emphasised as we ponder what would happen if the air supply was cut. Air. Fate.

16. School The world that surrounds us now . War Current news This is the artwork Damien Hirst is the artist You are the audience

17. Year 8 visual arts.Damien Hirst The subjective frame. 10 marks. I am interested in life and death. After you have viewed the PowerPoint presentation about Damien Hirst’s work answer these question in your art book. Best writing please!

18. 1. Look carefully at Damien Hirst’s a thousand years”. Describe in two full sentences what you see. How does what you see in this image make you feel? 2 marks ‘A Thousand Years’ (1990)

19. 2. Why does Damien Hirst want to make an art work that makes the audience feel this way? What message do you think he is trying to get across to you his audience? 4 marks. ‘A Thousand Years’ (1990)

20. 3. In ‘A Thousand Years’ (1990), the event of death is represented in a direct way by the exhibition of a cow’s head. What in this artwork do you think represents the cycle of life? 2 marks. ‘A Thousand Years’ (1990)

21. 4. The History of Pain: a white ball is suspended above abox pierced with several dozen sharp knives. The fragility of existence is emphasised as we ponder what would happen if the air supply was cut. Imagine the white ball symbolized your life, how do you now feel about the air supply being cut? 2 marks. “The History of Pain”

22. Year 8 worksheet 1. Colour in the animals below.2. Cut them out neatly.3. Place the animals in the different scenes (farm, butcher or art gallery) to change the animals meaning. This is changing the context. 4. You will notice one space is blank. You now have to create your own scene to place the animal in. For example a school, a home or a museum. BE CREATIVE!!! 5 marks5. Write two sentences in your art book to explain how meaning is changed when you put the animal in different scenes. 5marks

23. How would the meaning of the animal change if it were in an Art gallery?

24. I am a famous artwork !!

25. Remember Your artwork is worth 5 marks • Be creative with your chosen scene • Neat colouring in of cut out animal • Excellent drawing of created scene. Your two sentences are worth 5 marks • You must show that you understand what “context” is. • How does your picture change the context (meaning) of the animal • Neat handwriting please.