During the 90s, Damien Steven Hirst dominated the UK art scene along with the group known as the Young British Artists.

The most prominent of the group, Hirst has been quiet for a few years now but has decided, at the age of 51, to reinvent what it means to be a modern-day British artist.

Those who are familiar with his work, as well as the man himself, no doubt know that his projects are never done in half measures.

This makes his latest exhibition in Venice intriguing, reports CNN:

[The exhibition] fills an unprecedented 5 000 square meters of space at the Palazzo Grassi and the Punta della Dogana (the old Customs House) on the Grand Canal, buildings owned by the billionaire French art collector and Christie’s owner Francois Pinault.

Though neither has confirmed an amount, both Hirst and Pinault have evidently spent a huge amount of money mounting this show. In fact, this is quite probably the most expensive single art show ever put on by a contemporary artist.

The exhibition is comprised of 189 works. The concept is that he’s discovered the wreck of an ancient vessel in the seabed off East Africa that went down laden with treasures from diverse cultures — Aztec, Inca, Ancient Egyptian, Roman and others.

The work that’s over 18 meters high (below) turned out to be a black statue called “Demon with Bowl.” It rises impressively to the full height of the courtyard of the Palazzo Grassi. I almost got a crick in the neck marveling [sic] at it. You wonder how they managed to get it inside the building.

It looks as if it’s made of bronze, but in reality it’s made of resin. I couldn’t see any joins. It looks whole, but it simply can’t be — can it?

A fake underwater discovery? Who knows if this will make or break Hirst’s dwindling reputation.

While collectors have apparently already been offered some of the works at prices ranging from $500 000 to $5 million, some critics aren’t too convinced by the size and number of creations Hirst has delivered.

Still, pretty interesting stuff from the one-time darling of the art world.

[source:cnn]