There’s always been doubt over how much Damien Hirst personally contributes to the works that carry his famous name. Now, there may be a whole lot more.
For the world’s richest artist has revealed that he bought a poor copy of one his famous ‘spot’ paintings for a few pounds online and then signed it, instantly transforming it into a highly valuable work.
Hirst has produced more than 1,000 hand-painted dot pictures since 1986 which sell for as much as £25,000.
Damien Hirst, 55, who has an estimated fortune of almost £300 million, has produced more than 1,000 hand-painted dot pictures since 1986
Hirst is well known for employing a factory of assistants to help with the creation of his large-scale installations and mass-produced works. Pictured: One of Hirst’s pieces of art at the Tate Modern in London in 2012
‘I bought a fake spot painting off eBay for £10 and it was made badly with a spray can and c**p stencil,’ he confirms.
‘I had it in my office for a while and eventually I liked it so much that I signed it, and then made this series of spot paintings that I called ‘Antibiotics’.
‘From a distance they look like a normal dot painting, but close up they look dodgy. I love them.’
Hirst, 55, who has an estimated fortune of almost £300 million, is well known for employing a factory of assistants to help with the creation of his large-scale installations and mass-produced works.
No fewer than 250 people reportedly worked for him in preparation for his 2012 retrospective at the Tate Gallery in London.
He turned a derelict 13,350- square-metre site in Stroud, Gloucestershire, into an arts production studio and gallery which he uses mainly for preserving dead animals and producing sculptures en masse.
The artist revealed that he bought a poor copy of one his famous ‘spot’ paintings for a few pounds online and then signed it, instantly transforming it into a highly valuable work
Hirst said he bought the fake spot painting off eBay for £10 before signing it and making a series of spot paintings
Even though he has shed several staff to focus on solo works, Hirst has retained a production team for his large-scale installations such as his formaldehyde animal tanks.
However, his decision to buy a fake picture on eBay and sign it should not unnerve those who like to invest in his artworks.
A source tells me: ‘The fake spot painting is not for sale.’
Lockdown forced Kylie Minogue to record vocals for her new Disco album at home.
Procuring the high-tech equipment created some crossed wires.
‘I had producers on my back saying, ‘Have you got the gear yet? Have you got the stuff?’ If anyone didn’t know what we were talking about, it would be a worry,’ the songstress says.
What nefarious activities might the clean-cut Kylie be referring to?
Pull yourself together, Liz!
Elizabeth Hurley, 55, has amused herself during lockdown by wearing a gold dress that looked almost identical to the similarly designed drapes behind her
Elizabeth Hurley is determined to show the crisis doesn’t mean curtains for her career.
The 55-year-old actress, model and swimwear saleswoman has amused herself during lockdown by wearing a gold dress that looked almost identical to the similarly designed drapes behind her.
‘Wasn’t the dress code ‘blend in with curtains’?’ she jokes. Surely, Liz would never sink into the background?
Is Carrie set to be Boris’s Clemmie?
Does Boris Johnson see his increasingly influential fiancee Carrie Symonds as his very own Clementine Churchill?
In his 2014 book The Churchill Factor, Johnson wrote about the wartime leader’s spouse: ‘These days we have more or less dispensed, thank goodness, with the concept of the political wife — the woman who serves as a kind of proxy for her husband, a utensil for the projection of his ambitions.
‘But Clementine not only believed in her husband — and endlessly discussed politics with him — she believed in him so fiercely she would go into battle for him, sometimes physically.’
Heel! West’s wife keeps her dog on a tight leash
Catherine FitzGerald, 49, who has insisted their marriage is ‘fine’, at least manages to keep one of her hounds on a tight leash
The Affair star Dominic West may be a hard dog to keep on the porch, but his aristocratic wife, Catherine FitzGerald, at least manages to keep one of her hounds on a tight leash.
Weeks after West, 51, was photographed kissing and cuddling actress Lily James, 31, in Rome, his wife of ten years was seen keeping their dachshund on a lead during a walk at the weekend near their Wiltshire home.
Catherine, 49, has insisted their marriage is ‘fine’.
West and Lily star together in the BBC’s forthcoming period drama The Pursuit Of Love.
A close ally of Carrie Symonds appears to have given an insight into the fear and paranoia at the heart of Government.
Media minister John Whittingdale suggests Cabinet members have been warned not to utter a word if an Amazon Alexa or smart speaker device is in the room.
‘I haven’t been told to turn off Alexa — I’m not high up enough,’ he says at the Radio Academy Festival.
Nicole’s reaching dizzying heights
Nicole Kidman, 53, who is currently starring with Hugh Grant in the hit Sky Atlantic thriller The Undoing, was overwhelmed when she saw an 18-storey mural of herself on the side of a building
Oscar winner Nicole Kidman is used to seeing her name up in lights but was overwhelmed when she saw an 18-storey mural of herself on the side of a building.
The actress, 53, currently starring with Hugh Grant in hit Sky Atlantic thriller The Undoing, in which she plays a therapist whose own life falls apart, could only gasp, ‘Wow!’ as she looked up at the painting, which was created by a team of 11 artists over a period of two weeks.
The mural is in Sydney, where Kidman grew up.
Hailed as Britain’s greatest sportsman after winning his seventh world title at the weekend, Lewis Hamilton has reason to celebrate.
And the F1 star has the green light to build a party pad — his local council in West London agreed planning permission for a summer house in the garden of his £18 million property. Objecting neighbours had tried to slam the brakes on construction.