2024-04-23
Damien Hirst has created a new series of paintings inspired by pointillism which the artist himself calls "big abstract Bonnard paintings". The works will be on show at Larry Gagosian’s Los Angeles space, from 1 March until 14 April.
The new series is a reminiscence of "Visual Candy" paintings from the 1990s which were inspired by Zionism and Abstract Expressionism. The painter recollects: "The texture of these paintings reminds me of some sweets I used to get from my gran as a kid." The artist also refers to the cover of "Unknown Pleasures" which was created for Joy Divison by Peter Saville. As Hirst says: "If you look closely the paint is like mountains and valleys on an insane coloured planet."
"In that first [spot] painting, I was wrestling with what I originally thought of as the coldness of Minimalism and the more emotional, abstract expressionist painting style I’d grown up with. At the time I painted it, it felt uncool, and I abandoned it immediately for the rigidity of the grid, removing the mess. But after doing the spot catalogue raisonné I’ve felt really drawn to that first painting and knew I’d revisit it eventually–maybe it’s because I’m getting older. I realized I was wrong about Minimalism – the simplest, cleanest thing can provoke an emotional response. (...) I’ve always loved Bonnard and his colour, I went to see a show at the Pompidou in Paris of de Kooning and Bonnard when I was a student and both artists blew me away. (...) [These paintings] are like big abstract Bonnard paintings, I’ve been playing with the scale and the big ones feel perfect. How can you not love colour?" – the artist explains.