Part 1 Exercise 4 Looking at Context

Exercise 4: Looking at Context

Damien Hirst, The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living, 1991 (Side view) © Damien Hirst and Science Ltd. All rights reserved, DACS 2012.Photographed by Prudence Cuming Associates Ltd.(Glass, painted steel, silicone, monofilament, shark and formaldehyde solution.

My Initial Reaction

I am immediately met with a sense of fascination because of the name, and the blunt description: ‘shark in formaldehyde’. Knowing it is a real shark does repulse me slightly because I relate it to taxonomy, which is frankly using corpses for decorative purposes. I personally find it a bit disturbing.

My Emotional Response

I actually met with a strong instinct of sadness and darkness but not necessarily in a totally depressive way. The title is beautiful and meaningful but the piece itself is gloomy, and rather upsetting. I felt a sense of sympathy towards the animal even if I didn’t want to, as well as a sense of revulsion at the thought of a pungent sea creature being mutilated and preserved for art.

What I think it’s about:

I believe Hirst wanted to shock the viewer, by using an animal we would not normally come into contact with. It undoubtedly provokes divided opinions by using a real animal, which also questions are attachments to life and how we perceive a dead body. 

There is also the fact that it’s such an unfamiliar animal to the majority of land-dwelling people, and a dangerous carnivore that unnerves a viewer. This itself could be part of Hirst’s metaphor for a fear of death. 

What I think of the title

The title itself is a reflection of the artist's views on mortality, it states how all living beings are blissfully ignorant of the inevitability of death. Even as humans, we are mentally aware we exist and yet are unable to comprehend non-existence and in fact purposefully avoid it out of fear. It gives us a very heavy sense of deep contemplation and maybe even a first experience of the reality of mortality in some. I believe that was what Hirst wanted to do with the title, ignite unfathomable concepts that he believed most people don't acknowledge.

Edwaert Collier, Still Life with a Volume of Wither’s ‘Emblemes’, 1696 © Tate, London 2014

My Initial Reaction

This is a classical, historical piece of art, but I sense that it is unusual in its composition because of the subject matter not being a typical ‘fruit bowl and flowers’ type of still life. I like the rich tones of the painting and the sense of chaos and creativity in the subject. It draws my eye to the bright, fresh, lively food and music and energy at the front with light which is in contrast to the dark, eerie background that subtly displays a skull and a script with latin wording. I think this is a similar concept of death to Hirst’s shark.

My Emotional Response

I was initially met with a sense of familiarity because it is perhaps more conventional as a piece of art. But then I am curious as to why that is why I perceive this as familiar and more comfortable as artwork, as opposed to modern art. I love the skill that is used in creating the piece, the thought put into the composition and the array of objects in the foreground, and the ‘hidden message’ painted into the ominous background.

What I think it’s about:

As a still life, it is doing exactly that, capturing a moment of life in its process. However when I consider the background I believe that it is also portraying a message of impending and unavoidable death. Within the pleasures of human life, music, luxurious food and wine, creativity and expression, death can be ignored. But it will always be around us and just as much a part of life. I think Collier wanted to be discreet in explaining that concept and yet still wanting it to be a vital part of the piece. 

What I think of the title:

Collier wanted us to be drawn to the open book he had made as the focal point of the painting. I am unfamiliar with the work, but I assume it may have been a popular or enjoyable piece so as to make the point of a distraction from the theme of mortality. Even the statement of ‘still life’ could be considered in the title because it is an exploration of life itself in disregard to death. I feel that the title is almost a challenge too, but in a less obvious way. It is covering up the hints to death and extinction in the piece, furthering the idea that we are oblivious to the inescapable end of life.