Damien Hirst
Damien Hirst has made his persona into a brand – in fact, an extremely successful one. Today, the painter and sculptor is one of the most internationally renowned contemporary artists, he regularly exhibits in the world's important art houses and collectors sometimes pay astronomically high prices for his works.
He secured the public's attention at the latest with spectacular and provocative installations such as the animal cadavers preserved in formaldehyde. He has also kept himself in the (art) news with equally spectacular works, such as a skull set with 8,601 diamonds.
Hirst worked hard for his success. He was born in Bristol in 1965 and grew up in rather poor circumstances. He studied at Goldsmiths College in London from 1986 to 1989, organised the exhibition "Freeze" in 1988, which is considered the birth of the "Young British Artists", and received the renowned Turner Prize in 1995.
