An Up-Close Look At Damien Hirst's Spin Flag For The Olympic Closing Ceremonies.

Artist Damien Hirst’s giant interpretation of the union jack flag filled the entire floor of the Olympic Stadium as part of the magnificent celebration of the arts in Britain.



In recognition of his central role to British art, a specially commissioned work by Hirst was included as part of the Closing Ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games. The colossal 130 meter wide red, white and blue spin painting covered the entirety of the Stadium floor and was filled with the celebrating Olympic athletes as they entered the arena. It is the largest reproduction of a Hirst piece ever produced.




The work, entitled ‘Beautiful Union Jack Celebratory Patriotic Olympic Explosion in an Electric Storm Painting’ (2012), was described by the Olympic committee as epitomising, “the dynamic, anarchic energy of British Pop Art.” It forms part of Hirst’s iconic series of spin paintings dating from the early 90s. Originally inspired by spin stalls at school fêtes, Hirst describes the paintings as a, “massive explosion of energy, full of life, colour and optimism”.



A selection of key spin paintings, including a collection which rotate mechanically in eternal replication of their fabrication process, can currently be seen at Tate Modern’s major ‘Damien Hirst’ exhibition, on display for the Olympic period until September 9th.



Under Artistic Director Kim Gavin, the Closing Ceremony – entitled ‘A Symphony of British Music’ – was a celebration both of the achievements of athletes at the London 2012 Olympic Games, and the significance of Britain’s contribution to the international art and music scene over the last 50 years. Since Hirst first came to public attention in 1988, when he conceived and curated ‘Freeze’, an exhibition in a disused London warehouse of his own work and that of his contemporaries, he has become widely recognised as one of the most influential and renowned artists of his generation. Hirst's contribution is acknowledged by Tate Modern's staging of the largest survey of his work to date in the UK as part of the 2012 Cultural Olympics.


images © Damien Hirst and Science Ltd. All rights reserved, DACS 2012

The final result:





above images courtesy of AP and Reuters

Two Different Artists Paint The Same Unusual Subject: Rubber Band Balls.

It may seem like an odd subject to you, but clearly not to artists Canadian Joanna Strong and Sandy Wilcox of the U.S., both of whom were separately inspired to paint a series of the same exact subject: Rubber band balls.


above left: Joanna Strong, A Joyous Voyage; above right: Sandy Wilcox, RBB#9

Painting them as a singular subject in the style of contemporary realism, Strong's paintings are slightly more photo-realistic with dramatic lighting and on a black background, making the bright colors pop. Wilcox's images of the same subject are painted in a smaller format, a little softer in execution and color and are featured on pale neutral backgrounds with soft shadows.

I have chosen to feature 14 paintings by each artist. I find both equally appealing and would love to own one of each.

Joanna Strong's Entanglement Series (sizes range from 16"x 16" to 48" x 48"):

A Joyous Voyage:

Birthday Party:

Climbing Trees At Sunset:

Gone Shopping, Back Soon:

Halleluia:

It's A Beautiful Evening:

Picking Wild Strawberries at The Beach:

Sail Away:

The News:

Undiscovered Country:

Up In The Airy Mountain:

We Could Be So Happy:

Wrapped Up:

all of the above paintings by Joanna Strong have been sold, to see more of her work, visit her site

Sandy Wilcox's Rubber Band Balls (sizes range from 10" x 10" to 20" x 16.5":

RBB #5:

RBB #6:

RBB #7:

RBB #8:

Rubber Band Ball #1 (sold):

Rubber Band Ball #2:

Rubber Band Ball #3:

Rubber Band Ball #4:

Rubber Band Ball #5:

Rubber Band Ball #10:

Rubber Band Ball #14:

Rubber Band Ball #15:

Rubber Band Ball #16:

To purchase one of Sandy Wilcox's Rubber band ball paintings, visit her site.

Beautiful Traps: A QR Code Art Project by Australian Artist Yiying Lu.

Watch as Australian Artist Yiying Lu hand paints beautiful women as carnivorous plants in which QR codes are artfully embedded, combining fine art with digital technology. By using a QR code reader to read the paintings, the viewer is then directed to watch the process.

The Artist As Dictator. Phillip Toledano Explores Narcissism and Self-Delusion in Kim Jong Phil.

Most popular blogs and sites have been sharing images from Phillip Toledano's A New Kind of Beauty series (photographic portraits of extreme plastic surgery), because people love that creepy stuff. But Toledano is an artist of many talents that express his unique perspective on the world.

In his project, Kim Jong Phil, Toledano has replaced dictators Kim Il Sung, Laurent Kabilla and Saddam Hussein in pre-existing art with images of himself. The project reflects his personal philosophy revealed in his own words below.

I think a great deal about what it means to be an artist.

I reflect on the elaborate psychological mechanisms required to pursue something so elusive, so ambiguous. I often wonder: ‘Am I talking to myself?’

I don’t make work for other people, but as an artist, I need to be in dialogue with the world that exists beyond my overpopulated cranium. I’ve concluded that to be effective-to be functional-I must guzzle an eye-popping cocktail of delusion and narcissism.

It occurred to me that being an artist is a great deal like being a dictator.

Just like a dictator, I must live in a closed loop of self-delusion. A place where my words and ideas always ring true. A gilded daydream of grandiosity. There can be no room for doubt. I must be convinced that I have something vital to say. I must believe that the world is waiting in keen anticipation to hear my message.

For my palette, I’ve copied pre-existing dictatorial art. Paintings from North Korea, statues of assorted dictators (Kim Il Sung, Laurent Kabilla, and Saddam Hussein). I had these works re-created in China, and each instance, I’ve replaced the great leaders with myself. -- Phillip Toledano, 2011

I insist, ladies first. Oil on canvas, 30x40 inches:

detail:

I'll be back for the dog. Oil on canvas, 30x40 inches:

You have so much to learn, and I have so much to give. Oil on canvas, 50x60 inches:

International world global domination. Oil on canvas, 40x50 inches:

detail:

It's true. I'm utterly fascinating. Oil on canvas, 30x40 inches:

detail:

His royal equestrian majesty. Oil on canvas, 30x40 inches:

A sporting chance. Oil on canvas, 30x40 inches:

Love oils the cogs of revolution. Oil on canvas, 30x40 inches:

I love the smell of adulation in the morning. Oil on canvas, 20x30 inches:

Mr Toledano as Saddam Hussein. Bronze, 20 inches:

Mr Toledano as Kim il Sung. Bronze, 20 inches:

Mr Toledano as Laurent Kabila. Bronze, 20 inches:


About the artist:

above: A portrait of Phil taken by his father

Phillip Toledano was born in London to a French Moroccan mother, and an American father. He believes that photographs should be like unfinished sentences. There should always be space for questions.

Phillip’s work is socio-political, and varies in medium, from photography, to installation.

His work has appeared in Vanity Fair, The New York Times magazine, The New Yorker, Esquire, GQ, Wallpaper, The London Times, The Independent Magazine, Le Monde, and Interview magazine, amongst others.

See more of his work here

Be sure not to miss his moving and personal photo essay Days With My Father.