Just In Time For Halloween; More Wild Skulls By Artist Damien Hirst

above: one from each of Hirst's series; Hypnotic, Transcendent and Hallucinatory Heads.

A lot of blogs have been covering artist Michael Leon's colored gypsum skulls lately and I've seen many a post on everything from crayon skulls to skull flash drives. But if you're an art fan and a skull fan, I can't think of a more fun combination that the series of Damien Hirst's 'spinner' painted skulls.


above: Hirst with his diamond encrusted skull

I'm sure most of you are familiar with artist Damien Hirst's diamond and platinum skull. Lauded as the singularly most expensive piece of sold art at 100 million dollars, the skull, titled "For The Love Of God".


above: For The Love Of God, the 100 million dollar diamond encrusted platinum skull by Damien Hirst

A common theme in his own, as well as many other artist's work, Hirst has created several other versions of skulls that you may not know about and that are available for purchase.

In this latest series of 50 painted skulls are three categories manifested as three variations of form: Hallucinatory Head, Hypnotic Head and Transcendent Head, with each skull a unique result of the now famous and highly sought after ‘Spin’ painting technique.

The skull is one of a number of recurring motifs not only in Damien Hirst’s work but also in the history of art, and in this special edition has been reworked back in to his signature. The technique is simple but the result relies on complex ideas about mortality and the history of mankind, touching on specific anthropological and historical readings, with compelling, celebratory and seductive results.

A suggested memento mori of a more uplifting and contemporary slant, Hirst’s proximity to the subject of death is ever fresh, rewarding and daring, seeking to challenge the often morbid art historical approach to the subject. His skulls engage, they fix us with their own kind of gaze, imploring us to see the comedy within them. Here, the image of death is less unknowable, more approachable, a little lighthearted, even, whilst possessing something of an ancient relic or offering to the gods. Influences of the Mexican celebration, Dia de los Muertos, fuse ritual and anthropology with ornament, demonstrating the crux of Hirst’s practice wherein the philosophical and eternal become part of the vocabulary of modern life and modern aesthetic.


The Hallucinatory Heads


These are multi-colored glossy spinner paints on partial plastic skulls (no lower jawbone):




The Transcendent Heads


These are multi-colored glossy spinner paints on plastic full skulls with eyeballs:





The Hypnotic Heads


These are black and white glossy spinner painted plastic heads of full skulls with empty eye sockets:



specs for all:
210 x 140 x 140 mm
Household gloss on plastic skull

all information and images are courtesy of The Other Criteria, which is the only place where these skulls shown above can be purchased.

Other Must See Skull Posts:

• The Sensory Deprivation Skull:

read about it here.

The Limited Edition Bell & Ross Skull Watch:

read about it here.

Dan Aykroyd's Crystal Head Vodka:

Read about it here.

If you like skull items, be sure to check out the over 135 skull items I've posted on This Next

Be Your Own Banksy, Hirst, Quinn, Whithead, Emin or Eggleston!

The brainchild of Naroa Lizar Redrado, iArtist of London, sells 'Do-It-Yourself' kit versions of famous art pieces by contemporary artists Damien Hirst, Banksy, Marc Quinn, Tracy Emin, Rachel Whiteread and various photographers such as William Eggleston.



iArtist London is self-described on their site as:
a cool new brand that enables you to make real contemporary pieces of art from the comfort of your home. All those pieces that you always wanted to have but couldn´t afford. We believe art should be for everyone. Our boxes contain all the necessary elements so you only have to concentrate on creating. In no time you will have a masterpiece created by yourself. It couldn’t be easier!

A cute and clever idea, you can now make your own version of Damien Hirst's For The Love Of God, (a diamond encrusted skull only with crystals, of course... consider it the Bedazzler version), paint with Banky's famous street art stencils, create your version of Marc Quinn's "self" (a sculpted head filled with the artist's own blood), make your own tracy emin tent, yur own version of Rachel Whitehead's hot water bottle or turn photography into easy art.

Below are images of the original art upon which the DIY kits are based and descriptions of each kit, along with included content.

The iHIRST:

above: Damien Hirst's For The Love Of God

For the Love of God is a sculpture by Damien Hirst that consists of a platinum cast of a human skull encrusted with 8,601 fine white diamonds, including the centerpece, a massive pear-shaped stone on the forehead. It cost 14 million pounds to produce and sold for $100 million US dollars.





Now, with iHIRST you will be able to create your very own replica. The kit includes a human size plastic skull, all 8,601 crystals, the glue and even the tweezers. You can choose to customize your design by adding crystals of different colorsor alter it however you'd like. It's up to you whether or not you want to replicate the original or create your own.

CONTENTS: PLASTIC HUMAN SIZE SKULL, CRYSTAL BEADS (8,601 PIECES), GLUE, PAINTBRUSH, TWEEZERS, SILVER PAINT, INSTRUCTIONS.

The iQUINN:

above: Marc Quinn's Self (1991)

Marc Quinn's Self (1991) is a sculpture made out of the artist´s own blood that had been collected over a year and that the National Portrait gallery has been fighting to acquire. With IQUINN you will get the directions to make your own sculpture using your own blood and a cast of your head or any of your loved ones' heads.





*Children under 18 years old, pregnant women, elderly or those who suffer from any serious illness should not use this product. Contact your doctor before proceeding with the sculpture or call our hotline for more information.

CONTENTS: PVC BLOOD BAG, ALGINATE, PLASTER BANDAGES, COTTON, FACE CREAM, DISPOSABLE GLOVES, SILICON SWIMMING HAT, BAND-AID, INSTRUCTIONS

The iEMIN:


above: Tracy Emin's The Tent, exterior and interior

Tracy Emin's Everyone I have Ever Slept With 1963-1995 (also known as the tent) is a piece of contemporary British art created in 1995. The work consists of a blue tent with the names of everyone the artist had slept with during that period of time, sewn in various fabrics.





iEMIN is a complete package of all the elements to create your own version. Just cut letters out from the colorful fabrics provided and sew them onto the blue tent. The original was destroyed in a fire in 2004

CONTENT: CAMPING TENT FOR 2 PEOPLE, SEWING KIT, COLORFUL THREADS, ASSORTED FABRICS, INSTRUCTIONS.

The iWHITEHEAD:

Above: Rachel Whiteread's Untitled (Pink Torso) 1991, Courtesy the artist
PHOTO CREDIT: Mike Bruce at Gate Studios, London

Pink Torso is a sculpture made using simply a hot water bottle and alginate (dental plaster) created by Turner Prize winner Rachel Whiteread. Now you can do it yourself: fill the empty space and create a new and interesting sculpture. Kids love it, it is designed to stimulate their creativity and development and has been tested and approved by the toughest of children.





CONTENTS: HOT WATER BOTTLE (2 LITRE), ALGINATE, INSTRUCTIONS.

The iBANSY:

above: montage of Banksy street art images courtsy of weburbanist

Now you can create your own Banksy graffiti for just thanks to our IBANKSY boxes and machines located in the key areas of London*. Each box contains one spray can and a A4 stencil with one of the famous Banksy designs. Choose between one of our 6 designs and collect them all. The stencils are totally reusable. *Check the website to find the vending points.

CONTENTS: SPRAY PAINT, STENCIL, INSTRUCTIONS.




The iPHOTOGRAPHER:

above: William Eggleston photo

The iPHOTOGRAPHER kit allows you to get personalized versions of master photographs on photographic paper using a traditional enlarger that you can then customize. No knowledge of photo developing is required.

Send iartist the image of your choice, choose between their 3 levels of difficulty: amateur, photographer or master (the more difficult, the more layers, colors and detail); and you will get a package containing the stencils and a diagram with the instructions. Simply put the stencils on top of the paper and choose the corresponding numbers and time in the enlarger.

It's like painting by numbers only you will be painting with light. You can create a cool image to put on your wall and the stencils are totally reusable so you can explore, change your colors and try endless options.

This is the perfect gift. Send your favorite images. Their 3 different sizes are perfectly adapted to suit the standard paper sizes.



Below is a sample of an Eggleston print with iPHOTOGRAPHER:




Shop at iartist London here.