Latest news with #HamadButt
Times
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Times
Damien Hirst and plagiarism: ‘All my ideas are stolen anyway'
The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary defines the verb to plagiarise as follows: '1 v.t. Take and use as one's own (the thoughts, writings, inventions, etc., of another person); copy (literary work, ideas, etc.) improperly or without acknowledgement; pass off the thoughts, work, etc., of (another person) as one's own. 2 v.i. Practise or commit plagiarism.' Damien Hirst, who has been accused, not for the first time, of pinching the idea for his best work, A Thousand Years (1990) — the one with the cow's head, the maggots and the insect-o-cutor in a vitrine — from his Goldsmiths contemporary Hamad Butt, is probably used to it by now. Indeed, in 2018 he stated in a filmed interview with fellow artist Peter Blake, 'All my ideas are stolen anyway,' claiming that he was told by his tutor Michael Craig-Martin, 'Don't borrow ideas, steal them' (possibly Craig-Martin had Picasso's famous adage in mind: 'Good artists copy, great artists steal'). That, Hirst said, was when he realised 'you don't have to be original' — and Blake agreed. 'Nothing is original — it's what you do with it.' Still, Butt's Transmission, which is about to go on show at the Whitechapel Gallery in London as part of Apprehensions, the first big survey exhibition of his work, does indeed have remarkable similarities in its ideas and execution to Hirst's work. Shown at Butt's degree show, also in 1990, but developed earlier in prototype in his studio (and seen there, claimed Butt, by Hirst, who overlapped with him at Goldsmiths for two years), it was a multipart work, one element of which was Fly-Piece, a cabinet containing sugar-soaked paper inscribed with enigmatic statements, and fly pupae, which hatched, digested the paper and then died. • Damien Hirst at 60: My plan to make art for 200 years after I die It doesn't take a genius to see why Butt, who died of Aids-related complications in 1994 aged 32, felt Hirst had appropriated his work, and the critic Jean Fisher, who taught both artists, referred to Butt's 'clear influence on Hirst'. The Times approached Hirst for comment. But this is just one of many times Hirst has been accused of plagiarism, which in art is notoriously difficult to prove. In 2010 Charles Thomson, founder of the stuckists, collated a list of 15 examples for Jackdaw Magazine. Some were supported by the artists in question, such as the Los Angeles artist Lori Precious, who said she went into 'a state of shock' after seeing Hirst's butterfly works and noting their resemblance to her mandala works made of butterflies. (Hirst has never publicly acknowledged Precious's remarks, which were not made through legal representation, and told Blake that he got the idea from Victorian tea trays.) Some were Thomson's assertion, such as the similarity between Hirst's early medicine cabinet works and Joseph Cornell's 1943 sculpture Pharmacy. Hirst's press officer at the time described the article as 'poor journalism' and said they would be issuing a 'comprehensive rebuttal'. If this exists, I can't find it. John LeKay, once a good friend of Hirst's, has claimed the artist has repurposed a number of his ideas, including skulls covered in crystals, which LeKay first experimented with in 1993, and has intimated that Hirst's In the Name of the Father, 2005, which featured the corpse of a sheep splayed to resemble a crucifixion pose, was probably inspired by his own 1987 work This Is My Body, This Is My Blood, which does the same thing but without preserving it in formaldehyde. • 25 moments that made Tate Modern — seeds, spiders and sharks LeKay also claimed that Hirst got the ideas for his pickled animal works from a catalogue LeKay lent him, for the Carolina Biological Supply Company, which sold science education products (which is a perfectly reasonable and valid place to get ideas — they don't usually just come out of thin air). Hirst declined to comment on the claims. He did agree, in 2000, to pay an undisclosed sum, out of court, to two children's charities when Humbrol took umbrage at his large-scale bronze sculpture Hymn, describing it as a direct copy of the company's Young Scientist Anatomy Set, designed by Norman Emms (apparently Hirst's young son had one). Mostly, though, claims have gone unanswered. In 2017 Jason deCaires Taylor claimed there were 'striking similarities' between his underwater sculptural installations, which he has been making since 2006, and the works that made up Hirst's Treasures from the Wreck of the Unbelievable, exhibited at that year's Venice Biennale. Hirst denied that he had breached copyright and a spokeswoman said he had been interested in 'coralised' objects since the 1990s. In 2022 he exhibited a suite of paintings of cherry blossom at the Fondation Cartier in Paris, which depicted dark branches against a pale blue sky, with petals made of dots. The English artist and writer Joe Machine told a newspaper that he thought when he saw them that he was looking at his own earlier paintings. (A stretch, to be honest. Stylistically they're not particularly similar and it's not as if artists haven't been painting cherry blossoms for centuries. To me, they just look like Hirst has rather savvily combined his dot motif with a tried-and-tested subject matter to appeal to the large east Asian market.) • Read more art reviews, guides and interviews The fact is you cannot copyright an idea. It's true that Thomas Downing was doing spot paintings in the Sixties. So did John Armeleder in the Eighties. Part of the fury around Hirst's alleged appropriation of ideas is that he's made so much more money out of them than anyone else — his success has created its own market, regardless of the quality of the work, which is variable to say the least. I doubt this latest, repeated accusation will make the slightest difference to Hirst's reputation. People know what they're getting with him, and Butt's Transmission, which the Whitechapel will show with the insect component remade for the first time since his degree show (Butt reportedly destroyed Fly-Piece after Hirst's work was shown) is likely to remain a frustrating footnote in art history. And as Dominic Johnson, curator of the exhibition, carefully remarks in the catalogue: 'It's always interesting to consider how and where artists get ideas from especially when working in shared spaces or contexts (as was the case for so many of the YBAs and their peers), as there is inevitably always going to be a degree of cross-pollination — conscious or unconscious.' Still, Picasso's pithy soundbite doesn't mean that stealing makes you a great artist. Mediocre artists steal too. And maybe the suggestion that A Thousand Years, in my opinion Hirst's finest work (he made it aged 25; he's 60 now and nothing he's done since has been as good, not even the shark), was heavily reliant on someone else's idea might, on darker nights, give Hirst a moment's pause.
Telegraph
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Damien Hirst accused of plagiarism in breakthrough artwork
Damien Hirst is embroiled in a plagiarism row after being accused of stealing the idea of using live flies in his breakthrough work from a fellow artist. Hamad Butt, a classmate of Hirst at Goldsmiths university in south London, displayed Fly-Piece, consisting of live flies in a vitrine, at his degree show in June 1990. A month later, Hirst reportedly unveiled A Thousand Years, a glass case full of live flies feeding on a cow's head, which elevated him to worldwide acclaim. Butt, meanwhile, Butt died in 1994 aged 32 after developing Aids, and having failed to break through into the art world. Dominic Johnson, a curator who has overseen a new exhibition of Butt's work at the Whitechapel Gallery in east London, claimed A Thousand Years 'appears to have directly appropriated from Butt'. Mr Johnson, a professor of performance and visual culture at Queen Mary University, London, claimed Hirst 'likely encountered Butt's piece first-hand in its development' as Butt had produced a prototype in his studio in 1989. It is claimed that Hirst displayed A Thousand Years at his exhibition Gambler which opened in July 1990. Butt felt that Hirst had appropriated his idea and 'was unhappy when Hirst's sculpture received greater acclaim', Mr Johnson wrote in the exhibition's catalogue, according to The Times. 'Whether the appropriation was direct or not, Butt chose to withdraw the Fly-Piece from his subsequent installation [in November 1990],' he added. Butt's original artwork, which has since been lost, has been recreated for the exhibition. Hirst continued to produce bio-art, most notably animals preserved in formaldehyde, including a dove, a pair of calves, and a shark dissected into three pieces. He dominated the British art world for two decades and has been reported to be the world's richest artist, with an estimated net worth of more than £300 million. The Turner Prize-winning artist's career has been dogged by allegations of plagiarism. In 2010, an art magazine published an article accusing Hirst of producing 15 works 'inspired by others' including his work Pharmacy. Charles Thomson, an artist and co-founder of Stuckists, a group which campaigns against conceptual art, tallied the number of plagiarism claims relating to Hirst's work in Jackdaw magazine. In 2007, former friend John LeKay claimed Hirst's diamond skull For the Love of God was based on his own crystal skulls made in 1993 Although Hirst has faced allegations that some of his works were the ideas of others, copyright does not protect ideas, only a specific form of expression. In 2000, it was disclosed that Hirst had paid an undisclosed sum to prevent legal action for breach of copyright by designers of a toy which resembled his famous bronze sculpture, Hymn. Hirst, 60, has always denied allegations of plagiarism but admitted in a 2018 interview that 'all my ideas are stolen'.
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Damien Hirst is accused of 'stealing' the idea of using live flies in his work from fellow artist he went to college with in the 90s
Damien Hirst has been accused of stealing the idea of using live flies in his work from a fellow artist he went to college with in the 90s. Hamad Butt made Fly-Piece, an artwork featuring live flies, which was considered among the 'earliest works of bio-art in the UK' when it was shown at his degree show in June 1990, The Times first reported. Just a month later Hirst, who was at the time an unknown artist who had also studied at Goldsmiths, University of London, released A Thousand Years, which showcased an army of flies feasting on a cow's head. Renowned collector Charles Saatchi was reportedly amazed by the exhibition and decided to purchase Hirst's A Thousand Years. The famous artist then spent years producing bio-art including his Natural History series, as well as The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living. Meanwhile, Butt tragically died in 1994 aged just 32 after contracting Aids. While Hirst has been accused of copying Butt's idea before, a new London exhibition of the late artist's work has brought the claims back to the surface. In a catalogue for the exhibition at the Whitechapel Gallery, curator Dominic Johnson penned that Hirst's A Thousand Years 'appears to have directly appropriated from Butt'. He added: 'Friends and family recall Butt felt this was the case and that he was unhappy when Hirst's sculpture received greater acclaim.' Mr Johnson claimed Hirst 'likely encountered Butt's piece first-hand in its development', with their time as students at Goldsmiths allegedly overlapping for two years. Hirst's representatives reportedly said the artwork may have appeared in an earlier Modern Medicine exhibition, held before Butt revealed his Fly-Piece. But this was still understood to be after Butt developed his prototype while studying at Goldsmiths, with Hirst a fellow student. Hirst, who is arguably the most influential living British artist, has been hit with plagiarism claims on more than one occasion - previously making a 'goodwill payment' to a designer. Additionally, he has also faced damages claims in US courts for alleged copying.
Times
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Times
Damien Hirst ‘stole live fly artwork idea' from course mate
Damien Hirst has been accused of stealing the idea of using live flies for what became his breakthrough work from a fellow artist who went to his early grave unhappy at the acclaim his rival received. Hamad Butt created Fly-Piece, consisting of live flies in a vitrine and described as one of the 'earliest works of bio-art in the UK' when it was put on display at his degree show in June 1990. One month later Hirst, who was still an unknown artist and who had been studying with Butt at Goldsmiths in south London, unveiled A Thousand Years, which featured a colony of flies feeding on a cow's head. Charles Saatchi, the renowned collector who became the leading patron of the Young British Artists (YBA) movement, had reportedly been blown away by the exhibition and shortly afterwards bought A Thousand Years. Hirst then spent much of the decade producing bio-art including his Natural History series and, perhaps most famously, The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living, featuring a 14ft tiger shark preserved in formaldehyde. Butt, meanwhile, died in 1994, aged 32, after developing Aids. In the catalogue for a new exhibition of Butt's work at the Whitechapel Gallery in east London, the curator Dominic Johnson wrote that A Thousand Years 'appears to have directly appropriated from Butt'. • Damien Hirst at 60: My plan to make art for 200 years after I die 'Friends and family recall Butt felt this was the case and that he was unhappy when Hirst's sculpture received greater acclaim,' Johnson, a professor of performance and visual culture at Queen Mary University, London, added. Johnson said that Hirst 'likely encountered Butt's piece first-hand in its development' adding that Butt had produced a prototype in his studio in 1989. Their time as students at Goldsmiths overlapped for two years. 'Whether the appropriation was direct or not, Butt chose to withdraw the Fly-Piece from his subsequent installation [in November 1990],' Johnson said. 'The original vitrine is now lost'. Hirst held two exhibitions in 1990: Modern Medicine, which opened in March and closed in May, followed by Gambler, which opened in July. A number of observers, including Hans Ulrich Obrist, the artistic director of Serpentine Galleries, have stated A Thousand Years was at the later Gambler exhibition. • The forgotten genius who taught Damien Hirst and inspired Britart Hirst's representatives said the artwork may also have appeared in the earlier Modern Medicine exhibition, held before Butt unveiled his Fly-Piece. However, this was still after Butt had developed his prototype while studying at Goldsmiths alongside Hirst. Hirst declined to comment on the 'appropriation' claim. Hirst, the wealthiest and arguably most influential living British artist, is no stranger to plagiarism claims. He has previously made a 'goodwill payment' to a designer and faced damages claims in American courts for alleged copying. Hirst said in an interview with his fellow artist Peter Blake in 2018 that he had been taught 'to steal' while at Goldsmiths. He told Blake: 'They said: 'Don't borrow ideas, steal them',' adding that 'you can't get copyright on butterflies' in reference to his renowned Butterflies series of artworks. All my ideas are stolen.' For the new exhibition of Butt's work at Whitechapel Gallery called Apprehensions, the artist's 'Fly-Piece' work has been reconstructed, which involved inserting fly pupae into a mound of compost at the foot of the vitrine. The pupae then hatch into flies and feed upon sheets of sugar paper printed with texts, lay eggs and then die. While the 1990 exhibitions were the key stepping stones for Hirst's entry to the British artworld which he would dominate for the next two decades, Butt failed to break through. The artist, who moved to Britain from Pakistan with his family aged two, had channelled his experiences — as a gay Muslim in the late 1980s with parents who tore his paintings down hoping he would choose a career in science — into his art. A 1992 show of his work was mounted in John Hansard Gallery in Southampton by Stephen Foster, its curator, who described Butt as the 'closest thing I've met to a genius in my life'. Two years ago Tate Britain gave space to Butt's Transmission work — whose original manifestation included Fly-Piece — in a display which critics said repositioned the artwork as a 'lynchpin in British contemporary art'. Gilane Tawadros, the director of Whitechapel Gallery, said Hirst 'seamlessly weaves popular culture, scientific knowledge, artistic understanding and social and cultural insights into works which are poetic and edgy, and completely unlike any others made by his contemporaries at the time'.
The Spinoff
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Spinoff
The Friday Poem: ‘Cradle' by Calvin Smith
A new poem by Calvin Smith. Cradle after Hamad Butt It is 18 yellow glass bulbs held up together with metal wire and filled with chlorine gas. What more is there to say? Outside, I focus on the still nimbostratus, and sit shivering in the car, leaving the door open. Why is it that all these separate footsteps form a pattern? Like a light rain, or a kind of concerted drumming. Origin of dance, this carpark. The gesture preceding sound, preceding music: the net of people. And the same thing with the mouth, preceding sound: all poetry being really only for the mouth, like a kind of enactment. I want to be able to say the words damp flowers and mean only the movement, in the mouth, from the voiced dental plosive through to the voiceless bilabial plosive through to the movement after that as the lips, at the start of flower, seem to release the tongue again and the vowels open freely in a kind of wave. Damp flowers. Tulip bulbs. Stamen. Is this the closest we get, really, to a thing itself? This movement? Language only as a kind of bolus? Everything needs to be enacted. Those yellow plastic bags, there, on the concrete, slowly colliding in the wind— they are an enactment. And so is the rain. And a forehead resting against another forehead. And a hand placed against the small of the back. You step out of the car and you say damp flowers, and let the gesture compass itself. I leave the door open to get a little rain, that's why I leave the door open.
