Hirst - No1 In World Art

Enfant terrible? Not any more. Damien Hirst has transcended that tag - and the memory of Britart. As the final tally emerged from his recent selling art spree in Los Angeles - some 28 paintings garnering over £25m - Hirst was this weekend confirmed as the most successful artist alive. The Independent reports that until now he was lagging behind the 76-year-old US painter Jasper Johns, who sold a print last year for £41m. But the 41-year-old Briton has taken the lead, thanks to a remarkable recent surge in the prices paid for his art. The first piece to make big money was a pickled sheep that sold for £1.8m three years ago. A shark, also in formaldehyde, then went to the US hedge fund manager Steve Cohen for £6.5m. And now his earnings have soared, thanks to a collection of canvases covered in preserved butterflies and household gloss that has caused a sensation in LA. Inspired by stained glass windows and named after poems in Philip Larkin's High Windows, they sold for between £460,000 and £1.3m apiece before the show, Superstition, had even opened at the Gagosian Gallery. "Damien Hirst is without question the most successful artist of our times," said Cristina Ruiz, editor of The Art Newspaper. "He has become one of only three "brand names" in the art market, the others being Picasso and Warhol - artists whose work sells across the world from China to the Middle East. Hirst's name can be used to sell virtually anything he touches." Buyers in LA have ranged from major private art collectors to stars such as the former Friends actress Courteney Cox. Many of the paintings were bought by individuals unable to go to see them in person on the basis of colour transparencies shown them by their dealers. They were buying the fruit of less than 12 months' work - and Hirst's versatility means there will be more to come. (For full source and article click the Headline). Irish Art