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Art Quotes by Damien Hirst

48 Art quotes by Damien Hirst

All Art quotes Damien Hirst’s page

Art lives inside a person's head, turning thoughts into titles and ideas. The speaker believes art should lift the viewer up and give a feeling of happiness. He also says that making good art is a hard fight, but finishing it brings a strong sense of pride.

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You need a big ego to be an artist.

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The idea is more important than the object.

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Artists are like everybody else.

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I love art. It is uplifting.

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For me, art is always a kind of theater.

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As an artist, you don't stop making art because people are not buying it.

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Museums are for dead artists. I'd never show my work in the Tate. You'd never get me in that place.

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The idea of being a painter, I've always thought, is better than being an artist or a sculptor.

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I like the confusion you get between science and religion … that’s where belief lies and art as well.

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I believe all painting and art should be uplifting for the viewer.

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I can’t wait to get into a position to make really bad art and get away with it.

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As soon as something becomes art I think you get over the fear

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I can't understand why most people believe in medicine and don't believe in art, without questioning either.

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In an artwork you're always looking for artistic decisions, so an ashtray is perfect. An ashtray has got life and death.

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I quite like it to be risky. I'm not ready to sit down in a chair with my name on it yet.…

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I have always been aware that you have to get people listening before you can change their minds. Any artist's big fear…

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Kids are naturally gifted at art from a very young age. The problem is when they get older and become self-conscious. The…

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The idea of going on tour for the rest of my life with old works is not that exciting. As an artist…

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Sensation is an element of what I do, and why not? It's not sensational for the sake of being sensational, but it's…

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Great art - or good art - is when you look at it, experience it and it stays in your mind. I…

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Buy art, build a museum, put your name on it, let people in for free. That's as close as you can get…

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I always try to make everyone mellow down, make sure everybody's happy. The people I have employed have always kind of stayed…

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As an artist you're looking for universal triggers. You want it both ways. You want it to have an immediate impact, and…

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For me, art is always a kind of theater. When I started the spot paintings, I made them as an endless series.…

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To be an artist is not about fame; it's about art, which is this intangible thing that has got to have lots…

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Art is the closest you can get to immortality, though it's a poor substitute - you're working for people not yet born…

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I can't wait to get into a position to make really bad art and get away with it. At the moment if…

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It's a great advantage to be able to play people off against each other, isn't it? You go to Christie's and get…

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For artists it's a lot easier to make art in bad times than it is in good times. When you've got no…

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I think as an artist you have to reinvent yourself every day.

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Painting is so poetic, while sculpture is more logical and scientific and makes you worry about gravity.

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People don't like contemporary art, but all art starts life as contemporary - I can't really see a difference.

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I don't see what else you can spend your money on... If you want to own things, art is a pretty good…

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Art comes from everywhere. It's your response to your surroundings.

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I had a passport where I wrote 'artist' under 'occupation' and I remember thinking, 'That's it, it's proved!'

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I always feel like the art's there and I just see it, so it's not really a lot of work.

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It's amazing what you can do with an E in A-Level art, a twisted imagination and a chainsaw.

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I mean, people listen to music, and they like that, but I think in England, a lot of people don't like contemporary…

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In fact, the first piece of art I ever sold, I paid someone else to make the next one, so I could…

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Making art, good art, is always a struggle. It can make you happy when you pull it off. There's no better feeling.…

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More by Damien Hirst

I always look at money not as a motivating factor but as an element in the composition. You can't ignore it, but you've got…

Art goes on in your head. If you said something interesting, that might be a title for a work of art and I'd write…

Even as a kid in drawing class, I had real ambition. I wanted to be the best in the class, but there was always…

Since I was a child, death is definitely something that I think about every day. But I think that everybody does. You try and…

But I think it's more that when you're young, you're invincible, you're immortal - or at least you think you are. The possibilities are…

Museums are for dead artists. I'd never show my work in the Tate. You'd never get me in that place.

No, I don't believe in genius. I believe in freedom. I think anyone can do it. Anyone can be like Rembrandt.

Never let money get in the way of an idea

I did a butterfly show in Berlin, and we had a guy who's an expert on butterflies; who bred them all and who looks…

There's no possible way you can get what you want.

I believe all painting and art should be uplifting for the viewer.

If the choice is between buying another building or a Pollock, I'd go for the Pollock every time.

Picasso, Michelangelo, possibly, might be verging on genius, but I don't think a painter like Rembrandt is a genius.

Making art, good art, is always a struggle. It can make you happy when you pull it off. There's no better feeling. It's beauteous.…

So smoking is the perfect way to commit suicide without actually dying. I smoke because it's bad, it's really simple.