Damien Hirst’s “Shipwreck” Treasures to be on Display at Galleria Borghese
by Claire Slocum
From the 10th of May through to the 10th of October, pieces from contemporary artist Damien Hirst’s Treasures from the Wreck of the Unbelievable are to be exhibited alongside pieces of Galleria Borghese’s impressive collection of Renaissance works by masters such as Bernini, Caravaggio, and Titian.
As stated by the show's director, “The vision [for the Hirst show] combines contemporary art with that of the past, prompting us to reconsider their respective statuses and create new boundaries...”.
Galleria Borghese permanent collection (left) to be exhibited with Damien Hirst’s pieces (right)
The massive collection of over 190 works was first exhibited at French collector Francois Pinault’s two museums, Palazzo Grassi and Punta della Dogana in Venice. The pieces’ 2017 debut received mixed reviews from critics as some viewed the enormous spectacle as a failed comeback after almost a decade of little visibility and major exhibitions, while others viewed the gargantuan collection to redeem Hirst as a prominent contemporary artist.
The show’s central concept is based on a fictitious shipwreck of a vessel carrying commissions for a temple dedicated to the sun by freed slave, Cif Amotan II, that was discovered off the coast of East Africa by divers in 2008.
Pieces from Hirst’s Treasures from the Wreck of the Unbelievable “discovered” by divers.
The ambitious collection pays tribute to sculptural traditions of Ancient Greek and Roman, Aztec, Chinese, African, Indian and Oceanic cultures through its bronze painted classical busts encrusted in vibrant corals and marine life. The collection also makes references to recent pop culture through its bronze statues of Disney characters and musicians depicted as ancient deities.
Hirst’s The Collector with Friend, 2016.
Hirst’s use of materials including silver, bronze, and an array of precious stones incorporated throughout the show is monumental, especially for an exhibition of this size. A work of note from the 2017 show was a 60-foot headless demon cast in bronze that filled the entire brightly-lit courtyard of Palazzo Grassi.
Hirst’s Demon with a Bowl in 2017 show.
The incorporation of Hirst’s unique sculptures into the Renaissance collection of Galleria Borghese calls into question how the two could both complement and inform each other in a curatorial setting. Hirst’s works, although classically inspired, do not fall into a clear aesthetic in the manner that the permanent collection of Renaissance masterworks do. Hirst's detailed agricultural scenes and meticulous use of precious Carrara marble (seen in his range of small to massively sized sculptures) are reminiscent of Greek workmanship and Renaissance artistic skill. Yet, these take a shape of their own through the incorporation of pop culture references and vibrant coral structures.
Perhaps the clever juxtaposition of ancient and contemporary will allow viewers and critics to re-envision classically inspired pieces and reconsider canonical structures within Renaissance art.
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