Damien Hirst: The Light That Shines

The Light That Shines is a striking catalogue published to accompany the exhibition of the same name – one of Damien Hirst’s most ambitious, awe-inspiring exhibitions yet. Opening 2 March 2024 and showing until 23 June 2024, the exhibition spans the entire 500-acre estate of Château La Coste, Provence and its five exhibition pavilions, each designed by some of the world’s most renowned architects, including Renzo Piano, the late Richard Rogers and Oscar Niemeyer. 

The Light That Shines harnesses the nature/culture question that has consistently permeated Hirst’s practice, setting his artworks in the beautiful landscapes of one of France’s oldest winemaking regions. Works range from the iconic formaldehyde sculptures to never-before-seen artworks, including the sculptures of ‘Meteorites’ and ‘Satellites’, as well as ‘Cosmos Paintings’ – all inspired by Hirst’s encounter with space in 2003 with the Beagle 2 mission to Mars. 

Compiled into a stunning catalogue encased within an illustrated French-fold jacket, the artworks are meticulously reproduced, their images extending into the gatefolds, and are prefaced by an introductory essay by Ellen Mara De Wachter, as she insightfully comprehends the complexity and vastness of the artworks and ideas that have emerged over Hirst’s nearly four-decades-long career.