Damien Hirst — H10 - the Empresses For Sale

Damien Hirst H10 - the Empresses Prints For Sale

Market Authority and Collector Demand

Damien Hirst maintains his position as one of the most commercially significant contemporary artists in the global market, with auction results and collector interest that have consistently shaped the trajectory of post-war and contemporary art sales. Guy Hepner has facilitated $4,226,125 in Damien Hirst transactions, establishing our New York operation as a primary destination for collectors seeking authenticated works by the leading figure of the Young British Artists movement. The global art market's return to growth in 2025, as documented by the Art Basel & UBS Global Art Market Report 2026, has reinforced collector appetite for established contemporary artists with proven secondary market performance.

Hirst's commercial authority was definitively established through landmark auction events that transformed artist-market relationships. His single-artist sale "Beautiful Inside My Head Forever" at Sotheby's in September 2008 achieved a total of $198 million, fundamentally altering how the art world understood direct artist-auction house collaboration. These results established price benchmarks that continue to influence valuations across his diverse output, from unique sculptures to his strategic editions.

Series Context and Historical Significance

The Empresses series, released in 2022, represents Damien Hirst's engagement with historical female power through his signature visual vocabulary. The series comprises five works, each honoring a distinct empress whose reign marked significant chapters in world history: Wu Zetian, the only woman to assume the title of Empress of China; Nūr Jahān, the powerful Mughal empress who effectively ruled the empire; Theodora, the Byzantine empress whose influence shaped religious and social policy; Suiko, Japan's first reigning empress; and Taytu Betul, the Ethiopian empress who played a crucial role in her nation's military victories.

This series connects to Hirst's ongoing investigation of mortality, beauty, and transformation—themes that have defined his practice since the emergence of the YBAs in the late 1980s. The butterfly motif, central to The Empresses, has appeared throughout Hirst's career, notably in his Kaleidoscope paintings and installations. Butterflies serve as symbols of the soul in classical tradition, of metamorphosis in natural science, and of fragility in Hirst's ongoing meditation on life's transience. By pairing this symbolic language with portraits of historical empresses, Hirst creates works that oscillate between decorative beauty and conceptual weight.

Technical Specifications and Production Quality

Each work in The Empresses series employs a sophisticated production methodology that distinguishes these editions within Hirst's print output. The medium—laminated giclée print on aluminium composite panel, screen printed with glitter—represents a deliberate fusion of precision digital reproduction with hand-finished decorative elements. The aluminium composite substrate provides dimensional stability and a contemporary material presence, while the lamination process ensures archival longevity and surface uniformity.

The screen-printed glitter application introduces an element of handcraft and optical dynamism that cannot be replicated through purely digital means. This technique creates surfaces that shift and sparkle with changing light conditions, activating the butterfly wings and compositional elements in ways that still photography cannot fully capture. The result is an object that functions both as a wall-mounted print and as a luminous, almost sculptural presence within interior environments.

All works are authenticated through Science Ltd, Hirst's studio and authentication body, ensuring provenance integrity for secondary market transactions. Hirst maintains gallery representation through White Cube, with primary market works distributed through authorized channels. Guy Hepner operates as a secondary market specialist, providing collectors access to works with established ownership histories.

Notable Works in the Series

Wu Zetian (H10-1) honors China's only female emperor, who ruled during the Tang dynasty and established her own brief dynasty, the Zhou. The composition channels the imperial magnitude of her unprecedented reign through Hirst's kaleidoscopic butterfly arrangements.

Nūr Jahān (H10-2) commemorates the Mughal empress whose political acumen and administrative capability made her one of the most powerful women in 17th-century India. Her influence on art, architecture, and trade policy finds resonance in Hirst's ornate visual language.

Theodora (H10-3) celebrates the Byzantine empress whose rise from theatrical performer to co-regent exemplified remarkable social mobility in the ancient world. Her legacy of legal reforms protecting women gains contemporary relevance through Hirst's commemorative treatment.

Suiko (H10-4) recognizes Japan's pioneering empress, whose reign introduced Buddhism as state religion and established diplomatic relations with China. The work's visual harmony reflects the cultural flourishing of her era.

Taytu Betul (H10-5) honors the Ethiopian empress whose strategic counsel contributed to victory at the Battle of Adwa, preserving Ethiopian independence during the European colonial period. Her martial and political strength finds expression in the work's commanding presence.

Hirst's Practice in Context

Damien Hirst emerged as a defining figure of the Young British Artists movement in the late 1980s, building a body of work across painting, sculpture, and printmaking united by a sustained conceptual interest in mortality, science, medicine, and belief systems. His prints and editions extend the visual language developed across his sculptural and painted work — repetition, colour systems, and the tension between clinical precision and organic subject matter — into widely accessible reproducible form.

Hirst's work is held in the permanent collections of major museums worldwide, and his 2008 "Beautiful Inside My Head Forever" single-artist auction at Sotheby's, which bypassed the traditional gallery system entirely, remains one of the most widely discussed events in the recent history of the contemporary art market.