Damien Hirst H17 - Civilisation For Sale
Damien Hirst: Civilisation Series
Market Authority & Performance
Guy Hepner, New York, has facilitated $4,226,125 in Damien Hirst transactions, establishing definitive expertise in navigating the artist's complex and historically significant market. As the leading figure of the Young British Artists movement, Hirst commands a secondary market shaped by landmark results, including the $19.2 million sale of Lullaby Spring at Sotheby's in 2007 and the unprecedented "Beautiful Inside My Head Forever" single-artist auction at Sotheby's in 2008, which realized $198 million total—a watershed moment that redefined how contemporary artists engage directly with auction houses.
According to the Art Basel & UBS Global Art Market Report 2025, the global art market reached $57.5 billion in 2024, with the 2026 report confirming a return to growth in 2025. Within this strengthening environment, Hirst's editions and multiples occupy a strategic collecting category, offering access to museum-quality conceptual work at entry points substantially below his unique sculptures and installations. The Civilisation series, released in 2024, represents Hirst's continued investigation of humanity's relationship with mortality, progress, and collapse—themes that have defined his four-decade career.
Series Context & Conceptual Framework
The Civilisation series extends Hirst's longstanding meditation on the fragility of human achievement. Where his iconic spot paintings explored pharmaceutical hope and his formaldehyde works confronted biological mortality, Civilisation examines the arc of collective human endeavor—its ascent, explanation, destruction, and decline. This quartet of works forms a philosophical narrative about the impermanence of systems, empires, and ideologies.
Hirst has consistently engaged with grand themes through systematic visual language, from the memento mori tradition of his skull works to the cabinet aesthetics of his pharmaceutical pieces. The Civilisation series continues this trajectory while marking a notable shift toward direct titular narrative. Each work's title—Rising, Falling, Exploding, Explained—suggests a trajectory of civilization itself, positioning the viewer within an ongoing historical cycle rather than before a static object.
The 2024 release date situates these works within a specific cultural moment characterized by technological disruption, geopolitical instability, and renewed discourse around civilizational resilience. Hirst's timing demonstrates his characteristic ability to produce work that resonates with contemporary anxieties while maintaining the timeless quality that sustains long-term market interest.
Technical Specifications
The Civilisation series employs giclée printing on Cotton Smooth Rag, a substrate chosen for archival permanence and tonal fidelity. This paper stock delivers exceptional color saturation while maintaining the subtle textural presence that distinguishes fine art prints from commercial reproduction. The cotton rag composition ensures acid-free longevity, with properly stored examples maintaining color integrity for generations.
Giclée technology allows Hirst to achieve precise translation of his conceptual vision, with each print produced under controlled conditions that meet museum conservation standards. This technical approach aligns with Hirst's broader practice of employing industrial and scientific processes—whether formaldehyde preservation, spin painting mechanics, or pharmaceutical-grade materials—to realize works that operate at the intersection of art and systematic production.
All works in the Civilisation series are authenticated through Science Ltd, Hirst's studio organization, which maintains comprehensive documentation and provenance records. Gallery representation through White Cube further establishes the institutional framework supporting these editions within the primary market ecosystem.
Notable Works in the Series
Civilisation Rising (2024) opens the conceptual sequence, addressing the aspirational phase of human collective achievement. This work establishes the visual and thematic vocabulary that the subsequent pieces will complicate and ultimately subvert.
Civilisation Explained (2024) occupies a contemplative position within the series, suggesting the moment when societies attempt to understand and codify their own systems—philosophy, science, religion, and governance as mechanisms for self-comprehension.
Civilisation Exploding (2024) represents the violent rupture that Hirst has explored throughout his career, from the bisected animals of his Natural History series to the destructive implications of his pharmacy works. Here, the explosion functions both literally and metaphorically, encompassing warfare, revolution, and paradigm collapse.
Civilisation Falling (2024) concludes the narrative arc with decline and dissolution, completing a cycle that suggests both finality and the possibility of renewal—a thematic structure resonant with historical philosophy from Gibbon to Spengler.
Investment Analysis
Hirst's print market demonstrates consistent institutional recognition, with major museums including Tate, the Hirshhorn, and the Astrup Fearnley Museet holding examples across his edition categories. This museum presence establishes baseline scholarly legitimacy that supports secondary market confidence.
The 2024 release of the Civilisation series positions these works at an early collection phase, when edition availability remains relatively accessible compared to sold-out historical series. Hirst's earlier edition works, particularly complete thematic sets, have demonstrated appreciation patterns that reward early acquisition, though past performance does not guarantee future results.
The series format—four works forming a coherent conceptual whole—creates natural collector incentive toward complete acquisition. Historically, complete Hirst series command premium positioning in both private sales and auction contexts, as institutional and sophisticated private collectors value thematic comprehensiveness.
Within the broader contemporary art market's return to growth documented by Art Basel & UBS, established artists with proven auction histories and institutional backing occupy favorable positions. Hirst's combination of brand recognition, scholarly attention, and active primary and secondary markets provides the liquidity framework that sophisticated collectors prioritize.
Acquisition Guidance
Guy Hepner maintains current inventory across the Civilisation series, with specialists available to advise on individual work selection, complete series acquisition, or strategic integration with existing Hirst holdings. Our New York team provides comprehensive support including condition assessment, authentication verification through Science Ltd documentation, and coordination of climate-controlled shipping and installation.
For collectors new to Hirst's work, the Civilisation series offers an entry point aligned with his most significant conceptual preoccupations while representing the technical refinement of his mature practice. For established Hirst collectors, these editions extend thematic range and provide portfolio depth across his print output.
Contact Guy Hepner to schedule a private consultation regarding available works, current pricing, and acquisition strategy.
