Damien Hirst, Cesium Sulfate (40 Woodcut Spots), 2011

The 40 Woodcut Spots collection represents one of Hirst's major print projects, produced in editions of 55, showcasing his famous dot compositions. This series connects to Hirst's larger body of spot paintings, which began at the 1988 Freeze exhibition in London's docklands. This self-organized show featuring Hirst and fellow Goldsmiths students marked a turning point in his career, which later led to his 1995 Turner Prize win. This collection offers surprising variety within its basic concept. Each print contains a unique configuration of colored circles in different sizes and arrangements. Some works feature a prominent central dot, while others display ordered grids of uniformly spaced circles on white backgrounds.

These compositions reduce abstraction to basic elements: color, shape, and arrangement. Regarding these works, Hirst has noted the mathematical harmony of colors interacting in a structured format. Each print is titled after chemical compounds, creating distance from physical reality. These scientific names suggest pharmaceutical origins and potential endless variation. The dots appear in solid colors with no repetition within individual works. Hirst has described installations of multiple spot paintings as sensory experiences that transcend their physical dimensions. Unlike the original hand-painted, expressionistic spot paintings from Freeze, the 40 Woodcut Spots series shows precise, clinical aesthetics. Following his early success, Hirst began using assistants to produce spot paintings that appear mechanically created rather than handmade.

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