Damien Hirst's shark and the truck that channeled it
A logistics company's truck design echoes Damien Hirst's iconic formaldehyde shark, prompting reflection on the artwork's philosophical weight. The article explores how the truck's rectangular container mirrors Hirst's 5x2x2 meter tank, creating a similar unsettling effect of a predator appearing alive and aggressive. It delves into the title's meaning—the impossibility of conceiving death while living—citing Epicurus and Stoic philosophy. The piece contrasts a past prank where exhibitors claimed their shark preceded Hirst's, dismissing it as a mere dead fish, unlike Hirst's work which captures the shark in its natural habitat, generating perceptual dissonance. The truck's appropriation revitalizes the original sense, making viewers wonder if the car next to them contains a monster. The author, Marco Senaldi, is a philosopher and art theorist. The article was published in Artribune Magazine #40.
Key facts
- A mobility and logistics company's truck design resembles Damien Hirst's 'The Physical Impossibility Of Death In the Mind Of Someone Living'.
- The truck's rectangular container is approximately 5 x 2 x 2 meters, similar to Hirst's formaldehyde tank.
- The image gives the unsettling sensation that the monster is alive and intends to attack.
- The article discusses the philosophical meaning of Hirst's title, referencing Epicurus and Stoic philosophy.
- Years ago, pranksters exhibited a similar shark claiming Hirst copied them, but their shark was hung like a dead fish.
- Hirst's shark appears caught in its natural aquatic habitat, creating perceptual dissonance.
- The truck's appropriation reinvigorates the original artwork's sense.
- The article is by Marco Senaldi, PhD, philosopher, curator, and contemporary art theorist.
- Published in Artribune Magazine #40.
Entities
Artists
- Damien Hirst
- Marco Senaldi
Institutions
- Artribune
- Fercam
- Università di Milano Bicocca
- IULM di Milano
- FMAV di Modena
- Accademia di Brera
- LABA Libera Accademia di
Locations
- Curtatone
- Mantova
- Italy