Believing

In Believing, Damien Hirst put hundreds of tropical butterflies on a canvas in a perfectly regular concentric pattern. The light reflects the shimmering, unalterable colours of the wings of these insects, which are very present in the artist's work. Symbols of metamorphosis and spiritual liberation, they are shown within a naturalist project of undeniable scientific rigour, a true meditation on fragility and eternity.

Hirst, leader of the Young British Artists and winner of the 1995 Turner Prize, has explored the complex relationships between art, beauty, religion, science, life and death since the 1980s. In 2012, he gathered thousands of live butterflies in a room at the Tate Modern in London for his first retrospective.

Believing was first presented by the Pinault Collection during the "Qui a peur des artistes ?" (“Who’s Afraid of Artists?”) show at the Palais des Arts in Dinard in 2009.