Where Are We Going? Where Do We Come From? Is There a Reason?

Objectivity can be morbid, more so when it is shown by Damien Hirst. Where Are We Going? Where Do We Come From? Is There a Reason?, which takes a humorous twist on the title of a Paul Gauguin painting, takes the form of a curiosity cabinet. The 76 skeletons of different species of animals featured in the piece bring another dimension to this title and coldly interrogate the transience of life.

By presenting animal skeletons in a showcase, the British artist plays with the taboo Western societies place on death and simply shows the intrinsic and organic reality of every individual life. Such an orderly, pseudo-scientific representation suggests death is considered here as a research subject, whereas the title implies a more troubled vision of our time on earth. “There's only ever been that one idea in art. We do things only to answer the questions why, where, what and who. Where did we come from? Where are we going? Is there a reason?”, said the artist.

Where Are We Going? Where Do We Come From? Is There a Reason? was shown in 2006 at the first exhibition of the Pinault Collection at Palazzo Grassi, titled Where Are We Going?.