Damien Hirst creates headlines and buzz
like few other living artists. This morning Tracy Smith takes a deep dive
into his work. (TRACY) How's this for a story? A few years back the wreck of an ancient sailing ship, the Apistos, was found off the coast of East Africa. The ship's name "Apistos", translates as unbelievable in ancient Greek. And the cargo she carried was pretty unbelievable
indeed. Divers found treasure by the ton gold-plated sculptures and huge bronze
statues crusted in coral. The salvagers packed it all off to
Venice where crowds marveled at the treasures of the unbelievable. But here's
the thing, there really was no ancient shipwreck or any lost treasure. That
whole undersea recovery was staged for this exhibit. And the sculptures on
display in Venice weren't created by craftsmen in ancient Rome. They were all
made here at a foundry north of London by Millennials in matching coveralls. The treasure and the made-up story behind it was yet another
outrageous creation by British artist Damien Hirst. (TRACY) The idea is that all of
these things would have been discovered as part of a shipwreck and they would
have grown (DAMIEN) Yeah exactly yeah. Yeah but you want to look like it's it's real. You
don't look like it's been man-made, the coral anyway. (TRACY) The coral might be fake but the
treasure is real enough. Most of these pieces have already sold that price is
reportedly up to five million dollars each. At 53, Hirst has been described as
a genius and a con man but it's hard to argue with his success. An original work by Damien Hirst like
these spot paintings at New York's Gagosian Gallery could be worth more
than your house, even though his staff might have done the actual painting. (DAMIEN) As
soon as I could afford it I hired two other people to make my paintings. (TRACY) Why? (DAMIEN) I just don't think it's important what's important is that the end result is
exactly what I want. (TRACY) Even if it's not your hands doing the work? (DAMIEN) Well I'm gonna
feel like it is my hands doing the work it doesn't matter whether I actually
physically do the work or not. As long as I'm making sure that the end result is
what I want. And what he wants sells. This 2008 auction alone
reportedly brought him more than 170 million dollars. In fact, Damien Hirst is
one of the richest artists on earth with a net worth said to be close to a
quarter of a billion dollars. Still he can remember leaner times. (DAMIEN) I remember when I opened up my first bank account, the bank manager said 'What do you do?' I said 'Oh I'm an art student and he said 'Ohh..' Now I get Christmas cards from my bank manager, which I don't like either! Hearst grew up in Leeds where he says he failed at pretty much everything except drawing. So he became an artist and this 1991 piece really put him on the map. Basically a
14-foot shark swimming in formaldehyde. (TRACY) What was it about the shark? About
actually getting a shark that was important to you? You could have just
painted a shark? (DAMIEN) My biggest fear was I'd been making an artwork you could walk up,
look at, I think 'nah and walk away from. And I just thought I didn't want art
you could choose against I thought I wanted art that just got you and whether
you liked it or not. (TRACY) That was the biggest fear, was having to be ignored? (DAMIEN) Yeah I
didn't want to make artwork that you could ignore. Turns out he was impossible to
ignore. In Damien Hirst's hands, anatomical models became giant
sculptures, medicine cabinets became shrines for multi-coloured pills. His
work often showed a preoccupation with death. Like this piece, a platinum skull
set with more than 8,000 diamonds that sold for around a hundred million
dollars. (DAMIEN) I realized it was the first thing I made that couldn't have in my own home. Without security or people what do you think wow you know the people could
probably kill each other for this it's like you need to create quite a monster. (TRACY) He also created a reputation for partying as hard as he worked. (DAMIEN)
When I first started drinking I had never used to get a hangover. And I measured the
last one I had which was 11 years ago and it was like seven or eight days I was
still feeling bad. (TRACY) 7 or 8 for a hangover? Yeah 'cause you're just not able to deal with it anymore. (TRACY) But that was then. These days, beauty seems to be his drug of choice.
These brilliant mosaic patterns are stunning and even more so when you see
what all those colors really are. (TRACY) So these are all actual butterflies? (DAMIEN) Yeah real butterflies yeah. (TRACY) And did you change the color? (DAMIEN) No, nothing's been changed it's just as they're found. (TRACY) In case you're wondering doesn't catch them all himself. The butterflies come from old collections he buys up. And close by there's a group of artists who execute his vision spending their days
in his Gloucester studio hunched over works in progress. Using bolts to keep
the wings from fluttering off before gluing each one oh so carefully into place. Of Course not every Damien Hirst is nearly as meticulous as this. Some are downright messy, like his spin paintings where he throws paint onto a spinning canvas to create a very colorful and
very expensive splatter. (DAMIEN) My business manager said to me 'That's an amazing painting you making Damien', - an old business manager. And I said, But you
think everything I make is amazing' and he said, 'Yeah but it is!' and it's like
it's tempting to want to believe that but you know it's not true so it's not
everything. You know you everybody makes crap paintings at some
point. (TRACY) Even you? (DAMIEN) Yeah, everyone. Especially me. And throw the cup on it after. (TRACY) The idea here is that anyone can make great art even those of us with no
talent at all. And then toss the cup? (DAMIEN) Yeah. His color choices were brilliant, mine
not so much. (TRACY) This is so fun. So if anyone can do it is it art? (DAMIEN) If it looks good. (TRACY) And to me it did look good but Damian was never one to play it safe. (DAMIEN) Because I love the painting. (TRACY) He splashed on some paint thinner. (TRACY) Oh no! (DAMIEN) Oh yeah! (TRACY) And instantly regretted it. (TRACY) So does that happen to you where you go just a teeny bit too far and then go 'ooh I ruined it! (DAMIEN) I just did it. (TRACY) So maybe it wasn't his favorite but then again everything he touches is worth something. We're good? No! Stay away from me! Actually no, wait. Touch me! (DAMIEN) Touch me! Sell it! (TRACY) And now after three decades creating one outlandish masterpiece after another, the artist is no longer a young man. But
Damien Hirst has somehow found a kind of beauty in that too. (DAMIEN) Moody! Moody guy! I definitely got less
time in front of me than behind me and I think I can safely say. (TRACY) How are you feeling about that? You who has confronted death so many times with your work. (DAMIEN) I kind of feel as you get older hopefully you get a bit wiser. Maybe I
feel a little bit wiser, maybe.
