Has art become a con trick? Controversial artist Damien Hirst has burnt his own paintings and replaced them with digital tokens. Some believe this represents a new low for contemporary art.
UK's richest artist sets fire to his own work
Has art become a con trick? Controversial artist Damien Hirst has burnt his own paintings and replaced them with digital tokens. Some believe this represents a new low for contemporary art.
<h2 class=" eplus-wrapper" id="crosshead">Playing with fire</h2>
Damien Hirst has made millions1 from shocking the public. The British artist rose to fame in the 1990s with works that shattered conventional ideas of art.
He paid a hunter to catch a giant tiger shark and suspended it in formaldehydeA colourless chemical used in many building materials.. He cut a cow and a calf in half so that you could walk through their innardsThe insides of a creature.. And he glued down thousands of butterflies into intricate patterns.
Yet his latest work might be his most controversial yet. The Currency comprises 10,000 small paintings. Hirst sold each one for $2,000 (£1,767). Each buyer had to choose whether to keep the work, or have it burnt and replaced by a non-fungibleReplaceable or interchangeable. token (NFT) - a digital file that certifies ownership of the artwork.
Critics have poured scorn on Hirst's new project. As Time Out's Eddy Frankel wrote: "A lot of art is stupid. A lot of art is lazy. A lot is arrogant... But very, very little art manages to be all of those things at once." Frankel thinks The Currency fits the bill.
Yet Hirst sees his new work as an interesting comment on how value is formed. Interviewed while lifting paintings into the fire, the artist said: "There's always 10,000 artworks. That doesn't change. But some of them are NFTs and some of them are physical. And which is worth more? I don't know. And which is better? I don't know. But I believe that NFTs are as important as physical art."
NFTs have been the subject of fierce debate in the art world. For their supporters they represent the next frontierThe most advanced achievement in a particular area. of art-making. The past century has seen art expand beyond painting and sculpture to include collage, found objects, film, animation and much else. NFTs are simply another new medium, filled with potential.
If art can be judged by how much people are willing to pay for it, NFTs are very good art indeed. In March 2021, the digital artist Beeple2 auctioned an NFT for a record-breaking $69m (£61m). That December, artist Pak sold one for $91.8m (£82m), making it the most expensive artwork by an artist alive today. By the end of the year, nearly £36bn had been spent on NFTs worldwide - almost as much as the entire art market.
Yet NFTs have numerous naysayersA naysayer is someone who objects to something or says a project is likely to fail.. Many believe them to be little more than a con. As Sunday Times critic Waldemar Januszczak puts it: "Non-fungible tokens were invented by the Devil to lure fools into the art world and persuade them to spend their money on nothing."
By buying an NFT, you are not buying an artwork but a file recording that artwork. It is as if you have entered a supermarket and bought not a tin of tomato soup3 but the phrase "a tin of tomato soup". You own the ownership, but not the tin itself. No-one yet knows exactly what rights an NFT owner has.
Many worry the NFTs could be a fad. Their value may quickly fade. This bubble4 may be bursting already. Between May and August, trading volume on leading NFT marketplace OpenSea plummeted by 99%. According to the Financial Times: "Large portions of the market have begun to deteriorate." Those who have bought NFTs might soon have buyer's remorseWhen you regret buying something. .
Yes: The art market has long been money-grubbing. But NFTs are a new low: a wheezeA clever trick. whereby people are charmed into spending money on nothing. The bubble will burst - and the buyers will lose out.
No: From Marcel DuchampFrench artist (1887 - 1968) whose works challenged artistic norms. His piece L.H.O.O.Q. (1919) involved drawing a moustache and beard on a picture of the Mona Lisa.'s urinal to Carl Andre's piles of bricks, contemporary art has always surprised, shocked and challenged conventional ideas of value. The NFTs are just the latest evolution.
Or... Only time will tell. Innovative new things are often greeted with scepticism. If NFTs continue to trade successfully and bring value to their artists and owners, who can say they are a con?
Formaldehyde - A colourless chemical used in many building materials.
Innards - The insides of a creature.
Fungible - Replaceable or interchangeable.
Frontier - The most advanced achievement in a particular area.
Naysayers - A naysayer is someone who objects to something or says a project is likely to fail.
Buyer's remorse - When you regret buying something.
Wheeze - A clever trick.
Marcel Duchamp - French artist (1887 - 1968) whose works challenged artistic norms. His piece L.H.O.O.Q. (1919) involved drawing a moustache and beard on a picture of the Mona Lisa.
<h5 class=" eplus-wrapper" id="question"><strong>Has art become a con trick? </strong></h5>
UK’s richest artist sets fire to his own work

Glossary
Formaldehyde - A colourless chemical used in many building materials.
Innards - The insides of a creature.
Fungible - Replaceable or interchangeable.
Frontier - The most advanced achievement in a particular area.
Naysayers - A naysayer is someone who objects to something or says a project is likely to fail.
Buyer's remorse - When you regret buying something.
Wheeze - A clever trick.
Marcel Duchamp - French artist (1887 - 1968) whose works challenged artistic norms. His piece L.H.O.O.Q. (1919) involved drawing a moustache and beard on a picture of the Mona Lisa.