Damien Hirst’s Other Criteria at Samuel Owen Gallery

Samuel Owen Gallery, a recent and unique addition to Nantucket’s contemporary art scene, is mounting an exhibition of artwork by internationally renowned artist Damien Hirst. An opening reception to celebrate the artist and his work on Friday, July 31 from 6 to 9 pm will offer drinks from Cisco Brewers Nantucket, oysters by Hang Ten, and music by Audio Architects..

Damien Hirst is internationally recognized as one of the most influential artists of his generation and has worked in innumerable mediums, many created by him. Hirst has been instrumental on numerous curatorial projects and has taken part in over 80 solo exhibitions and 260 group shows in venues such as The Tate Modern and The Tate Gallery in London, Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

The show will feature silkscreen and woodcut prints including some of Hirst’s rarer Psalm, Spot and skull prints, many with diamond dust, as well as a unique, one of a kind spin surfboard by the artist and signed by him. The surfboard was created for the fundraising efforts of Surfers Healing, an organization with interesting origins. When a father, a surfing enthusiast, took his autistic son out on the front of his board, he discovered that his son was profoundly affected by the ocean and surfing. The foundation was created by the boy’s parents to allow this unique therapy to be experienced by other autistic children.

For this event Samuel Owen Gallery is partnering with Shuck It for Nantucket, a Natural Resources Department program. Shuck It for Nantucket collects shells from 25 restaurants and 3 raw bars to be recycled and used to build an oyster reef in Nantucket waters that will serve as an educational platform, while restoring a native species. A voluntary $10 donation to Shuck It for Nantucket is requested.

An exciting new arrival in Nantucket this summer, Samuel Owen Gallery specializes in contemporary art, both original works and multiples. On Nantucket, as well as in their gallery in the heart of Greenwich, CT, Samuel Owen Gallery maintains an extensive inventory of work by Damien Hirst, Shepard Fairey, Mr. Brainwash, CANTSTOPGOODBOY, Dale May, Eric Zener, Peter Tunney, to name just a few.