Take the stairs at Claridge’s in London and you’ll be rewarded with a worm’s-eye view of Damien Hirst’s latest work. Returning to his favourite butterfly motif, the British artist is lighting up Claridge’s main staircase with a spectacular skylight – his first-ever work in stained glass – and it’s definitely worth the seven-flight climb.
Butterflies and Hirst go way back
For his legendary 1991 show, the artist attached live pupae to white canvasses allowing the insects to hatch, fly, mate and die over the course of the installation. His landmark kaleidoscope series, which began in 2011, has also seen him assemble real wings into dazzling compositions reminiscent of rose windows.
Here the colours and butterflies of the 8 by 6ft skylight are beautifully reflected on the marble staircases directly below.
Hirst says “I love Claridge’s and I love light and I love butterflies, so I was delighted to design a stained glass window for the Claridge’s staircase. I love how it’s turned out; I wanted to create an optimistic kaleidoscope of hope and light and butterflies, and I think the result speaks for itself.”
Photo credit: Photographed by Prudence Cuming Associates Ltd. © Damien Hirst and Science Ltd. All rights reserved, DACS 2022.