Alex Katz

Born in 1965 in Bristol, England, Hirst grew up in Leeds and studied Fine Art at Goldsmiths, University of London. He first came to international attention with his self-organised exhibition Freeze in 1988, which effectively launched the Young British Artists movement. His subsequent work for collector Charles Saatchi brought him to global prominence, with the formaldehyde animal works, spot paintings, spin paintings, and butterfly compositions establishing him as the most financially successful British artist of his generation.

Hirst is the central figure of the Young British Artists. His print output spans several major series, including the Spot Paintings, Butterfly Mandalas, Cherry Blossoms, Spin Art, and the Virtues and Love Poems complete sets. His unique and original spin paintings on paper, produced one at a time using a spinning mechanism, are particularly sought after for their combination of uniqueness and the artist's signature.

Hirst's print market is one of the most accessible in the blue-chip space, with the average selling price in 2025 standing at approximately £9,000. This makes his work available to a broad collector base. The artist's market operates primarily on volume, with 55 percent of all Hirst auction sales comprising prints. The improving unsold rate, falling from 45 percent in 2015 to 33 percent in 2024, reflects growing confidence in the market.

The peak year for Hirst prints was 2022, when annual turnover reached £4.69 million. Following the NFT and Currency project controversy, turnover fell before recovering to £3.68 million in 2025 a figure that still represents a 220 percent increase over the 2015 baseline. The Virtues complete set sold at Phillips in February 2024 for £121,083. Day In Day Out (pill cabinet) achieved £230,759, making it the highest-selling individual Hirst edition in both 2023 and 2024.

The Hirst market in 2026 is best characterised as a recovery play with improving fundamentals. The 2022 Currency controversy created a temporary but significant disruption that depressed prices broadly. Current pricing reflects this discount but not the underlying demand for his most iconic series. The improving unsold rate and recovering average selling price signal renewed market confidence. Unique spin paintings offer the most interesting risk-reward profile.

The Virtues complete set (2021) remains the strongest benchmark for Hirst complete editions, having sold for £121,083 at Phillips. The Cherry Blossom original was acquired for £60,000 in June 2022 and sold for £130,000 in January 2025 a return of 116 percent over two and a half years.