Are You Witty Enough to Win a Damien Hirst Artwork? The Artist Is Holding a Caption Contest on Instagram

All you have to do is caption a photo of Hirst in his underwear.

Damien Hirst in front of his work at the Palms Casino Resort on May 17, 2018, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo by David Becker/Getty Images for Palms Casino Resort.

Damien Hirst is giving away a free print to one lucky Instagram user who comes up with the wittiest caption to a photo of the erstwhile enfant terrible of the British art world painting in his underwear.

“I made a series of prints of my veil paintings to support the Serpentine Galleries,” Hirst wrote to his 427,000 followers in a post, and he still has one leftover. “Whoever gives the best caption to this photo can have it.”

The numbered and signed print in question is of one of the artist’s spotty veil paintings called Andromeda, and is worth £2,500 ($3,288). It was one of four available from HENI Editions, the others being Sans Souci, Garden of Dreams, and Cannizaro.

Hirst launched the competition on his Instagram yesterday, inciting a frenzy of responses with 3,922 people commenting on the post by the time this article was posted (and receiving 27,000 likes).

The photograph Hirst has tasked his followers with captioning shows the artist standing half-naked in his studio in front of some of his veil paintings. He’s holding a pot of hot pink paint and wearing a matching set of neon-pink boxer briefs and socks, plus a pair of black crocs labeled “Damien.” 

“Pox, crocs, socks, and cocks,” ventures one commenter, who goes by the handle @shesbizzy. “Pink Pantster Spotted Again…” offers user @jonny_crockett.

Another punter, @a_jonezy, goes for a sarcastic angle, needling the millionaire artist for his headline-grabbing antics: “What attention seeking activity could I do to generate a bit of cash? I’m down to my last million.” Elsewhere, user @Tony_kaye_8in7 gives “Pointilli$m” a shot.

The bizarre competition is the latest in a series of more personal reflections the artist has been posting on the social network in recent months, from how he reckons sausages are “stupid” when you really think about it, to an admission about his own questionable taste in hats.

Hirst says he will decide the winner of the competition in about a week. May the spots be ever in your favor!


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