\n<\/p>\n
Fashion, Hirst says, \u201cis art that you can wear.\u201d It\u2019s what he liked about the prospect of working with Barrie. \u201cI come from a museum world where people go \u2018don\u2019t touch it.\u2019 In the art world, we all believe that art is a sacred thing,\u201d But fashion, because it\u2019s wearable and has a practical use, rarely undergoes the same canonization. \u201cBut, in a way, the reason why I wear it is because it\u2019s already art,\u201d Hirst says.<\/p>\n
Hirst says he also enjoys the opportunity to work on something with an agreed end use. \u201cIn art, I was taught that there are no limits,\u201d but in fashion one has to negotiate between the garment and the body, and functionality becomes paramount. \u201cBut art is limited too. With sculpture, your biggest limitation is gravity and you\u2019re going to struggle a lot to get around that one,\u201d he laughs.<\/p>\n
He recalls once making surfboards for a charity, imagining them in use by a surfer as they crest a wave. \u201cAnd then you see it in a frame on a wall,\u201d he says. \u201cI really want to make sure that people wear this and don\u2019t put it into dusty storage.\u201d<\/p>\n
Collabs, Hirst says, are not an easy fit to achieve. \u201cYou can see some amazing brands come together and make real crap,\u201d he says, and his career boasts a number of notable partnerships that never came to be. He once came close to working with Hussein Chalayan, a fashion designer whose work is largely considered museum-worthy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first thing he said was that it could not be wearable,\u201d Hirst recalls. It was an immediate turn off for the artist. \u201cThat\u2019s where I live,\u201d he says. \u201cI wanted to meet in the middle, and he wouldn\u2019t. He wanted to come right over to my side.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n