Damien Hirst Accused of Plagiarizing Live Fly Artwork from Hamad Butt

Damien Hirst has been accused of plagiarizing the concept of using live flies in his breakthrough artwork A Thousand Years from fellow Goldsmiths University classmate Hamad Butt. Butt's earlier work, Fly-Piece, displayed in June 1990, featured live flies in a vitrine and is recognized as one of the earliest examples of bio-art in the UK. Hirst unveiled A Thousand Years just a month later, showcasing flies feeding on a cow's head, which garnered significant acclaim and was purchased by prominent collector Charles Saatchi. Curator Dominic Johnson, who organized a new exhibition of Butt's works, asserts that Hirst likely encountered Butt's prototype during their overlapping time at Goldsmiths and that the appropriation appears direct. Butt died in 1994 at age 32, reportedly unhappy that Hirst received greater recognition for a similar concept. Hirst has declined to comment on the allegations, though he is known for previous accusations of plagiarism and is considered Britain’s wealthiest artist.