Formaldehyde and butterflies in France—Damien Hirst takes over Château La Coste

Damien Hirst will make his mark next year at Château La Coste, the 500-acre estate and vineyard located between the historic city of Aix-En Provence and the Luberon National Park (The Light That Shines, 2 March-23 June). The (not so young) YBA has the honour of being the first artist to take over the entire estate, filling the grounds and five exhibition pavilions with headline-hitting pieces such as his formaldehyde works including The Ascension (2003), butterfly works—known as The Empress Paintings—and sculptures and lightboxes from Treasures from the Wreck of the Unbelievable, a series of works first shown in 2017 across Punta della Dogana and Palazzo Grassi in Venice. Paddy McKillen, the founder of Château La Coste, says: “Amid laughs and giggles, chats and cups of tea, great ideas evolved as they do when Damien is his playful self. He has planned out the show to perfection. He has conceived each element to compliment both art and architecture, all set amongst Cézanne's Provençal landscape.” Hirst meanwhile calls McKillen a “great friend and wonderful human”.