Damien Hirst Keeps Striking A Chord For Charity With His Custom Guitars.

Artist Damien Hirst is known for many different things. The contemporary artist, who is often referred to as the richest artist in Britain, painted the floor for London's opening Olympics ceremony, created the world's most expensive diamond encrusted platinum skull, and has made us see ordinary things such as dots, butterflies and pharmaceuticals a little differently.



Of course, this barely scratches the surface of the artist's enormous repertoire. But today I wanted to share with you his benevolent side. Hirst has been hand-painting guitars for various charities, some of which are still available to purchase, since 2010.


Most recently the purple Gibson Les Paul Goddess electric guitar above, specifically customized by the artist with the design of one of his most iconic series, will be auctioned off to benefit Cancer Research UK as part of the annual music heritage event ‘Sound & Vision’ at Abbey Road Studios. The auction date has not yet been set.

Damien Hirst and Flea's Spin-Painted Guitars Benefit Charity and Make Great Gifts:


As often happens with art news, it is quickly forgotten when replaced with the next hot story. Which is why I wanted to remind you - with Father's Day, Graduation and Weddings sprouting up this coming month-  that these uniquely produced charity bass guitars by artist Damien Hirst and musician Flea, the bass player from The Red Hot Chili Peppers, are still available for purchase. First launched with much buzz in 2011, the collaborative signed instruments come in hand painted cases.


above: Hirst and FLEA Guitar picks are also available.

Helping justify the expense is that the profits from the sales of the guitars go to Flea’s charity, Silverlake Conservatory of Music.

All the guitars are signed by both Flea and Damien Hirst on the back with the edition number punched on the base of the neck and the Hirst-Flea logo on the headstock. The Colour Spin Bass Guitars are created in a limited edition of 125 and have a spin design printed on the case as well.

The Multi-Coloured Deluxe Spin Bass Guitar (the most expensive) by Damien Hirst and Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers, Unique Item, £50,000.00:



There are also Black and White Spin Bass Guitars and Multi-Coloured Deluxe Spin Bass Guitars available for a lower price than the Multi-color version shown above:

Colour Spin Bass Guitar - Damien Hirst and Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers
Household gloss on bass guitar, 335 x 1175 x 65 mm, Unique within a series of 125
PRICE £10,000.00:



Black and White Spin Bass Guitar - Damien Hirst and Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers:
Household gloss on bass guitar, 335 x 1175 x 65 mm, Unique within a series of 125
PRICE £10,000.00:



More designs than just those shown above are available. Here's a look at some of the others in the Other Criteria Gallery in London:




Flea established Silverlake Conservatory of Music in 2011 with his childhood friend, Keith Barry. Based in Los Angeles, its primary focus is on the youth of the community, to enrich their lives through music, offering affordable or free music lessons and instruments. It also grants scholarships to children in need.

Hirst & Flea clowning around for The Times:

the above wonderful photos of Hirst and Flea were taken by Pal Hansen for The Times UK.

To inquire about any of the Hirst X Flea Spin Painted Guitars email the gallery at info@othercriteria.com

Butterfly Guitars
In addition to the spin-painted guitars, Damien Hirst has applied other art iconography of his, such as his Butterflies to guitars auctioned off for other charities.


above: This Butterfly guitar was auctioned earlier this year to benefit Cancer Research UK as part of the annual music heritage event ‘Sound & Vision’ at Abbey Road Studios.


above: this special custom Butterfly Bass guitar was a gift made for his friend and Red Hot Chili Pepper member Flea (that kind of counts as charitable....)

DOTS guitars

above: Fender Stratocasters were given the Dots treatment by Hirst to be auctioned by Christie's and benefit such organizations as the cancer charities Love Hope Strength Foundation and Teenage Cancer Trust.


above: A Fender Telecaster and an Eastwood Acoustic featuring exclusive Hirst artwork (Dots and spin-painted, respectively) were raffled off at the 2012 Strummer of Love festival with proceeds benefitting Strummerville, a charity set up by the friends and family of musician Joe Strummer in the year after his death.

Not just guitars, either.




above: Hirst Teamed up with the English band Squeeze in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust in 2011. The instruments - a Fender Stratocaster, a Fender Telecaster, and a Yamaha Tour Custom drum kit - were all hand-painted with the familiar 'dots' by Hirst himself and signed.

Damien Hirst website
Other Criteria Gallery

Charities mentioned in this post:
Silverlake Conservatory of Music.
Teenage Cancer Trust
Love Hope Strength Foundation
Cancer Research UK
Strummerville

The Walking Dead Guitars & Accessories From Peavey With Artwork By Charlie Aldard.

A big hit at the Long Beach Guitar Expo and The NAMM 2013 Show was the newly licensed product line from Peavey Electronics® featuring graphics from The Walking Dead, the award-winning comic and TV show.





Designed for serious collectors and musicians alike by Peavey electronics, one of the world's largest manufacturers and suppliers of musical instruments and professional sound equipment, these new musical instruments will feature highly detailed artwork on guitars and accessories such as the straps and picks shown below.



Order The Walking Dead Zombie Guitar leather and Poly Straps here

“We are very pleased to be working with Skybound, the creators of The Walking Dead,” commented Hartley Peavey, founder and CEO of Peavey Electronics. “The immense popularity of The Walking Dead comic and cable TV show will allow us to get our products in the hands of an entirely new market and will expand our range of designs.”



Order The Walking Dead Characters Guitar Pick Packs here

Shawn Kirkham, Director of Business Development at Skybound Entertainment, added, “The merging of The Walking Dead’s iconic art and the equally iconic Peavey brand is a no-brainer. I’m excited to see fans and musicians strapping on guitars featuring gruesome Walking Dead artwork from Charlie Adlard. These guitars, straps and picks are going to look brutal!”


above: musician Nikki Stringfield with the Walking Dead Guitars

Below are prototype images of the guitars available. The actual products ship in July and will look more like the photographs shown above.

The Walking Dead Issue 100 Cover Rockmaster Electric Guitar:

This guitar will feature the cover art, shown below, from Charlie Adlard's Walking Dead Issue #100:


• The Walking Dead Issue 100 Cover Rockmaster Electric Guitar!
• Features the cover art by Charlie Adlard of The Walking Dead's issue #100 (shown above)
• Full-size electric guitar with a basswood body, maple neck, and rosewood fretboard.

Designed for serious collectors and musicians alike, this The Walking Dead Issue 100 Cover Rockmaster Electric Guitar from Peavy Electronics features The Walking Dead comic book artist Charlie Adlard's highly-detailed art seen on issue #100 of the comic book series. This guitar is a full-size electric guitar with a high-gloss finish of the cover of issue #100 on a basswood body that provides excellent balance and tone. The maple neck and rosewood fretboard on The Walking Dead Issue 100 Cover Rockmaster Electric Guitar enable fast rhythm and lead playing!

Order The Walking Dead Issue 100 Cover Rockmaster Electric Guitar here

The Walking Dead Michonne Rockmaster Electric Guitar:

This guitar features Charlie Adlard's cover art of Michonne from The Walking Dead comic book series:


• The Walking Dead Michonne Rockmaster Electric Guitar!
• Features an illustration by Charlie Adlard of Michonne from The Walking Dead comic book series. (shown above)
• Full-size electric guitar with a basswood body, maple neck, and rosewood fretboard.

Designed for serious collectors and musicians alike, this The Walking Dead Michonne Rockmaster Electric Guitar from Peavey Electronics features The Walking Dead comic book artist Charlie Adlard's highly-detailed art of Michonne from the series. This guitar is a full-size electric guitar with a high-gloss finish of Michonne on a basswood body that provides excellent balance and tone. The maple neck and rosewood fretboard on The Walking Dead Michonne Rockmaster Electric Guitar enable fast rhythm and lead playing!

Order The Walking Dead Michonne Rockmaster Electric Guitar here

The Walking Dead Riot Previews Rockmaster Electric Guitar:


above: Guy Dobson, Chief of Content for Southern Cross Austereo, with an actual photo (albeit blurry) of The Riot Walking Dead Guitars 

This guitar features Charlie Aldard's illustration of The Walking Dead shown below:


• The Walking Dead Riot Previews Rockmaster Electric Guitar!
• Features art by lead artist Charlie Adlard from The Walking Dead comic book series.
• Full-size electric guitar with a basswood body, maple neck, and rosewood fretboard.

Designed for serious collectors and musicians alike, this The Walking Dead Riot Previews Rockmaster Electric Guitar from Peavy Electronics features art from the lead artist in The Walking Dead comic book series. This guitar is a full-size electric guitar with a high-gloss finish on a basswood body that provides excellent balance and tone. The maple neck and rosewood fretboard on The Walking Dead Riot Previews Rockmaster Electric Guitar enable fast rhythm and lead playing!

Order The Walking Dead Riot Previews Rockmaster Electric Guitar here

Shop all the Peavey Electronics Walking Dead Items here

Colorful Hand-Painted Telecaster Guitars & Effects Pedals By MWM X Chiarelli (+ 5 Other Guitar Posts)

This recent collaboration between graphics artist Matt W. Moore of MWM Graphics and his friend James Chiarelli of the Aux band has yielded 3 hand-painted Telecasters and 9 effects pedals.



The Rock n' Roll Series is not only music to your ears, but your eyes as well. With bold graphic colors in modern vector-like bursts, the guitars are available completed with Fender standard series necks, Jason Lollar pickups, and vintage style Fender hardware - each hand-painted by Matt.

"The Tele is a design that in many ways hasn’t changed since the 50’s. It is the “work truck” of guitars. Not as seductive as the Les Paul or the Stratocaster, but it is second to none when it comes to function. Joe Strummer, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Merle Haggard are all associated with the utilitarian Telecaster." -Chiarelli

"Painting the set of 9 pedals as puzzle pieces was fun" according to Matt. Each is available on it's own. But why not grab 3 in a row of different effects? Available Effects : Fuzzface, Jordan Bosston fuzz pedals, and DOD Overdrive 250.

"The pedals are hand built using true-bypass switches, high quality jacks, and NOS transistors. All of the parts were chosen for sound rather than economics. The transistors in each pedal are to the circuit board so the user can try different transistors for varying tonalities. I chose circuits that are pretty explosive sounding. For example, the Fuzzface is most closely associated with Jimi Hendrix." -Chiarelli

The Process
Pics of the process from Matt's painting studio and James' workshop:






all images courtesy of MWM Graphics

Contact for pricing and availability. *Worldwide shipping is available.

I've written other posts on some very cool guitars, you may want to check these out:

• Amanda Dunbar's Precious Rebels™ Art Guitars

• Eero Aarnio's Copacabana Guitar for Lottonen

• Wild West : Gretsch Guitars Go Americana

• Guitars That Will Stir Your Soul, Prior To Being Played: Moollon

• Gibson Guitars & Julien's Announce The Miami GuitarTown Auction