The Empresses - Nūr Jahān

This is a stunning laminated giclée on aluminium composite panel screen printed with glitter. The work is hand signed and numbered by Damien Hirst on the label on the back. Nūr Jahān is a limited edition of 3.041 copies, which includes 1.480 physical works and 1.561 NFT.

Damien Hirst series "Empresses" is an homage to 5 amazing women with a major relevance in history. Little known for western culture, their greatness is celebrated by Hirst.

Nūr Jahān was the most powerful woman in 17th Century India, a woman who took the leadership at a time and place where females were not taken under any consideration. An expert hunter, a wise ruler, a great architectural designer and a delicate poet, those were the main characteristics of Mihr un-Nisa, which was her birth name, who later became Nūr Jahān, a name that means "The light of the world".

Nūr Jahān didn't come from loyalty and after widowing she became part of Mughal Emperor Jahandir's harem. Soon she became the Emperor's favourite wife and begun to take relevance in political decisions. As the dynasty's only woman ruler, Nūr Jahān is omnipresent in the folklore of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Nūr Jahān, a talented architect, designed a tomb for her parents in Agra that was so innovative that inspired the design of the Taj Mahal, in fact, her parent's mausoleum is actually known as "the little Taj Mahal".

In this work, Damien Hirst pays special attention to this architectural side of Nūr Jahān and her Agra tomb design. With a kaleidoscope-like patterns the view is drawn to the center, inspired by the mosaic tile ceiling of the interior of the mentioned mausoleum.