Damien Hirst is the official poster boy of the Young British Artist movement. While studying in the renowned art program at Goldsmiths College in London, he conceived and curated his own exhibition, "Freeze." Charles Saatchi, advertising magnate and art collector, caught the show and began acquiring

Agitated, Death, Excessive, Perverse, Visceral, Young british artists

In a well-appointed flat, a series of scenes unfolds around the circumference of a room: a man sits on a couch, head resting on his fist as if lost in troubled thoughts; across the room another man crouches over a dark wood chest -- is he doubled over in pain or merely inspecting the valuable antique

Documentary photography, Enigmatic, Erotic, Grand, Playful, Quirky, Young british artists, Young british/kitchen sink/free cinema

Fusing humanist concepts, shrewd observation, social commentary, and rather simple filming techniques, London-based artist Gillian Wearing unmasks the human condition in her clever but acutely poignant photographs and single-channel videos. Winner of the prestigious Turner Prize in 1997, Wearing expo

Erotic, Event, Improvised, Intense, Urban, Young british artists

In one image, a drunken, disheveled man dips a jug into a bucket of home-brewed beer that sits next to his chair in a squalid living room. In another -- a close-up -- a woman eats a slice of pizza. She's obese, covered in tattoos, and wearing a weird assortment of shabby clothes; the pizza oozes from

Anxiety, Dark, Dystopic, Gritty, In-your-face, Young british artists