Jeff Koons: A Retrospective
06.09.2015 - 09.27.2015
The unique, unmistakable, innovative work of Jeff Koons has made him one of the most prominent figures of the art of our time. Lacking the aura of inaccessibility that surrounds other contemporary works of art, his instantly recognizable creations appeal to the general public and draw on countless art historical sources, such as Surrealism, Pop Art, and Dada. Koons has a unique style that allows seemingly contradictory concepts to coexist harmoniously in his work. The oeuvre of Jeff Koons is a statement of self-affirmation, his paintings and sculptures invite us to reassert our individuality and flout certain taboos and conventions that box us in, limiting our role in society. Koons uses art as a wake-up call, a driving force of social change. The false luxury of some of his pieces, achieved by using industrial materials made to look deceptively lavish, and his references to well-known archetypes make viewers feel comfortable with their own cultural history.
The Exhibition
Rabbit, 1986
Stainless steel
104.1 x 48.3 x 30.5 cm
Edition no. 1/3
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago; partial gift of Stefan T. Edlis and H. Gael Neeson,
2000.21
© Jeff Koons
Inflatable Flower and Bunny (Tall White, Pink Bunny), 1979
Vinyl, mirrors
81.3 x 63.5 x 48.3 cm
The Broad Art Foundation, Santa Monica
© Jeff Koons
Teapot, 1979
Teapot, plastic tubes, fluorescent lights
66 x 22.9 x 30.5 cm
“The Sonnabend” Sonnabend Collection, Nina Sundell and Antonio Homem
© Jeff Koons
Travel Bar, 1986
Stainless steel
35.6 × 50.8 × 30.5 cm
Edition no. 1/3
Private Collection
© Jeff Koons
One Ball Equilibrium Tank (Spalding Dr. JK 241 Series), 1985
Glass, steel, sodium chloride reagent, distilled water, one basketball
164.5 × 78.1 × 33.7 cm
Edition no. 1/2
Private Collection
© Jeff Koons
Kiepenkerl, 1987
Stainless steel
180.3 × 66 × 94 cm
Edition no. 1/3
Murderme
© Jeff Koons
Louis XIV, 1986
Stainless steel
116.8 × 68.6 × 38.1 cm
Edition no. 3/3
Raymond and Patsy Nasher Collection.
Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas
© Jeff Koons
Lobster, 2003
Polychromed aluminium, coated steel
147 x 94 x 43.5 cm
Artist proof
Collection of the artist
© Jeff Koons
Hulk (Organ), 2004-2014
Polychromed bronze and mixed media
252.7 x 131.4 x 71.8 cm
Edition no. 2/3
Gagosian Gallery
© Jeff Koons
Michael Jackson and Bubbles<(em>, 1988
Porcelain
106.7 × 179.1 × 82.6 cm
Edition no. 1/3
Private Collection
© Jeff Koons
Puppy, 1992
Stainless steel, soil, and flowering plants
1,240 x 830 x 910 cm
Edition no. 1/1
Guggenheim Bilbao Museoa
© Jeff Koons
Made in Heaven, 1989
Lithograph billboard
317.5 × 690.9 cm
Edition no. 1/3
Rudolf and Ute Scharpff Collection
© Jeff Koons
Cat on Clothesline (Yellow), 2004-2011
Polyethylene
312.4 x 279.4 x 127 cm
One of four unique versions
Collection of the artist
© Jeff Koons
Loopy, 1999
Oil on canvas
274.3 x 201.3cm
Bill Bell Collection
© Jeff Koons
Artist
Koons, Jeff
York, Pennsylvania, 1955
Did you
know that...?
Bicycle Wheel and New Hoover Deluxe Rug Shampooer
Since the beginning of his career, Koons has been deeply influenced by Marcel Duchamp, an artist involved in the early-twentieth-century Dada movement that critiqued artistic and social convention. In Koons´s words, “to me the major artistic dialogue of the twentieth century was between subjective and objective art.
Macy´s Thanksgiving Day Parade and Rabbit
As part of his Statuary series, Koons, inspired by his earlier work Inflatable Flower and Bunny (Tall White, Pink Bunny), creates his now iconic stainless steel sculpture entitled Rabbit (1986).
The Birth of Venus and ARTPOP
The Birth of Venus (1483–85) was painted by Sandro Botticelli, a master of the Italian Renaissance. The painting shows the figure of Venus, the Roman goddess of beauty, love and desire, rising from the ocean.