Koons, Jeff (1955-…), is an American artist whose work has created controversy for its brash and bold replicas of everyday objects. In such works, Koons elevates everyday subjects into fresh, vivid sculptures enlivened by their transformation in scale and materials. Koons insists that his work contains no hidden meanings or symbolism. They consist of nothing more than their surface appearance.
Koons calls himself an “idea man,” referring to the fact that he seldom makes his own art objects. Since the 1990’s, Koons has employed a staff in a factorylike studio in New York City. These craftworkers and technicians make the work under his supervision. The large-scale sculptures are produced in foundries and similar facilities.
Koons often takes such commonplace objects as balloon animals and candy hearts and builds them to a large, sometimes vast, scale. For example, in Puppy (1992), Koons constructed a 43-foot (13-meter) tall sculpture of a West Highland white terrier puppy. He made the sculpture out of thousands of flowers attached to a steel frame.
Koons created a famous series called Statuary (1988). Part of this series is Michael Jackson and Bubbles, a life-size sculpture of the American entertainer and his pet chimpanzee made of porcelain with gold leaf highlights.
Koons was born on Jan. 21, 1955, in York, Pennsylvania. He received a B.F.A. degree from the Maryland Institute College of Art in 1976. He also studied at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1975 and 1976.
