Jeff Koons

This photograph was taken in 1985 of me with a prototype of my Two Ball 50/50 Tank from my Equilibrium series.

Prototype of “Two Ball 50/50 Tank” (1985) glass, steel, distilled water, and two basketballs 62 3/4 x 36 3/4 x 13 1/4 inches / 159.4 x 93.3 x 33.7 cm @ Jeff Koons
Photo: Robyn Stoutenburg

The Incredible Art of Being Jeff Koons nytimes.com/2026/09/11/t-m… via @NYTimes

Thrilled to share this profile in @tmagazine out now. Thank you to Nick Haramis for a wonderful conversation, and to Renée Cox for capturing these images in the studio — styling by Zara Mirkin. Link in bio to read the full piece.

I have always been fond of Ushering in Banality. To me, it represents my cultural history. The base is in the shape of a footprint referencing the young boy who is pushing the pig. I’ve always thought of the young boy as a self-portrait. The work represents the transcendence possible in the accessible and the divine.
 
“Ushering in Banality” (1988) polychromed wood, 38 x 62 x 30 inches © Jeff Koons, Photos: 1) Schaub/Höffner, Köln, © TASCHEN GmbH 2) Preparing for exhibition at Galerie Max Hetzler, Cologne, 1988, Photo by Wilhelm Schürmann 3&4) photos by Guillaume Onimus, Courtesy Christie’s 5) on view at Jeff Koons: A Retrospective at the Whitney Museum of American Art, Photo: Ronald Amstutz

“Metallic Venus” from the Antiquity series highlights desire, abstraction, and beauty along with our mortality. Even in Arcadia, life cycle is present.
 
“Metallic Venus” (2010-2012), mirror-polished stainless steel with transparent color coating and live flowering plant, 100 x 52 x 40 inches, 254 x 132.1 x 101.6 cm © Jeff Koons, “Jeff Koons: Shine” Exhibition Photos: Ela Bialkowska, OKNO Studio, Courtesy Palazzo Strozzi

“Caterpillar Chains” and “Titi” shown with objects from the collection of Mucem in Marseille, France. Both works engage with readymade objects that surround us in everyday life.
 
“Caterpillar Chains” (2003) polychromed aluminum and coated steel chain, 20 x 43 1/2 x 77 inches
“Titi” (2004-2009) mirror-polished stainless steel with transparent color coating
37 7/8 x 23 13/16 x 14 7/8 inches © Jeff Koons, Photos by Laurent Lecat. Marseille, Musée des Civilisations de l'Europe et de la Méditerranée, Jeff Koons Mucem: Works from the Pinault Collection, Mucem Scenography by Pascal Rodriguez