Jeff Koons Biography (PDF)

STAGE 4 Unit focus: Famous Artists Text focus: Biography Jeff Koons Jeff Koons is the most expensive living artist as of April 2023, a er his sculpture called Rabbit sold for $91.1 million! You may never have heard of him, but his art is famous around the world, and most of his pieces sell for milli...

STAGE 4 Unit focus: Famous Artists Text focus: Biography Jeff Koons Jeff Koons is the most expensive living artist as of April 2023, a er his sculpture called Rabbit sold for $91.1 million! You may never have heard of him, but his art is famous around the world, and most of his pieces sell for millions of dollars. Koons is an American artist who is most famous for his sculptures of mundane objects. These include things like balloon animals made from polished stainless steel. Rabbit was one of these. Another famous metal balloon animal was his sculpture called Balloon Dog (Orange), which sold for $58.4 million in 2013. Many famous artists use their art to give a message or comment on something meaningful. Koons has always argued that there are no deeper meanings or hidden messages in his work. This has led many critics to dismiss his work as crass and pointless. His supporters argue that it is pushing the boundaries of art forward and making it more accessible and relatable. Sculpture may be Koons’ main art now, but he began his artistic career as a painter. As young as nine-years-old, he was copying paintings from famous painters such as Rembrandt. His father displayed these in his shop window to a ract customers. He was fascinated by the surrealist painter Salvador Dali. Unless you are famous, being an artist doesn’t pay very well. Koons learned this when he moved to New York in 1977. He had to take a job working in the Museum of Modern Art and then working as a trader on Wall Street to earn a living whilst he tried to make it as an artist. His big break came in the 1980s when he was part of a movement to explore art in the media. Once he had earned a name for himself, he began to produce art using a factory setup. Famous artist Andy Warhol used a similar system. Koons employed 30 assistants to help him produce his art. Each one was given a specific job to specialise in. This is called “art fabrication” and means that an artist can produce larger pieces with skills that they might not have. all resources ©2023 Literacy Shed http://www.literacyshedplus.com By 2019, Koons was employing up to 120 assistants to help with his work. More recently, he has reduced that number and works from a smaller space. He uses a system of colouring and painting that is similar to painting-by-numbers so that all of his assistants’ work looks like it was done by one person. Koons cast Rabbit, his most expensive sculpture, in 1986. He took an inflatable rabbit toy and cast around it in stainless steel. It is highly polished and reflective. A 50-foot tall inflatable version was created in metallic fabric and flew during the 2007 Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade in New York. RETRIEVAL FOCUS 1. How much did Koons’ most expensive piece sell for, according to the text? 2. When did he make it? 3. Which artist used a similar method to produce their art as Koons does? 4. Where did Koons work whilst he tried to make it as an artist? 5. Where did he move in 1977? S V S V VIPERS QUESTIONS How is Koons’ method of producing art different to most artists? Which word describes something that you would easily recognise and might otherwise be boring? Why do some people think his work is crass or pointless? Find and copy a word that means “metal-like”. all resources ©2023 Literacy Shed http://www.literacyshedplus.com