Jeff Koons is the most succesfull american artist working today, known for highlighting banal objects—such as balloon animals produced in stainless steel with mirror finish surfaces, or oversize sculptures made from flowers. He is widely regarded as one of the most important, influential, popular, and controversial artists of the postwar era.
Throughout his career, he has pioneered new approaches to the ready-made, tested the boundaries between advanced art and mass culture, challenged the limits of industrial fabrication, and transformed the relationship of artists to the cult of celebrity and the global market. Yet despite these achievements, Koons has never been the subject of a retrospective surveying the full scope of his career.
Recently we discovered a new artsy channel on Youtube, Reserve Channel, with a new take on the talk show format hosted by the award winning producer, artist, designer, and businessman Pharrell Williams. Each episode presents two special guests at different career stages to discuss their work, motivations, inspirations, and philosophies.
Below, you can listen to Jeff Koons and Pharrell Williams talk about using art to start a dialogue of acceptance, why Koons finds inspiration in everyday objects, and the messy custody battle that lead to the destruction of “Made in Heaven”.
Video © Reserve Channel
All Images © Jeff Koons
via Jeff Koons
