Hello Koons, Goodbye Whitney
Those of you who follow the arts scene in NYC may know that the Whitney Museum of American Art is moving from its longtime home on Madison and 75th Street on the Upper East Side to a new home, in a new building by the High Line in the Meatpacking District.
I have seen many amazing exhibitions over the years there, including two that I highlighted on this blog back in 2007 from Kara Walker and Rudolf Stingel. I recently visited the uptown Whitney for what is likely to be the last time to see the final exhibition in the space: Jeff Koons. The Museum has given over 4 full floors to his work, making it the biggest show for a single artist in the Museum's history.
Koons is quite the controversial artist on so many levels. Love him or hate him...he certainly inspires reaction and knows how to get publicity. And that is exactly what many (although obviously not all) artists crave. He holds the world record for a living artist at auction.
For those of you who are not in New York and for those of you who might be curious, I wanted to share some pictures from the exhibition. And yes this was one of the few museum shows that allowed picture taking. Publicity after all!
The Museum was packed and everybody was taking pictures.
This Balloon Dog is much like the Orange one that cost a record $58.4 million at auction.
Like much of his work, the highly reflective surface of Balloon Dog calls out for selfies. I have to imagine that hundreds of thousands will be taken by the end of the exhibition. And I somehow think that there is some deeper meaning to the connection between Koons and ready-made selfies.
Here Balloon Dog is reflected in another reflective piece hung on the wall.
It took Koons 20 years to complete Play-Doh, a commissioned piece.
I have to say that it captured the product quite well. I kind of wanted to grab a piece and use it to copy a comic strip from the newspaper like I did as a kid. I guess in some ways, Play-doh was the first product to create image transfers.
I had mostly been familiar with his work that had pristine, smooth surfaces. But there were several pieces that were quite ornate.
This one as well in stainless steel.
Selfie.
Not quite sure what this guy was thinking...
Selfie. Nobody could resist taking them.
This guy was carrying a Gazing Ball, one of a series of sculptures that premiered in 2013.
Some of the work was not reflective.
But it all carried a certain fascination for me.
There were many more of the nearly 150 works that I did not shoot, some of which were NSFW. But I could't miss taking the next shot, which I found by the building next to the Whitney that is undergoing massive renovation.
Jasper's John
Curious to hear what you all think of the artist and his work. Care to share?
I have seen many amazing exhibitions over the years there, including two that I highlighted on this blog back in 2007 from Kara Walker and Rudolf Stingel. I recently visited the uptown Whitney for what is likely to be the last time to see the final exhibition in the space: Jeff Koons. The Museum has given over 4 full floors to his work, making it the biggest show for a single artist in the Museum's history.
Koons is quite the controversial artist on so many levels. Love him or hate him...he certainly inspires reaction and knows how to get publicity. And that is exactly what many (although obviously not all) artists crave. He holds the world record for a living artist at auction.
For those of you who are not in New York and for those of you who might be curious, I wanted to share some pictures from the exhibition. And yes this was one of the few museum shows that allowed picture taking. Publicity after all!
The Museum was packed and everybody was taking pictures.
This Balloon Dog is much like the Orange one that cost a record $58.4 million at auction.
Like much of his work, the highly reflective surface of Balloon Dog calls out for selfies. I have to imagine that hundreds of thousands will be taken by the end of the exhibition. And I somehow think that there is some deeper meaning to the connection between Koons and ready-made selfies.
Here Balloon Dog is reflected in another reflective piece hung on the wall.
It took Koons 20 years to complete Play-Doh, a commissioned piece.
I have to say that it captured the product quite well. I kind of wanted to grab a piece and use it to copy a comic strip from the newspaper like I did as a kid. I guess in some ways, Play-doh was the first product to create image transfers.
I had mostly been familiar with his work that had pristine, smooth surfaces. But there were several pieces that were quite ornate.
This one as well in stainless steel.
Selfie.
Not quite sure what this guy was thinking...
Selfie. Nobody could resist taking them.
This guy was carrying a Gazing Ball, one of a series of sculptures that premiered in 2013.
Some of the work was not reflective.
But it all carried a certain fascination for me.There were many more of the nearly 150 works that I did not shoot, some of which were NSFW. But I could't miss taking the next shot, which I found by the building next to the Whitney that is undergoing massive renovation.
Jasper's JohnCurious to hear what you all think of the artist and his work. Care to share?
No comments have been added yet.
