Hailed by Peter Schjeldahl inThe New Yorkeras the most original, controversial, and expensive American artist of the past three and a half decades, Jeff Koons has come to reign as a master of the market, a wry puppeteer with a formidable aesthetic intelligence. His elaborate, exquisitely produced sculptures draw from a contemporary lexicon of consumerismoften featuring large-scale reproductions of toys, household items, or luxury goodswhile simultaneously holding up a mirror to the very culture from which they are extracted. These references to popular media are evidenced not merely in his choice of subject matter but also in his visual techniques: his sculptures frequently comprise smooth, mirrored surfaces, and his paintings employ bright and saturated colors.
