Jeff Koons

In the summer of 1961, Lichtenstein embarked on a series of iconic images of women, taken directly from newspaper clippings and the romance comic books prevalent in post-war America. The anonymity of mass-produced, cheap comics helped him capture specific impressions of real life, while maintaining the necessary degree of aesthetic distance afforded by what he understood to be the "high restrictive quality of art". The "Girl" paintings, together with the war images (or "Boy" paintings), established him as the major protagonist of the American Pop Art movement. His amalgamation of text and image, high and low culture, and his strategy to involve appropriated images continues to be a rich source of inspiration for subsequent generations of artists, from Richard Prince, Jeff Koons, and Raymond Pettibon to John Currin and Elizabeth Peyton.

A conversation between Jeff Koons and Dorothy Lichtenstein opens the catalogue. The publication also brings together and exceptional collection of over 130 images of paintings, drawings, sources, and documentary photographs. Included in these images are 22 full-colored plates of the "Girl" paintings, 18 of which are featured in the exhibition. The catalogue closes with a select chronology of Roy Lichtenstein's life, pinpointing important exhibitions and occasions.

An artist's book response to the "Girl" paintings created by Richard Prince is also included as an insert.… (mer)

Jeff Koons is a very cool artist. This book is written as in interview between Jeff Koons Norman Rosenthal. It offers a very personal view, from the artist himself, on Koons' art. It covers the artist's past, career as a developing artist, and major exhibitions. Plus all with clear prints and pictures of his art. My personal favorite part was when Jeff Koons was reminiscing about meeting Salvador Dali, but you'll have to read it to learn about that.

Sometimes the interviewer, Norman Rosenthal, can be slightly irritating, and Koons has to correct him because Koons wasn't liking the conclusion he was coming too. But the book still remains true to what Koons wants the reader/viewer to feel when it comes to his work.

I purchased this book at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York but I've seen it for sale at Barnes and Noble. Its worth a read for those wishing to learn more about Jeff Koons and his art.… (mer)