Jeff Koon NewExhibition Review

The Jeff Koons exhibition at London's Newport Street Gallery finishes on 16^th October 2016.  Myself and my partner in crime, the Quirky Gentleman, visited the exhibition on the opening week of the exhibition in May. I could feel it in my six pack that I was going to feel an extreme of emotions towards the exhibition, because I remember studying Jeff Koons at art school circa mid nineties. His themes of sexuality, banality, decadence and re-establishing the meaning of the ‘readymade’ object, always resonated with me.

As firstly it’s a reference of the work of Marcel Duchamp, and artists from the Dada art movement, with further references in his other works, to Surrealism and Pop art movements’, which I am truly happy to say have inspired my creative thinking also.

Then secondary there are always those psychological questions: Why shouldn’t our minds accept the re-establishment of an object’s function? Can we challenge the redistribution of what is deemed acceptable in society without it skewing our thoughts when viewing artwork?

Can our minds’ deal with the re-establishment of an objects function, then if we cannot, does it suggest we are not free-thinkers? Then if can accept these constructs then are we free-thinkers?

Finally making me conclude; the Duchamp art concept of ready made art is a perfect theory as all mass produced goods are designed for their beauty and functionality, with an possessional nature. As we all have an underlined consideration when we purchase them. We undoubtedly have an unorthodox mass produced love affair with objects. We are seduced and enticed every time by our practical or unpractical need for animate objects, we emotionally reassure ourselves of our aesthetical need of them our lives.

Jeff Koons is one of these contemporary artists’ who unapologically makes us question, the real usefulness of our treasured possessions, and how important are our past memories are truly. As we, are in a constantly changing world, full of altering perceptions of new meanings to our very possessions. Koons’ used this element in his use of materials and re-interpretation of precious and playful connected relationships, which objects have with each other and us as their owners.

 His exhibition at the Newport Street Gallery is collection of his works from the past 30 years from his career archive and the gallery owner and friend Damien Hirst’s own private collection. Within its stark and clinical surroundings the exhibition space, created the opportunity for the audience to focus on every Koons piece independently, as they entered the building, housed around the urban vibrancy of London’s Vauxhall, my childhood home.

We were welcomed by Koons’ hoover installations; “New Hoover Quik Broom, New Hoover Celebrity IV 1980 Two vacuum cleaners, acrylic, fluorescent lights”, his inviting car paintings and the gold textured weighted life vest; “Snorkel Vest.” These works were direct references to Duchamp’s ‘ready made’ object philosophy and the Pop art movement use of consumerable objects, which are essential to our lives. This one piece out of this first room, that psychological makes you question and re-create scenarios of what if, it was used? It was the gold weighed life vest.

       As a viewer it also makes us wonder of its beauty, as a preserved object when it painted in gold without its traditional function. With its new function, now one of pushing our boundaries of how useful it is at preserving lives now? Pushing these memories of how precious it presents in our world.

The following two rooms’ we walked into a grand specular, one art piece ‘biological sculpture’ that starts of Koons’ objects of desire from the physical and sexual world. This piece was ‘The Blue Balloon Monkey’ a piece of a combined meaning to me, named in Monkey but an perception of; were male and female bodies are combined of a magnificent scale.    Apart of his balloon series, a very surreal series focusing on the banality of object demanding our view to focus, acknowledge and ‘accept the history of an object’.    As you walk around the object you realise, you need a further perceptive with the help of the nearby staircase, you can have an aerial view of the balloon couple. Observing the steel material and its covering, is very erotic, reminiscent of a pair of PVC trousers an object of liberated side of life.

All of the balloon series are made of weighed steel just like the weighted life vest, but in this series. Which creates a remarkable thought, because of its construction, to our imagination. There is a juxtaposition to the real object we are viewing in-relation to the original object. Were our thoughts wonder to our memories of the full air balloon and its quality, with the present reality of it now, being a steel sculpture; a shiny heavy weighed object.

There was a further extended space a room with a continuation of the balloon couple. The original couple that inspired the piece, Koons’ himself and his form wife IIona Staller; the famous erotic film star now politician, in a series of embraces and sexual positions. Apart of the Made in Heaven series, an exploration of their love, eroticism and creation, its like a open book of their past desire and expression of love, you feel as if you are intruding but its as erotic display.    As a child from a divorced marriage there is a sadness, there within the images, thoughts of mum and dad, thoughts of creation and of what they once were. Now these images as a distance memory, like a photo album, I was relieved to leave that room.

The next room was a curated with a number of different series’; the preserved objects, the construction of the surreal, the real and also the observation of our everyday consumer advertisements. Again triggering our memories of these beloved images we possess like a family album. He also makes us realise we focus on all these objects is banality.   

The only objects within this second room, that drawn my curiosity and of a emotional significance; was one; "J.B Turner Train" a consuming shiny steel train, that housed steel whisky bottles, it was like you were in an Alice in Wonderland experience, as your mind struggle with the idea – you cannot retrieve these objects, because their banality and history was too precious, and as we have ignore them for so long here they are now.

Other objects in this room that fascinated me, were three beer advertisements of baseball players and their families. Aimed at the loyalty of the fans who drunk the beer and supported the basketball team. In the end as a viewer, all they present is family album or of memories, the advertisement now has become banal. 

Sixth and final room was a direct mix of sensory wonder; of childhood toys and memories of banal objects. Which we may have disguarded once we have grown old. It was so fascinating how frustrating it was for all the young children under the age of 10 who were there. As they wanted to play with each sculpture, as they saw them as possessions that they usual play with everyday. As child their memories are real of the present, but as adults those objects are of our past.    All the objects were fun memories with one, surreal natured aluminium inflatable “Lobster" which defied gravity until we remember Koons' game of challenging our minds. This object was another weighed balloon object of desire, still full of its original colours, but again its too heavy for us to play with it, as we have ignored it too long and now its preserved for us to remember its importance.

There was another weighed object that fantasied me and frustrated the little children too, a large "Elephant Plate" part of Damien Hirst personal art collection. It is as shiny like the balloon couple, but more innocent in its fragility. As like the other objects in this series, the softness of the original object is a fond memory.

The final piece, of the exhibition that make me happy, with childhood memories, because of its texture and of its colours, Koons’ immense multi-coloured Play Dough sculpture; "Play Doh Coupe Plate". Your mind reminisces of the feel of the dough and what is was like to play with it, and because of the height of the piece, you actually want to climb it and be part of it grande. Its surrealist theme created the thought within you, “Yes its real! Convincing that you could peel of the unreal levels of the metal ‘telling yourself its Play Dough, and yes I am going to mould and play with it.”

But surprising there was one more adventure for you, as you leave exhibition; the Pharmacy bar and restaurant. Tablet seats, and tablet inspired glass walls; we are definitely not in London any more but with Alice down the Looking glass. I would love to re-visit the restaurant in its refinery and in the exclusive corner of the building, housing the exhibition space. As the colour of pharmaceutical tablets and the danger of them, fantasied me without needing to taken. 

Words and Photos by Olga Chee-a-tow