About this artwork
Koons created this billboard poster for the Whitney Museum. It is part of the series ‘Made in Heaven’ in which Koons made works with the Italian porn-star Ilona Staller, also known as La Cicciolina, who would later become his wife. These provocative works show the naked couple in explicit poses and reference paintings by artists, such as Edouard Manet, to examine the place of sexuality in visual culture. Koons employed Ilona’s regular photographer and backdrops, to create the distinctive aesthetic associated with 'glamour' imagery. Blurring the boundaries between fine art and pornography, Koons challenged the conventions of artistic taste, encouraging his audience to make their own decisions about what is acceptable.
Updated before 2020
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artist:Jeff Koons (born 1955) American
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title:Made in Heaven
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date created:1989
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materials:Lithograph on paper on canvas
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measurements:314.50 x 691.00 X 0.55 cm
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object type:
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credit line:ARTIST ROOMS National Galleries of Scotland and Tate. Acquired jointly through The d'Offay Donation with assistance from the National Heritage Memorial Fund and Art Fund, 2008
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accession number:AR00080
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gallery:
Jeff Koons
Jeff Koons
Koons was born in Pennsylvania. Before becoming an artist he worked as a successful commodities broker on Wall Street. In Koons's early work he displayed everyday items such as vacuum cleaners and basketballs in glass cases, making them both aesthetic objects and social icons. In so doing, the...