Jeff Koons at the Galerie Jérôme de Noirmont
In 1997 the Galerie Jérôme de Noirmont organised Jeff Koons’ first solo show in France, with a selection of works offering the French public an overview of his career, from the first Inflatables made in 1979 up to the 1992 Puppy, a photograph representing the huge, flower-covered sculpture that Koons created for that year’s Documenta in Kassel. In 2008 the exhibition ‘Jeff Koons Versailles’ set up an original new dialogue between contemporary and classical art at the heart of the royal apartments in the Château of Versailles. His third solo show in France is currently on view; Jeff Koons presents new sculptures from his Popeye series. The image of Popeye, an iconic American cartoon figure created in 1929, was a natural choice for Koons as a symbol of self-acceptance, not only in terms of this character’s optimistic and self-accepting personality (“I am what I am”), but also because of his obvious link to Pop Art and, more allusively, to Surrealism, two movements based on an acceptance of the world around us. The multifaceted Popeye character is an archetype used by Koons from the modern Western imagination to illustrate his discourse on the nature and the role of art in today’s world.
Until 20 Nov. Mon-Sat 11am-7pm
Galerie Jérôme de Noirmont, 36-38 ave Matignon, 8th. 01.42.89.89.00. www.denoirmont.com
Jeff Koons – Moustache, (Popeye series) 2003;
exhibition view.