Gazing Ball Paintings

Published as an accompaniment to the 2015 exhibition at Gagosian Gallery in New York, this new book depicts Jeff Koons’ new Gazing Ball Paintings and the resulting dialogue he creates with artists of the past, from Titian to El Greco, Courbet to Manet.

Dealing with the power of artistic gesture, each work, presented here in stunning color, features a blue glass gazing ball that sits on a painted aluminum shelf attached to the front of the painting that reflects both the painting and the viewer. This metaphysical occurrence connects the viewer to a family of cultural history in real time. Through the simple act of placing a gazing ball in front of the images, painting and sculpture are reunited for maximum sensory perception. New essays by Joachim Pissarro and Donatien Grau complete this striking new book.