When I made balloon dog I wanted to make a piece that reflected the joy of celebrating a birthday or a party” -Jeff Koons
He most definitely had a party, as Christies auction house sold the pop-art icons most recognized piece in orange for a whopping $58.4 million. YES FIFTEH EIGHT!!! According to the reports this is the highest sum paid for a piece of artwork by a living artist. The sale does have a philanthropic angle thoughas Balloon Dog (Orange) is part of the Brant Collection and proceeds from the sale will be used to help fund future activities of The Brant Foundation Art Study Center in Greenwich, CT.
If you don’t know who Peter Brant is, you better get to researching. He’s probably more influential especially in contemporary art then even say Eli Broad or Larry Gagosian.
Art does not happen inside objects it happen inside the viewers, objects are just transponders and balloon dog is an excellent transponder.
Balloon Dog (Orange) was one of the first of the Balloon Dogs to be fabricated, and was acquired by Greenwich collector Peter Brant in the late 1990s. As well as owning the foremost collection of works by Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat in private hands, Brant’s focus as a pioneering collector and passion for artists such as Jeff Koons, Christopher Wool, Richard Prince, Cindy Sherman, Julian Schnabel, John Currin and Elizabeth Peyton has had a major impact on their markets and amongst collectors inspired by his vision.
