Koons was born in York, Pennsylvania, to Henry Koons and Nancy Loomis. His father was a furniture dealer and interior decorator. His mother was a seamstress. When he was nine … See more

Since a 1980 window installation at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York, Koons's work has been widely exhibited internationally in solo and group exhibitions. In 1986, he appeared in a group show with Peter Halley, Ashley Bickerton See more

Koons is widely collected in America and Europe, where some collectors acquire his work in depth. Eli Broad has 24 pieces, and Dakis Joannou owns some 38 works from all stages of the … See more

Koons has received polarized reactions to his work. Critic Amy Dempsey described his Balloon Dog as "an awesome presence ... a … See more

Following his graduation from the Art Institute in Chicago in 1976, Koons made his way to New York City. There, he moved away from creating representations of his personal … See more

Koons received the BZ Cultural Award from a local Berlin newspaper in 2000 and the Skowhegan Medal for Sculpture in 2001. He was named a Chevalier of the French Legion of Honor in 2002 and then promoted to Officier in 2007. He received an honoroary … See more

Among curators and art collectors and others in the art world, Koons's work is labeled as Neo-pop or Post-Pop as part of a 1980s movement in reaction to the pared-down art of Minimalism and Conceptualism in the previous decade. Koons resists such … See more