Jeff Koons

A few months back, I bumped into a colleague at the Met’s Courbet exhibition. After a polite disagreement about the merits of the 19th-century French painter—he’s a fan, I’m not—we extolled the Met’s stellar run of historical exhibitions mounted under the guidance of since-retired director Philippe de Montebello: Ingres, tapestries, Velázquez, the Greek and Roman galleries, the list goes on.

When the discussion turned to the museum’s forays into contemporary art, the requisite eyeball-rolling ensued.  read more »

It's no secret that artist Jeff Koons likes his art big (see 2000's gigantic chia puppy). Well, how about when art imitates life? Mr. Koons got the big star treatment this morning with a New York Times review of his Macy's parade float and a Page Six item about the skirmish of recent sale of his sculpture, Heart. Neither, however, will hurt the reputation of Mr. Koons. Roberta Smith wrote of the large metallic bunny (a replica of the sculpture that made him famous): "Floating overhead yesterday, it was a jubilant reminder of the way contemporary artists dip in and out of mainstream life, effortlessly working high, low and in between." As for Mr. Koons' Heart, sources told Page Six that art collector Adam Lindemann flipped it for $23 million after convincing dealer Larry Gagosian to sell it to him for $4 million. The buyer? Mr. Gagosian. Oops!

Awards were given out at the Americans for the Arts 2007 National Arts Awards last night, and speeches were made. Sitting down for dinner in Cipriani 42nd Street's massive main hall, guests dressed in black-tie attire-Jeff Koons among them-were surrounded by billboard-sized cloth screens covered with images of Andy Warhol's iconic poppies. Warhol was the official featured artist of the evening.

Honorees included Wallis Annenberg, Ellsworth Kelly, Anna Deavere Smith, and, as a sort-of wrinkle-reducer, the musician John Legend.

Also on hand were Ronald Lauder, Jessye Norman, C. Terry Lewis, Mayor David Dinkins and Jeffrey Sachs. Yoko Ono was jet-lagged, but she made it, too.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg arrived minutes before he was to go on stage, while people were picking at their first course.  read more »

• Last night, the Upper East Side's resident badboy Jeff Koons tenderly defended Lord Norman Foster's plans for a shiny new Madison Ave. skyscraper. "I think we have an important chance here," said Mr. Koons, "to add to our legacy as New Yorkers with this very, very special building." Then the community board promptly voted against it. (NYT)
• Mayor Giuliani once wished it would be "blown up," and Bloomberg called it the "notorious Kremlin" (and "rinkydink candy store"). But 110 Livingston is headed for 335,000 square feet of bamboo-floored glory. (Sun)
• Gertel's, the Lower East Side's "last kosher bakery," is moving away from its 92-year home on Hester Street. The condo that's taking its place will not be serving challah. (NewYorkology, via Gothamist)
• Williamsburg just got 3% hipper, 18% uglier, and 39% more annoying. And it's all thanks to something called Kiska. (Curbed)
• Peter Marino's tower of "interlocking apartments" on Central Park has received a big award--even though the prize is handed out in Boston, and even though the tower hasn't been built yet. Mr. Marino is a lucky man: his plot on 57th Street doesn't even have height restrictions. (Interior Design)
• Also: those late-night real estate infomercials are probably not a good idea. (Sun)
- Max Abelson
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