Episode #098: Artist Jeff Koons discusses themes of money, desire, perfection, and moral responsibility. Filmed in his busy New York studio and surrounded by numerous assistants at work on paintings and sculptures, Koons describes how the practicalities of running a business are often in service to creative ends.

Jeff Koons plucks images and objects from popular culture, framing questions about taste and pleasure. His contextual sleight-of-hand, which transforms banal items into sumptuous icons, takes on a psychological dimension through dramatic shifts in scale, spectacularly engineered surfaces, and subliminal allegories of animals, humans, and anthropomorphized objects. The subject of art history is a constant undercurrent, whether Koons elevates kitsch to the level of Classical art, produces photos in the manner of Baroque paintings, or develops public works that borrow techniques and elements of seventeenth-century French garden design. Organizing his own studio production in a manner that rivals a Renaissance workshop, Koons makes computer-assisted, handcrafted works that communicate through their meticulous attention to detail.

Learn more about Jeff Koons: http://www.art21.org/artists/jeff-koons

VIDEO | Producer: Wesley Miller & Nick Ravich. Interview: Susan Sollins. Camera: Brian Hwang, Clair Popkin & Joel Shapiro. Sound: Mark Mandler. Editor: Paulo Padilha. Artwork Courtesy: Jeff Koons.

Thanks to the following volunteers for providing subtitles:

ENGLISH
Anna Mangot
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/82669/

Mary Keramida
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/42071/

FRENCH
Frenchie4ever
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/90392/

GERMAN
Barbara Mauchle
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/55013/

GREEK
Mary Keramida
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/42071/

HEBREW
zeeva livshitz
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/57041/

INDONESIAN
Dwi Rianto
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/269/

ITALIAN
Giulia Di Pietro
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/89317/

JAPANESE
Erika Fujishiro
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/91602/

SPANISH
Carolina Tamara
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/74560/

Patricia Cedrés
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/55048/

TURKISH
adeptgunes
http://www.amara.org/en/profiles/profile/77137/

Become a volunteer translator by joining the Art21 Translation Project team:
http://www.amara.org/en/teams/art21/