Bouquet of Tulips

Bouquet of Tulips
Artist	Jeff Koons
Year	2019
Medium	Bronze, aluminum, stainless steel [1]
Dimensions	11 m(36 ft)
Weight	34-ton (sculpture) and 27-ton base
Location	Paris
Coordinates	48°51′57″N2°18′57″E / 48.8657°N 2.3159°E / 48.8657; 2.3159

Bouquet of Tulips is a metal sculpture by American artist Jeff Koons, ^{[2] [3]} which is located outside the Petit Palais in Paris, France. It is one of Koons's largest sculptures, ^[4] and his first commemorative work. ^[5] The sculpture was first announced in 2016 and unveiled in October 2019. ^[6]

Artwork

The 11 m (36 ft) tall sculpture of a hand clutching stylized flowers, modeled on the Statue of Liberty and made of polychromed bronze, aluminum, and stainless steel, ^[7] honors the victims of the November 2015 attacks. ^[8] The bouquet features 11 flowers and not a dozen, with the missing 12th meant to represent the victims. ^[9]

In 2019, Koons announced that 80% of the proceeds from selling the copyright of the artwork for commercial products depicting the sculpture will go to the victims' families. The remaining 20% will be dedicated to its maintenance. ^[10]

History

Koons announced the gift of a sculpture to the people of Paris in November 2016, after Jane D. Hartley, the United States ambassador to France at the time, had asked him to create a tribute to the victims of the terrorist attacks in France in 2015 and 2016. ^[11] Hartley had approached Koons after discussing the idea at a dinner in Paris in January 2016 with Jerry Speyer, then chairman of the board of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City and a collector of the artist's work. ^[12]

The sculpture was made in Germany. ^[13] The costs for production and installation — amounting to 3.5 million euros — was raised from private donations by a nonprofit foundation, Fonds Pour Paris, and its counterpart in the United States, the Paris Foundation. ^[14] Among the donors to the project are Bernard Arnault, Leon and Debra Black, Kenneth C. Griffin, Leonard Lauder, and Ralph Schlosstein. ^[15] Koons later added $1 million of his own money, after delays led to an increase in production costs. ^[16]

The city proposed several sites to Koons, and he chose the one on the plaza in front of the Palais de Tokyo for its symbolic value; also, the plaza is not restricted by historic preservation provisions. ^[17] Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo subsequently announced that the sculpture was to be installed in 2017 on the plaza in front of the Palais de Tokyo. ^[18] However, the pavement turned out to be not strong enough to support the 34-ton sculpture and its 27-ton base. Also, there was criticism that the site had no connection with the attacks. ^[19] In January 2018, 23 French artists, politicians and cultural figures – including the artist Christian Boltanski and a former culture minister, Frédéric Mitterrand ^[20]  – asked for the plan to be abandoned, arguing in a letter to the newspaper Libération that the gift "was opportunistic and cynical". A second open letter, published by Le Monde and signed by various other arts professionals, including Palais de Tokyo cofounder Jérôme Sans and artist Loris Gréaud, followed and was intended as a defense of Koons's sculpture. ^{[21] [22]} The plan to place the sculpture in front of the Palais de Tokyo was dropped by Culture Minister Françoise Nyssen in May 2018. ^[23]

The government's alternative proposal to install the monument in Parc de la Villette was later rejected by city planners. ^[24] Other venues that were under consideration included the Place des États-Unis. ^[25] The venue finally chosen is between Place de la Concorde and the Petit Palais, near the Embassy of the United States. ^{[26] [27]}

References

1. "Controversial Jeff Koons Tulip Sculpture Inaugurated in Paris". www.artforum.com. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
2. "Critics of Jeff Koons' floral tribute to Paris victims raise a stink". The Guardian . 22 January 2018. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
3. Codrea-Rado, Anna (27 January 2018). "Jeff Koons Sculpture in Honor of Paris Terror Victims Draws Outrage". The New York Times . Retrieved 27 January 2018.
4. Rachel Donadio (November 21, 2016), Jeff Koons Is Giving Sculpture to Paris to Remember Terror Victims New York Times .
5. Anna Codrea-Rado (January 22, 2018), Jeff Koons Sculpture in Honor of Paris Terror Victims Draws Outrage New York Times .
6. "Koons unveils giant 'Bouquet of Tulips' tribute to victims of 2015 Paris attacks". Reuters. 4 October 2019. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
7. Elian Peltier (October 4, 2019), Jeff Koons Inaugurates His Tulip Sculpture in Paris. Finally. New York Times .
8. Harris, Gareth (November 22, 2016). "Jeff Koons unveils plans for a memorial to the victims of the Paris terror attacks". The Art Newspaper . Retrieved June 20, 2017.
9. Elian Peltier (October 12, 2018), Jeff Koons's Tulips Find a Home: A Central Garden in the City of Light New York Times .
10. Matthieu Protard (October 4, 2019), Koons unveils giant 'Bouquet of Tulips' tribute to victims of 2015 Paris attacks Reuters .
11. Elian Peltier (October 4, 2019), Jeff Koons Inaugurates His Tulip Sculpture in Paris. Finally. New York Times .
12. Rachel Donadio (November 21, 2016), Jeff Koons Is Giving Sculpture to Paris to Remember Terror Victims New York Times .
13. Anna Codrea-Rado (January 22, 2018), Jeff Koons Sculpture in Honor of Paris Terror Victims Draws Outrage New York Times .
14. Rachel Donadio (November 21, 2016), Jeff Koons Is Giving Sculpture to Paris to Remember Terror Victims New York Times .
15. Naomi Rea (October 4, 2019), Jeff Koons Has Finally Unveiled His Controversial Gift to Paris, and the French Public Is Not Entirely Thrilled Artnet .
16. Elian Peltier (October 4, 2019), Jeff Koons Inaugurates His Tulip Sculpture in Paris. Finally. New York Times .
17. Rachel Donadio (June 26, 2017), How Jeff Koons's gift to Paris is riddled with problems The Independent .
18. Henry Samuel (October 12, 2018), Paris finally finds a home for Jeff Koons' giant tulips after purist claims they would lower the tone The Daily Telegraph .
19. Monique El-Faizy (August 28, 2019), What's new on the Paris cultural scene for 'la rentrée' New York Times .
20. Elian Peltier (October 12, 2018), Jeff Koons's Tulips Find a Home: A Central Garden in the City of Light New York Times .
21. Alex Greenberger (February 23, 2018), French Arts Professionals Sign Op-Ed in Support of Jeff Koons's Paris Memorial to Victims of Terrorist Attacks ARTnews .
22. Annie Armstrong (October 12, 2018), Paris's Deputy Mayor: Jeff Koons's Controversial 'Bouquet of Tulips' Sculpture to Be Installed Near Petit Palais ARTnews .
23. Elian Peltier (October 4, 2019), Jeff Koons Inaugurates His Tulip Sculpture in Paris. Finally. New York Times .
24. Naomi Rea (October 11, 2018), New Life for Jeff Koons's Tulips? The Artist Will Consider Alternative Sites in Paris for His Divisive Sculpture Artnet .
25. Naomi Rea (October 11, 2018), New Life for Jeff Koons's Tulips? The Artist Will Consider Alternative Sites in Paris for His Divisive Sculpture Artnet .
26. Catherine Gaschka and Oleg Cetinic (October 4, 2019), Jeff Koons' 'Bouquet of Tulips' honours victims of Paris terror attacks The Guardian .
27. Matthieu Protard (October 4, 2019), Koons unveils giant 'Bouquet of Tulips' tribute to victims of 2015 Paris attacks Reuters .

Further reading

• Wong, Jacky (June 30, 2016). "Wynn Macau Bets Large on Bouquet of Tulips". WSJ. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
• Stutton, Benjamin (November 22, 2016). "Jeff Koons Gifts a Big Bouquet of Ugly to the French". Hyperallergic. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
• Donadio, Rachel (June 20, 2017). "Jeff Koons Sent Paris Flowers. Can It Find the Right Vase?". The New York Times . ISSN   0362-4331.
• Donadio, Rachel (November 21, 2016). "Jeff Koons Is Giving Sculpture to Paris to Remember Terror Victims". The New York Times . ISSN   0362-4331.