From Earth to the moon: Jeff Koons sends 125 sculptures to space
18 February 2024 08:53
For many, sending 125 sculptures to the Moon might seem an incredibly ambitious and unreachable fantasy. But the truth is far from that. Jeff Koons' "Jeff Koons: Moon Phases Project" is not a movie plot but a reality. On the 15th of February this year, a Falcon 9 rocket set off for the moon, carrying works of art. What is this project all about, you wonder?
Artistic whim or genuine lunar art?
The dream of sending sculptures to the Moon began in 2022 when Jeff Koons announced his artistic endeavour to conquer space. Known as a legend in art, he's even considered the most expensive living artist. This isn’t surprising, considering that in 2019, his sculpture "Rabbit" sold for an astounding 91 million dollars! With such incredible fame, perhaps a lunar expedition was the next logical step for the artist.
The Falcon 9 rocket from SpaceX carried 125 miniature sculptures, each no more than an inch in diameter. The number 125 wasn't randomly chosen - it corresponds to all the phases of the Moon. Each piece of minimalist art is a tribute to characters from our history. Cleopatra, Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo and Mozart are among the illustrious figures honoured by Koonos through his artwork.
Will the sculptures remain on the Moon indefinitely?
The idea came to fruition in collaboration with Chantelle Baier, the director of the company 4SPACE. The miniature size of the sculptures was deliberately chosen, with the intention of the artworks staying on the Moon indefinitely. But fear not; replicas of these lunar sculptures, slightly larger than the originals, will also be available for those of us on Earth. However, the most significant cause for excitement is the rocket itself.
Jeff Koons posted a video of the launch of the Falcon 9 rocket and the lunar cruiser Nova C on his Instagram account, capturing the moment they departed on the 15th of February. Known as the IM-1 Intuitive Machines mission, the journey, set to last eight days, aims for the rocket to land on the south pole of the Moon, leave the sculptures and return to Earth. Here's a glimpse of what the rocket launch, with its artistic payload, looked like:
