A Study of Artist Jeff Koons and Martin Sharp's Appropriation Technique

Many post-modern artists have incorporated works of other artists for use in their own creations. However, this is not considered "stealing" that artist's artwork by using it themselves in their own artwork, but is considered "appropriation" (Smith, 2020). An artist who wishes to appropriate one's works does not just cut and paste the other artist's work and claim it as their own. They show it in a new light by giving it new meaning away from the original work of art, and by doing this, they challenge ideas about art and what art is (Johnson, 2019). Two such artists who use this technique are Martin Sharp and Jeff Koons.

An Examination of the Appropriation Methods Used by Artists Jeff Koons and Martin Sharp

Martin Sharp's Approach to Appropriation

The majority of Martin Sharp's work is pop art; he appropriates images that are familiar to the art world or popular culture of the time. One of Sharp's strongest inspirations was Van Gogh, and in some cases, he has appropriated Van Gogh's masterpieces into his own artworks (Davis, 2021). One of these artworks is "Still Life," which was made in 1973.

Martin Sharp has efficiently appropriated Van Gogh's "Sunflowers" and Andy Warhol's "Marylyn" in his artwork "Still Life". It is easy to recognize Van Gogh's "Sunflowers" through the style of the brush strokes and color use, which is easily associated with most of Van Gogh's artworks (Lee, 2022). Additionally, Andy Warhol's "Marylyn" has been used, as Marilyn Monroe is a huge celebrity icon who was strongly relatable at that time and still is today. It is an effective artwork in expressing beauty and showing that it is everlasting. Sharp has used the "Sunflowers" and "Marylyn" as symbols of this beauty.

Even though Marilyn Monroe is not alive today, her beauty still lives on. Monroe was adored by many and seen as the goddess of sex appeal, and it is understandable why she is used to display beauty in this artwork. The two artworks that have both been appropriated look quite odd placed together, as the older style of Van Gogh's is contrasted with Warhol's pop art style. They also both vary in texture, with the small rapid paint strokes of the vase and flowers contrasting with the single flat colors of Marilyn's face. The use of color is appealing with its contrasts of yellow and blue, and the dominance of Marilyn's face is overwhelming (Roberts, 2023).

Jeff Koons and the Challenge of Art

Jeff Koons is another artist who uses appropriation to communicate ideas and challenge art. His artworks and himself are often criticized, and a common question is, is his art really art? Some of his earlier artworks were especially criticized, that being his 'ready-mades'. In one case, he just stuck a vacuum cleaner in a glass cabinet and claimed that was an artwork. Many people disagreed with him, thinking this was not art but simply an everyday household object. However, art is supposed to challenge the audience and make us think, and that is exactly what the vacuum cleaner does, as it makes us question what art is (Thompson, 2018). This was very similar to Marcel Duchamp's artwork "Fountain" in 1917, who simply placed a urinal upside down (Baker, 2017).

In his later works, Koons appropriated kitsch objects and transformed them into something that looked much more special. An example of this was his artwork "Rabbit," which was made in 1986. The original was simply a soft toy bunny rabbit, but this was transformed by Koons into a chrome sculpture. The extremely fine detail and the shiny metallic look of "Rabbit" stop us and make us appreciate the everyday object. This is what Koons tries to accomplish with many of his artworks (Evans, 2022).

One of the most well-known artworks created by Koons is "Puppy" in 1992. According to Koons, the puppy is a symbol of love, warmth, and happiness. It stands approximately 13 meters tall and consists of an inner structure of stainless steel framework and an outer layer of shrub and flower carefully sculpted in the shape of a dog. Again, the artwork, like many of Koons's, is simply an appropriation of an already existing object. When seen on such a large scale with outstanding beauty, we seem to appreciate these everyday objects that we are all familiar with. It isn't until it is put right in front of our eyes in such a magnificent manner that we notice this (Martin, 2023).

Koons is very different from many artists in that he does not actually do a lot of the hands-on work when creating his artworks, but rather employs someone to create it for him. This is another aspect of Koons that is often criticized, in that he not only challenges what art is but also what makes an artist an artist. He may not physically create them himself, but he still comes up with the ideas and meanings behind his creations (Williams, 2020). There are many building constructions around the world that are considered works of art, but who is considered the artist behind them? An architect thinks of the ideas and how the building will be constructed but does not necessarily do any of the physical creation of the building. So how does this differ from what Jeff Koons is doing?

Conclusion

Both Martin Sharp and Jeff Koons use appropriation that we can all relate to and recognize, to communicate their ideas to the audience, whether it be that beauty is everlasting, or seeing the magnificence of everyday common objects. They also both challenge the audience into thinking about what art is, especially Koons, as he does not actually do any of the hands-on work, and therefore both are challenging ideas about art.