Standing 14 feet tall and weighing 6,600 pounds, Jeff Koons’ playful and monumental sculpture Balloon Rabbit (Red), 2005-2010 is considered one of the most iconic works of contemporary art. Made from mirror-polished stainless steel with transparent color coating, the reflective surface allows the viewer to become an essential part of the artwork. Koons says, “In a reflective surface, your existence is being affirmed. When you move, your abstracted reflection changes. The experience is dependent upon you; it lets you know that art is happening inside of you.” In 2019, his 3-foot-tall stainless- steel Rabbit (1986) was purchased for $91.1 million at Christie’s, setting a record for the most expensive work ever sold at auction by a living artist.
Keith Haring’s Untitled (Self Portrait) 1989, at nearly twelve feet high, is a celebration of life and humanity. Created just a year before Haring passed away due to AIDS-related complications, Untitled (Self Portrait) presents a figure mid-dance, with the boldness of an artist living joyfully in the face of death. The work stands tall on St Marks Place, the neighborhood where Haring created some of his most important work and is a fitting tribute to his life and ongoing spirit.