While some Artists have Book and some Artists have 'Books," the new publication by Taschen is most definitely the later. Koons is a 598-page ode of Jeff Koons work. The book also in it's entirety embellishes the very spirit of Jeff Koons with it's excess as if it was almost not just a book but his latest piece of work. In perfect style the book perfectly recreates Jeff’s justifiable ego by printing each article in the book in English, German and French. As if to say I am so worldwide and I have so much work that we have plenty of room next to all my work to publish each article three times without any complaints. While a bit frustrating at times they are entirely correct. Without publishing each article in each language the book would largely be a photomontage but the trilingual publishing does send the reader a message and serve as an statement to Jeff Koons' international greatness.

Koons opens it's 598-page journey with a fitting article by Ingrid Sichy, which serves as a biographical introduction for the book. It’s a wonderful piece written after Koons installed the first new work at the World trade Center after 9/11. The article traces back his routes as a young boy and takes us on a quick run through several important periods in his life as a child, while working at MOMA through a National Endowment for the Arts internship and further through the 80's. The article goes on to touch on the importance of Koons work and his politics but it's not until you have finished seeing the complete evolution of his work from 1979 to the present day can you truly understand what Koons has accomplished.

The book takes us on a visual journey in which even a person who doesn’t appreciate art would become emotional after experiencing. The book takes us through his work starting with his experiments with inflatables, which at the time seems such an incredible forward move into Pop Art. One thing Koons has been able to do throughout his career is to start a new focus or tangent in his work, cultivate it and continue to integrate it. This is by far most evidenced by his work with inflatables from his early days, which are still so prevalent in his work today. The book then goes through his years working with household appliances, his work in several ad campaigns, and then to his foray into scientific curiosity with his Equilibrium period. Thought these 1st sections you can see Koons interest in the visual aesthetic start to evolve.

The book continues as Koons starts to discover the luxury market and continues to progress with his sculpting. The development of his work can be accredited to two main sources, which are the increase in his resources and his confidence. The journey allows us to see his initial experiments using himself as a subject all the way to his erotic photography featuring him and his then porn star wife. During this period Koons work becomes more sexual and more politically charged. His genius lies in his ability take his raw sexuality and harness it in many ways. He is able to consistently poke fun at the viewers in such an exhilarating egotistical way one would wonder what other career could be so joyful and spiritual to ones ego.

In 30 years one notices that Jeff Koons hasn't changed he has only emerged and developed. He still incorporated his concepts from 30 years ago into his work today. His work is never given the credit I think he deserves as a look through this book will show you that his concepts are easily the inspiration for a multitude of today's artists and concepts. Look no further than the obvious influence in artists like David LaChapelle and toy creator Kid Robot who both borrow heavily from Koons.

I highly suggest anyone interested in culture to any degree at least spend an hour navigating this 598-page tomb of cultural evolution of one of the truly great artists of our time. This book is a must have and an incredible tell tale journey through the development of not just one artist but the art world as a whole.