The “balloon dog” sculpture, pictured, shortly after it shattered.

Cédric Boero

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Cédric Boero

The “balloon dog” sculpture, pictured, shortly after it shattered.

Cédric Boero

Welcome to a brand new NPR collection the place we highlight the folks and issues making headlines — and the tales behind them.

If we’re being sincere, the primary character on this story is the lady who ran into the pedestal holding the Jeff Koons “balloon dog” sculpture, sending it to its death on the ground at a Miami artwork honest final week.

But contemplating that was most likely probably the most humiliating second of her life, we’ll let her keep nameless. And as a substitute flip to the person who’s attempting to choose up the items. Literally.

This is among the (remaining) variations of the balloon canine. The one which broke was a lot smaller.

Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Qatar Museums

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Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Qatar Museums

Who is he? Artist and collector Stephen Gamson was stating the porcelain balloon canine to his pal when the entire thing went down.

• “Just as I [was doing] that, the piece fell over and it shattered into a thousand pieces,” he advised NPR.
• The sculpture, valued at $42,000, was on show on the sales space of Bel-Air Fine Art at an unique preview occasion for Art Wynwood, a recent artwork honest. And as the group started to assemble across the recent shards, Gamson began filming. 
• On his Instagram put up, you’ll be able to hear the thought forming in actual time.
• “If you want to sell the tail…” he could be heard saying as a gallery worker tries to comb the mess right into a dustpan.

What’s the large deal? While the lady who ran into the pedestal might be doing her greatest to repress the reminiscence, Gamson is loving the drama. He thinks the piece is effectively price salvaging in its present state.

• “I find value in it even when it’s broken,” Gamson told the Miami Herald. “To me, it’s the story. It makes the art even more interesting.”
• Gamson, who calls himself an “art junkie,” has been a collector for the reason that tender age of 17. His attraction to the damaged balloon canine is smart when you think about what else he can discover worth in: “I also have gone dumpster diving for art, you know, places where I know famous artists have worked.”
• If he will get to purchase the Koons crumbs, it will not be his solely identify model merchandise.
• “I used to write letters to Keith Haring, and I became a pretty significant Keith Haring collector,” he advised NPR. 

Want extra journalism on arts and tradition? Listen to the Consider This episode on the surge in sales of romance novels

What are folks saying?

• Gamson may be proper that the balloon canine has a second life, A.D. In his Instagram video, you’ll be able to hear a lady remark, “You see, that is the new art installation! Everything’s art, isn’t it?”
• When Gamson approached an artwork advisor with Bel-Air Fine Art about shopping for the items, she laughed and replied, “For $15 million? Yeah,” the Miami Herald reported. 
• And what may Koons himself assume? Considering it is occurred earlier than, he won’t care that a lot. Another of his porcelain balloon canine sculptures was destroyed in 2016. His response? Shrug.
• “It’s a shame when anything like that happens, but, you know, it’s just a porcelain plate,” he told Page Six.
• Koons bought a large model of his balloon canine for $58.4 million in 2013, after which six years later, a rabbit sculpture of his sold for $91 million — setting a document for a residing artist.
• So the five-figure loss on this one most likely will not shatter his world. Plus, it was insured.

Jeff Koons poses throughout a press preview of his exhibition “Lost in America” at Qatar Museums Gallery Al Riwaq in Doha in 2021.

Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Qatar Museums

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Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Qatar Museums

So, what now? OK, for instance the gallery truly comes up with a value for these items and lets Gamson have them. What is he going to do with a pile of damaged blue porcelain?

• “I was thinking I might put them in some sort of a plexi box with a plaque on them,” he stated. “They could be introduced into a piece of art that I create myself. There’s a lot of options.”

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