ABSTRACT
The recognition that category-defying, postmodern artist Jeff Koons’s work thematically engages with cuteness is not unprecedented. Sheri Klein, for example, notes that “contemporary artists rely on the aesthetic of cuteness to lure viewers, in particular in the works by William Wegman and Jeff Koons” (112). Seeking to deepen these accounts, this article investigates a number of Koons’s most recognizable works, in particular his metal sculpture Balloon Dog (1994-2000) in a series of five brilliantly colored stainless steel versions (Blue, Magenta, Yellow, Orange, and Red), through the lens of cuteness (see Figure 7.1).
