Richard Hamilton is an English artist known for producing some of the earliest pieces of Pop Art.
“Art is made through the sensibilities of an artist, and the kind of ambitions and intelligence, curiosity and inner direction that role requires.” – Richard Hamiltion —artnet.com
His painting ‘just what is it that makes today’s homes so different, so appealing?’(1956) is his most famous piece of work. Hamilton had a keen interest in pop culture and modern technology and this paining is a depiction of what he thought the future would be like. The inclusion of technology such as the hoover and radio within a domestic setting shows a modernist way of living. The comic strips on the wall as a painting shows that he wanted this pop art/comic style to be a style people would have on their walls. Everything about this painting was way ahead of its time, being that Britain was post war.
What I like about Hamilton’s work is that even though they are a collage they still look like a cohesive place e.g a room. In ‘Interior II’ even though its a collage you can clearly still tell that its a room with a woman standing in it.
"Jeff Koons rose to prominence in the mid-1980s as part of a generation of artists exploring the meaning of art and spectacle in a media-saturated era. With his stated artistic intention to “communicate with the masses,” Koons makes use of conceptual constructs—including the ancient, the everyday, and the sublime—creating luxurious icons and elaborate tableaux, which, beneath their captivating exteriors, engage the viewer in a metaphysical dialogue with cultural history."-Gagosian
"Koons draws attention to the continuity of images as they pass through time, combining art historical reference with vernacular images and objects, from common suburban products and mass media to symbols of sexuality and transcendence. Beginning with Inflatables (1978–79), a series inspired by the readymade, Koons created six series of innovative works in less than a decade including Pre-New (1979–80), The New (1980–87), Equilibrium (1983–93), Luxury & Degradation (1986), and Statuary (1986). His interest in popular culture expanded in the Banality series (1988), which included sculptures of recognizable figures such as Michael Jackson and Bubbles (1988)—a nearly life-size gold-leaf porcelain statue of the pop singer with his pet chimpanzee. In 1989, Koons presented Made in Heaven (1989–91), a series centered on him and his then-wife in sexually explicit poses, frequently in fairytale settings, evoking the stark bodily presence of the nudes depicted by French Realist painters. " -Gagosian
What I like about Koons' work is how he creates such large heavy pieces that look so realistic. I would think his sculptures were giant balloons but in reality they're made from heavy steal. It's amazing the sort of manipulation he can achieve. His work almost reflects a sort of futuristic look while still being based on objects that have been around for years. His play on scale gives his sculptures a fun element, we're all familiar with balloon animals and to see them on a large scale it amusing.