Justine Wheeler Koons, the wife of artist Jeff Koons, will have her own solo show of artworks at Salon 94, opening on February 19. The show, titled “Myth” will include 12 glazed stoneware sculptures, all produced in 2024 or earlier this year.
One of the works was described by Salon 94 founder Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn as “a blue torso of Venus—irresistibly covered in carved replicas of toys, shaped cookies, and beads.”
In an essay by William J. Simons, Wheeler Koons spoke of the works in the exhibition as “a personal archaeology, a journey to uncover what lies within, hidden beneath the mass of accumulated experiences.”
In addition to her art practice, Wheeler Koons also has run a jewelry line, Gus & Al, with Alison Brokaw since 2015. As part of the publicity for the jewelry line, Wheeler Koons described her creative process to Harper’s Bazaar in 2015 and how she returned to painting after suffering postpartum depression following the birth of her youngest son. “For the first time ever,” she said, “I just knew I had to save myself somehow, and the only way I could think of was going back to the studio and painting so there was something of me left in the picture. Painting is quite a healing process.”
Wheeler Koons said that after taking “a ton of photos” while traveling with her family, she would composite them into a collage. “It has a narrative and a story for me—a lot about looking and being looked at and ways of masking yourself.”
When Harper’s Bazaar asked if the works would ever be on display in a gallery, Wheeler Koons replied, “I don’t think I can. Jeff has a very big shadow. He casts a really big shadow. That’s why I wanted to do the jewelry. It’s creative but completely different from Jeff’s work.”
Colorful artworks by Wheeler Koons were also featured in a New York Times party report in 2015.
