Jeff Koons first made a name for himself in the 1980s, exhibiting everything from vacuum cleaners fitted in fluorescent-lit vitrines to stainless steel rabbit sculptures - the latter which made him very, very famous. It was all something of a snarky take on the emergent disposable consumer culture, where each new purchase just seemed to be a step towards yet another new purchase, of a shinier, brighter version of what you already owned - which was then hastily dispensed with in a most dispassionate way.

He ultimately was recognized as keenly prophetic, of course - as we now live in an age where smartphone companies perpetually promote the replacement of perfectly capable devices with the promise of some or other not-all-that-necessary new feature. If you think we're kidding, the new iPhone 17 merely promises "Five gorgeous new colors!" As if to suggest they were selling you a dress to wear to the prom.

Now, fresh off his awe-inspiring recent 'Porcelain Series' exhibit at Gagosian in New York, the venerable Espace Louis Vuitton Osaka is presenting 'Paintings and Banality' (see: definition of banality here) , a smartly curated summation of Koons' incredible and controversial career. It runs from February 20 to July 5, 2026.

Of course, he has a seriously devoted following in Japan, where both childhood nostalgia and playful pop culture remain constant obsessions.

But whereas Andy Warhol's Campbell's Soup Cans predicted the new advertising-age-elevation of brands into modern icons, Koons' 'Three Ball 50/50 Tank (1985)' - included in this exhibition - with its trio of basketballs vividly displayed in a plexiglass case, was portending a new generation of celebrity sports stars (after all, the NBA is now as much an entertainment company as an athletic league). It is sharply keen social commentary, yet without the heavy-handedness of so much ideological art.

Our personal favorite, 'Wild Boy and Puppy', affirms the artist's masterful sculptural proficiency, seamlessly marrying fine art high-mindedness and whimsical contemporary cartoon culture. Many may recognize the dog as the happy-go-lucky Odie from the Garfield comic strip, amusingly a "nemesis" that never actually realized he was a nemesis. It should be noted that the sculpt landed Koons in a lawsuit - which we're pretty sure was part of his master plan all along. It got him a lot of publicity.

Another highlight included in this exhibit is his 2007 'Monkey Train', an unapologetic tribute to the master Warhol, whose influence remains paramount to Koons' ongoing and still piercing social critique. Though we're pretty sure he still mostly just wants us to have fun viewing his work.

(For kids wanting tap into Jeff Koons' artistic magic, he offers insight into his unique creative wisdom in this two-plus-minutes video promo for his 2020 MasterClass.)