INFLATABLE BALLERINA TAKES MANHATTAN
22 May 2017
Artist Jeff Koons’ art installation, Seated Ballerina, – a 45-foot-high inflatable sculpture – sits at the centre of New York’s Rockefeller Centre in support of National Missing Children’s Month.
In the middle of Rockefeller Center, artist Jeff Koons has installed a 45-foot-high (14m-high) inflatable nylon sculpture that towers above visitors to the iconic New York City plaza. The larger-than-life Seated Ballerina - scaled up from the artist’s Antiquity series - symbolically refers to themes of beauty and connectivity, serving as a contemporary interpretation of the mythological goddess Venus.
Hosted by Tishman Speyer and presented by Kiehl’s Since 1851 and Art Production Fund, Koons’ Seated Ballerina is wrapped in a reflective surface. As she gazes down at passers-by, the delicate dancer mirrors the surrounding urban landscape and engages with each viewer as they approach. 
With the idea of ‘reflectivity’ in mind, the installation seeks to raise awareness of National Missing Children’s month this May, in an effort to support organisations like the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children. The installation is on view at Rockefeller Center from now through June 2017.
“It’s a pleasure to work with Kiehl’s and Art Production Fund on this charitable project,” Koons explains. “This partnership will increase awareness and help the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children make the world a safer place for children. I hope the installation of Seated Ballerina at Rockefeller Center offers a sense of affirmation and excitement to the viewer to reach their potential. The aspect of reflectivity emulates life’s energy; it’s about contemplation and what it means to be a human being. It’s a very hopeful piece.”
