A Project that is Out of this World

Jeff Koons, a famous artist for nearly 40 years, and known for his cheerful sculptures such as“Rabbit,” “Balloon Dog” and “Puppy" has always strived to make his art more impactful and spectacular — and this year, he'll do just that with Jeff Koons: Moon Phases where he will send artworks to the moon in celebration of human achievement.

Moon Phases is a three-part project starting with 125 miniature moon sculptures—each about an inch in diameter that will depict a phase of the moon. The artist will name each after a person he admires — early names include none other than Grace Kelly, Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, Leonardo da Vinci, Sacagawea, and Sojourner Truth to name a few. The project will also include sculptures for collectors to have at home and an NFT version.

But arguably the coolest part of this project is that Koons will send a case of the small sculptures, to land on the moon in the fall of this year on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center — and they will be the first authorized artworks to land on the moon.

According to the New York Times article on Moon Phases, Mr. Koons made clear that he sees his mission as making meaning on a grand scale, and that being exacting about the conception and production of his artworks is his artistic love language.

“I always try to do the absolute best that I can because I feel a moral obligation,” said Koons. “This is one chance to do it. And artworks can be treated as metaphor for the type of care that you’re putting into it. It’s really to show people that you care about them.”

Koons' team created a dedicated website for his first NFT project called. JeffKoonsMoonPhases.com will have all the latest updates on his project.