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In her new solo show at West Valley College Art Gallery, Bay Area conceptual and multidisciplinary artist Kathy Aoki provides humorous relief from the art market tyranny of Jeff Koons.

Pop artist Jeff Koons is known for delivering kitschy, self-serving work that many arts professionals find distasteful. But does his work deserve to be destroyed? The answer is 鈥淎bsolutely!鈥� according to Kathy Aoki鈥檚 satirical exhibition Koons Ruins: Discovery Zone, on display this spring in West Valley College鈥檚 Art Gallery (Saratoga, CA). Presented as a visitor鈥檚 center and gift shop, Aoki鈥檚 exhibition celebrates fictional art collector Dorothea James, whose dislike of Jeff Koons鈥� art grows into a simmering hatred that erupts into destructive action. Dorothea buys his art, sticks it in the ground on her estate, and subjects it to accelerated degradation. When she dies, her estate is open to the public as 鈥淜oons Ruins.鈥�

Visitors to Koons Ruins: Discovery Zone can take an audio tour of the grounds, use the photostand to throw dirt on Jeff Koons鈥� Balloon Dog, and 鈥渧isit鈥� the estate through a peephole diorama featuring a Koons sculpture stuck in an acid pit. This is the perfect conceptual exhibition for art newbies, artists, and arts professionals alike.

Known for her mock museum installations that question society鈥檚 tendency to privilege the most bizarre things, Aoki began the Koons Ruins series in 2012. Like her invented character Dorothea James, Aoki has strong opinions about Koons鈥� work. While she finds most of his pieces downright insulting, Aoki admits that Koons is a master of sales, and Aoki鈥檚 witty text panels and labeling address both aspects of Koons鈥� work.