Jeff Koon’s shiny Dom Pérignon Balloon Venus is the modern equivalent of the alchemistic tradition of transforming base materials into gold. So says Jörg Völlnagel who has curated this entertaining exhibition at Berlin’s Kulturforum and – given the stratospheric prices of Koon’s art – one cannot help but agree. Exploring the relationship between the so-called Royal Art and art itself, the exhibition spans 3,000 years from the origins of alchemy in ancient Egypt 2,000, through its development in medieval Europe and other alchemistic traditions in China and India. Long held in disrepute as a pseudo-science, alchemy continues to fascinate nonetheless and appears to be enjoying a revival: Völlnagel himself completed a PhD on alchemy in art in 2001.
Until July 23rd at the Kulturforum Museum, Berlin www.ipmag.link/2tlNaPI
