Jeff Koons lays off half of his studio staff

Jeff Koons has abruptly dismissed half of his painting assistants, approximately 30 people, reducing his painting staff from 60 to around 30. The layoffs follow a previous reduction last year and come amid reports of disappointing sales for his "Gazing Ball" series, which debuted at Gagosian in New York in November 2015. That project had required hiring over 100 painters between 2014 and 2015. Some sources suggest the dismissals may be retaliation against assistants who contacted the United Scenic Artists union seeking better pay and working conditions, with wages reportedly between $14 and $23 per hour. Koons' studio, one of the largest in the world with over 100 total employees, has not issued an official statement, nor has Gagosian. The news highlights the industrial scale of top artist studios, comparable to companies with internal curators, press offices, security, and transport staff. Other artists with large studios include Damien Hirst (over 9,000 sqm in Gloucestershire, 90+ employees), Olafur Eliasson (90+ staff including artisans and historians), and Gerhard Richter (Germany's largest studio near Cologne).