Jeff Koons haters rejoice! Hunter Jonakin’s video game Jeff Koons Must Die!!! allows players to destroy sculptures by Koons with the help of a (virtual) rocket launcher.

The piece is currently on display at the exhibition “Fire and Forget. On Violence” at Berlin’s KW Institute of Contemporary Art, which explores conventional ideas about war and force through art.

Set in a museum during a Koons retrospective, the 2011 video game features an animated version of the famous artist, who reprimands players for destroying his art. The artist then orders a horde of museum guards to attack the player.

Players are invited to destroy Koons’ sculptures.
Photo: hunterjonakin.com

If players survive the first round, they can re-enter the room, where an infinite number of curators, lawyers, assistants, and guards will attack again until the player is dead.

The artwork is presented as an 1980s style arcade game, which players control using a joystick and two buttons.

Jeff Koons also makes an appearance in the game.
Photo: hunterjonakin.com

“Jeff Koons is one of the most polarizing and well known contemporary artists living today,” Jonakin explained on his website. “All of Koons’ art is constructed by assistants. In general, viewers love or hate Koons and his work, and that is why he was chosen as the subject matter for this piece.”

“In the end, the game is unwinnable, and acts as a comment on the fine art studio system, museum culture, art and commerce, hierarchical power structures, and the destructive tendencies of gallery goers,” the American artist added.

Players can attack Koons’ work with a rocket launcher.
Photo: hunterjonakin.com