A Jeff Koons sculpture worth £35,000 was accidentally destroyed during a VIP event at a Miami gallery.
The work, a small blue version of the artist’s famous “balloon dog” series, was exhibited during the preview event at the Art Wynwood gallery.
A number of guests initially thought the crash was a piece of art or a stunt when it crashed to the ground.
Artist Stephen Gamson, who was at the event, told a local Fox News station he saw a woman touching the sculpture.
“I saw this woman was there, and she was touching (the sculpture), and then the thing fell and shattered into thousands of pieces.”
A passerby filmed a video of gallery employees sweeping the glass away with a voice saying, “I can’t believe anyone could knock this over,” playing in the background.
Benedicte Caluch, an art consultant at Bel-Air Fine Art, which sponsored Koons’ piece, told the Miami Herald that the woman did not intend to break the piece and that insurance would cover the damage.
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Koons, an American painter and sculptor famous for drawing inspiration from everyday objects, such as animals in hot air balloons, was not present at the event.
Some of his works have sold for up to £75 million.
