Allen Jones: The Good Erotic?
Visual Essay
Allen Jones (b.1937), british, being appraised as one of the top Pop artists, hasbuilt up an art world emerging in no matter fashion, architecture andentertainment industry.
His iconic fiberglass sculptures—Table, Chair, and Hatstand (Image 1)—turn lithefemale bodies into functional furniture pieces. A satire on consumption and thespectacle of femininity, they echo pin-up poses and Playboy bunnies—thosehypersexualized, commercial clichés—while elevating them to the status of art.
Rather than critiquing from a moral stance, Jones leans into humor andexaggeration. The serpentine female form becomes a distilled image of desire—stylized, surreal, and unsettling. When I saw those figures boldly dressed inBDSM-like outfits, there was a sense of freshness—an authenticity in howsexuality and erotic bodies were presented. It felt like a call to sex, unapologeticand direct. Unlike abstract or more subtle artworks, I’ve always been obsessedwith how figurative surrealism—like Jones’s—strips away pretense. It reveals whatwe’re too shy to show, or forbidden to praise openly. So there’s a rebellion there,a rupture against the overly civilized mind.
This erotic language has also rippled through culture—seen in music videos whereFKA Twigs mimicked the green table, and in avant-garde design by Rick Owens,which mirrors postures of submission. Objectifying the self, fetishizing design —Creatives continue to be inspired by Jones’s works.
Jones doesn’t shy away from the eroticism and seduction. He sculpts it.
Image 1: Table, Chair and Hatstand, Allen Jones, 1969.
Image 2: FKA Twigs as green table in music video “Perfect Stranger”.
Image 3: Rick Owens’ furniture piece.#allenjones
