Jeff Koons discusses his work on the occasion of being bestowed with a Medal from Department of State, as part of the 50th anniversary of the “Art in Embassies” cultural exchange program. Of the international reception to his art, Koons says, “…Americans are more intimidated by art, and they haven’t really come to realize that art is a tool and is something that is very very liberating to them”; on the subject of the work being physically created by studio assistants, he responds that “every part of it[the work] is an extension of my being”, and that “I am actually very very skilled at painting and drawing… it’s about being able to have vision”. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/29/-jeff-koons-receives-a-me_n_2213198.html