Rising 43 feet from its paws to its ears, the Puppy was formed from a series of stainless steel armatures constructed to hold over 25 tons of soil watered by an internal irrigation system. Over 70,000 multi-hued flowering plants grew from this steel and soil structure, including Marigolds, Begonias, Impatiens, Petunias, and Lobelias. First created in 1992 for a temporary exhibition in the German city of Arolson, Puppy--a symbol, according to Koons, of "love, warmth and happiness"--was a contemporary artwork that captured Koons's sculptural imagination, horticultural dexterity, and engineering skill.