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Keith Haring
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Keith Haring (1958-1990) made his mark on the New York City art world in 1980, when he created hundreds of white-chalk line drawings on sheets of matte black paper that were being used to cover empty advertising spots in the city's subway system....
Keith Haring (1958-1990) made his mark on the New York City art world in 1980, when he created hundreds of white-chalk line drawings on sheets of matte black paper that were being used to cover empty advertising spots in the city's subway system. Haring's drawings were quick and graphic, producing cartoonish characters that evoked sources as diverse as graffiti art and the work of so-called fine artists such as Jean Dubuffet.
In many respects, Haring's iconography was established in the subways of New York. It was there that he worked out his faceless figures, his blocked-headed barking dogs, and his babies, sometimes held in the caressing arms of faceless Madonnas. The motif of a 1950s-style flying saucer zapping these figures and dogs arrived at roughly the same time, as did Haring's three-eyed smiling face.
By 1982, the press that had accompanied Haring's subway drawings propelled the artist into shows at alternative exhibition spaces such as Club 57 and P.S. 122. That, of course, caught the eye of the mainstream art world. Eventually, Haring signed up with Tony Shafrazi, whose claim to infamy in 1974, prior to becoming a respected art dealer, had been to spray paint the words "KILL LIES ALL" on the Picasso masterpiece "Guernica" at the Museum of Modern Art. The paintings created for Haring's first one-man show at Shafrazi's gallery, especially the ones in vinyl paint or ink on vinyl tarps, are among the artist's most sought pieces.
For a while, Haring played by the rules of the art world, hanging out and collaborating with Andy Warhol while producing countless paintings, prints, and sculptures for art galleries and museums around the world, most notably Leo Castelli Gallery in New York and the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. He even designed a wristwatch for Swatch.
While the money was certainly good, Haring chaffed at the exclusivity of the art world, which is why, in 1986, he opened the Pop Shop on Lafayette Street in Manhattan. There, fans who just liked his work but weren't necessarily art collectors could pick up a mass-produced pin with one of Haring's characters on it, or even an inflatable Haring baby. A Pop Shop opened in Tokyo the following year, and although both locations have long-since closed, Haring products are still available online from the Pop Shop today. Decades later, the Pop Shop concept would be amplified by artists such as Banksy.
Having been born as an artist in the public realm of the subway system, Haring naturally made work that commented on the world around him. In 1984, he created a painting that would become his famous "Free South Africa" poster in 1985. The following year, Haring executed an anti-drug "Crack is Wack" mural at a local New York City handball court. Throughout his career, Haring's sexuality as a gay man was also a subject of his work, which sometimes featured cartoony, snake-like penises ejaculating Haring's faceless figures.
Unfortunately, Haring's rise as an artist in New York City coincided with the AIDS epidemic that began to roar through the city's gay community in 1985. By 1988, Haring himself would be diagnosed with AIDS, a topic that would increasingly find a place in his work. Then, in 1990, the life of one of the most acclaimed and exhibited artists of his time was cut short by the disease. Haring was 31. Before he died, Haring established a foundation to support organizations involved in educational programs for underprivileged kids, as well as those working on AIDS-related programs.
Continue readingKeith Haring (1958-1990) made his mark on the New York City art world in 1980, when he created hundreds of white-chalk line drawings on sheets of matte black paper that were being used to cover empty advertising spots in the city's subway system. Haring's drawings were quick and graphic, producing cartoonish characters that evoked sources as diverse as graffiti art and the work of so-called fine artists such as Jean Dubuffet.
In many respects, Haring's iconography was established in the subways of New York. It was there that he worked out his faceless figures, his blocked-headed barking dogs, and his babies, sometimes held in the caressing arms of faceless Madonnas. The motif of a 1950s-style flying saucer zapping these figures and dogs arrived at roughly the same time, as did Haring's three-eyed smiling face.
By 1982, the press that had accompanied Haring's subway drawings propelled the artist into shows at alternative exhibition spaces such as Club 57 and P.S. 122. That, of course, caught the eye of the mainstream art world. Eventually, Haring signed up with Tony Shafrazi, whose claim to infamy in 1974, prior to becoming a respected art dealer, had been to spray paint the words "KILL LIES ALL" on the Picasso masterpiece "Guernica" at the Museum of Modern Art. The paintings created for Haring's first one-man show at Shafrazi's gallery, especially the ones in vinyl paint or ink on vinyl tarps, are among the artist's most sought pieces.
For a while, Haring played by the rules of the art world, hanging out and collaborating with Andy Warhol while producing countless paintings, prints, and sculptures for art galleries and museums around the world, most notably Leo Castelli Gallery in New York and the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. He even designed a wristwatch for Swatch.
While the money was certainly good, Haring chaffed at the exclusivity of the art world, which is why, in 1986, he opened the Pop Shop on Lafayette Street in Manhattan. There, fans who...
Keith Haring (1958-1990) made his mark on the New York City art world in 1980, when he created hundreds of white-chalk line drawings on sheets of matte black paper that were being used to cover empty advertising spots in the city's subway system. Haring's drawings were quick and graphic, producing cartoonish characters that evoked sources as diverse as graffiti art and the work of so-called fine artists such as Jean Dubuffet.
In many respects, Haring's iconography was established in the subways of New York. It was there that he worked out his faceless figures, his blocked-headed barking dogs, and his babies, sometimes held in the caressing arms of faceless Madonnas. The motif of a 1950s-style flying saucer zapping these figures and dogs arrived at roughly the same time, as did Haring's three-eyed smiling face.
By 1982, the press that had accompanied Haring's subway drawings propelled the artist into shows at alternative exhibition spaces such as Club 57 and P.S. 122. That, of course, caught the eye of the mainstream art world. Eventually, Haring signed up with Tony Shafrazi, whose claim to infamy in 1974, prior to becoming a respected art dealer, had been to spray paint the words "KILL LIES ALL" on the Picasso masterpiece "Guernica" at the Museum of Modern Art. The paintings created for Haring's first one-man show at Shafrazi's gallery, especially the ones in vinyl paint or ink on vinyl tarps, are among the artist's most sought pieces.
For a while, Haring played by the rules of the art world, hanging out and collaborating with Andy Warhol while producing countless paintings, prints, and sculptures for art galleries and museums around the world, most notably Leo Castelli Gallery in New York and the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. He even designed a wristwatch for Swatch.
While the money was certainly good, Haring chaffed at the exclusivity of the art world, which is why, in 1986, he opened the Pop Shop on Lafayette Street in Manhattan. There, fans who just liked his work but weren't necessarily art collectors could pick up a mass-produced pin with one of Haring's characters on it, or even an inflatable Haring baby. A Pop Shop opened in Tokyo the following year, and although both locations have long-since closed, Haring products are still available online from the Pop Shop today. Decades later, the Pop Shop concept would be amplified by artists such as Banksy.
Having been born as an artist in the public realm of the subway system, Haring naturally made work that commented on the world around him. In 1984, he created a painting that would become his famous "Free South Africa" poster in 1985. The following year, Haring executed an anti-drug "Crack is Wack" mural at a local New York City handball court. Throughout his career, Haring's sexuality as a gay man was also a subject of his work, which sometimes featured cartoony, snake-like penises ejaculating Haring's faceless figures.
Unfortunately, Haring's rise as an artist in New York City coincided with the AIDS epidemic that began to roar through the city's gay community in 1985. By 1988, Haring himself would be diagnosed with AIDS, a topic that would increasingly find a place in his work. Then, in 1990, the life of one of the most acclaimed and exhibited artists of his time was cut short by the disease. Haring was 31. Before he died, Haring established a foundation to support organizations involved in educational programs for underprivileged kids, as well as those working on AIDS-related programs.
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