Art is like a mirror; everyone observes differently. Art itself, in its creation, will forever be ever-changing and singular. That’s what makes art so fascinating; it depicts human psychology and is left to the perception to decipher. Artistic work can be vocal for some people in expressing their unspoken stories on behalf of them, a history lesson, a record of a moment, or something of great value, all depending on where your values lie and what resonates with you.
The personal touch of an artist is what makes artwork distinctive; like a fingerprint, everyone is unique. One of the graffiti artists who made the New York subway walls his first exhibition is Keith Haring with his cartoon drawings during the 1980s. Keith was born on May 4, 1958, in Reading, Pennsylvania, and raised in nearby Kutztown, Pennsylvania. He wised-up his love for art at a very early age and learned basic cartooning skills from his father and the popular culture around him, such as Dr. Seuss and Walt Disney. First, he enrolled in the School of Professional Art in Pittsburgh, a commercial arts school. Then, in 1978, he had a scholarship to New York and enrolled in the School of Visual Arts (SVA). In New York, Keith found a flourishing alternative art community that, developing outside the gallery and museum system, in the downtown streets and the subways.
Philosophy & Style of Work.
Keith Haring has excelled in making his art a part of the everyday scene of New Yorkers, from the subway to the public murals, many of which still exist, in New York. He believed that art is not just for those who were museum and gallery goers, but for everyone. Christo’s beliefs had the most profound effect on Keith, especially Christo’s Running Fence, which made him believe in democratizing art. Keith had audiences for his first significant public works composed of the millions of ordinary people who rode the subway every day. In an interview with john Gruen, he said:” The whole beauty of the drawings was that they were so simple. They told a story that you could see from a moving train, and you could get it”.
Keith’s go-to motive was “leave something behind for the people” he used to draw his painting in impoverished neighbourhoods and hospitals or schools, some of his murals were done illegally, and others he had a permit. He believed that every artist has a responsibility to expose injustices of all kinds and to bring awareness to social causes through his art. One of his famous artworks is the Crack is Wack mural referring to the crack cocaine epidemic and its effects in New York City.
For Keith, art is a connection, making a change, something you relate to, and sometimes a way of healing. Out of his beliefs, he never stopped drawing in public spaces, paralleled with continuing to show his work in museums and galleries around the world. He realized that his art could make a difference in people’s lives and bring joy to their fast-paced daily life. Keith tried to create and invent life through his art, lines, and colours, not to make it appears to be life-like. He was a young man driven by an egocentric faith in the immortality of his talent.
The Pop Shop.
Keith’s reputation has continued to grow, and his work is more widely admired back then. In April 1986, He opened the Pop Shop, a retail store in New York. He explained it in an interview with john Gruen: “My work was starting to become more expensive and more popular within the art market. Those prices meant that only people who could afford big art prices could have access to the work. The Pop Shop makes it accessible”. For Keith selling printmaking was a prolific “middle-ground,” a natural bridge between his unique works and the reproduction of his imagery on affordable apparel, posters, buttons, and other commercial products. His Pop Shop was his way to turn his art into merchandise for the masses.
Contribution to the Art of the 20th Century.
Throughout Keith’s career, his contribution to the art of the 20th century is difficult to fully appreciate, as he ultimately transformed our idea of what art is. He was among the first to embrace the concept of disseminating his imagery in so many different ways, which was extremely debatable at the time. When once asked to clarify the values he was trying to impart in his work, Keith said: “A more holistic and basic idea of wanting to incorporate (art) into every aspect of life, less as an egotistical exercise and more natural somehow”.
His short but highly fertile career ended with his premature death from AIDS. Keith created more than three thousand works on paper and approximately three hundred paintings. Besides, he designed record covers for RUN DMC and David Bowie, directed a music video for Grace Jones, and developed a fashion line with Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood. Keith is also known for his contribution to supporting children and AIDS sufferers, before his death, he established the Keith Haring Foundation in 1989 to continue his charitable support. In 1990, a month before he died, Keith collaborated with William S. Burroughs and Brion Gysin and published their final edition on paper, a portfolio of 17 silkscreened “The Blueprint Drawing” transcript of a group of his initial and purest visual narratives. His remarkable career, which spanned barely 12 years has left a tremendous legacy, not only in art but in the lives of the people he helped save.
References:
- About Haring (1997–2022). The Keith Haring Foundation. (Last updated 2022) available at: https://www.haring.com/!/about-haring# [Accessed 5.Aug.2022].
- Keith Haring Art for All! (2019). TATE [online]. (Last updated 9. Jun.2019) available at: https://www.tate.org.uk/tate-etc/issue-46-summer-2019/keith-haring-art-for-all-julia-gruen [Accessed 5.Aug.2022].
