Keith Haring 1958 - 1990

Untitled, 1987 Poster 18 Untitled, 1987, lithograph, 24.8 x 91.4 cm, Estate of Keith Haring Keith Haring was born May 4, 1958 the oldest of three. He lived a sheltered small town life in Kutztown, PA, a Pennsylvania Dutch farm community. His mother was a stay at home mom and his dad was a communications firm supervisor who was very good at drawing cartoons. Haring_062

Keith Haring, 1970 Poster 1 Keith Haring, 1970, photograph 12 years old, Kutztown, Pennsylvania In school Keith was the class clown. He liked to make other kids smile and always thought of himself as a funny looking kid. Haring_004

Untitled, September 10, 1986 Poster 15 – Simple lines and form Untitled, September 10, 1986, oil and acrylic on canvas, 96 x 192 in, Estate of Keith Haring He was always drawing. His art teachers were astonished at his love of drawing and anything to do with LINE. There are many types of LINE including bold, thick, strong, dark, delicate, thin, light, curved or straight. What types of LINES do you see here? Haring’s school years spent drawing would influence his later artwork. Most of Haring’s arwork is untitled. Based on what you see, what would you title this artwork? Haring_058

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol, Colored Campbell's Soup Can, 1965, print Poster 13 – Pop Artists influenced Keith Haring Andy Warhol, Colored Campbell's Soup Can, 1965, print In High school he knew that he wanted to become an artist. He loved cartoons of POP ART from artists such as Walt Disney, Charles Schultz and Dr Seuss, but by then he wanted to do ABSTRACT ART. Then on a church trip to Washington, D.C and the Hirshhorn Museum he saw a group of Marilyn Monroe prints by Andy Warhol. Andy Warhol was a Pop artist. Pop Art stands for polular art that makes art about pop culture. Here we see Campbell’s soup cans. What kind of images/objects would represent our popular culture today? What object best represents you? What does that say about you and your personality? Attended art schools in Pittsburgh; Ivy School and Pittsburgh Center for the Arts. In 1978 he moved to New York and attended the Visual School for the Arts. Haring_049

Untitled Poster 17 Untitled, date, enamel and dayglo on metal, 183 x 230 x 4 in, owner In the 1980's came a new influx of people into the East Village. Graffiti was everywhere, on the streets and the subways. Subway cars where covered with it. Haring loved it and thought that “Graffiti was the most beautiful thing he ever saw”. Haring’s work was sometimes referred to as Graffiti Art. GRAFFITO means “scratch” in Italian and graffiti (the plural form) are drawings or images scratched into the surfaces of walls. One day on the subway Haring noticed some blank black panels on the wall. He ran out and got some chalk and returned to draw simple shapes and figures using bold thick lines. Where have you seen graffiti art? Is it still scratched into the walls? Haring often made graffiti art that represented important issues of that time. Think about political and cultural events going on today. What are some symbols you could include that would describe what is going on? Haring_061

Retrospect, 1989 Poster 20 Retrospect, 1989, silkscreen, Edition 75, 46 x 82 in, Estate of Keith Haring People began recognizing these drawings but they did not know who’s they were. He could do 30 -40 drawings a day. He wanted to participate with the Graffiti artists, but not copy their work and he did not want to draw on the trains. He worked in broad daylight unlike the clandestine Graffiti artists. Haring_076

Radiant Baby, 1990 Poster 16 Radiant Baby, 1990, silkscreen, 21 x 25 in, Estate of Keith Haring Graffito artists invent their own Tag or signature so you can identify their works. Haring used a dog and a baby crawling on all fours with rays around it. This image shows his most popular tag, the “Radiant Baby”. What do you think the “Radient Baby” represents? Keith Haring wanted people to interpret his art themselves. There are no right or wrong answers. What would you make for your Tag so people knew the art was yours? Haring_059

Pop Shop Quad 1, 1987 Poster 7 - Teamwork Pop Shop Quad 1, 1987, silkscreen, 24 ¾ x 30 in, Edition of 45, Estate of Keith Haring Soon he was selling a lot of his work out of his studio. He wanted to make money so that he could paint full time. He had his first show in 1982 at the Tony Shafrazi Gallery in Soho. He painted all the walls with his art and then hung his paintings and sculpture. Critics called it dazzling. Haring_022

Haring_054 Poster 14 - Murals Lady Liberty, date, medium, size, owner He was invited to exhibit in other parts of the world. He painted the entire side of a church in Italy and Japan. People everywhere responded positively to his work due to its dynamic simplicity, vibrant colors, and originality. Haring’s social consciousness manifested itself in works for various causes; literacy, UNICEF, apartheid in South Africa, drug use, and AIDS awareness. With more success he was able to paint large murals and large outdoor sculptures that resembled children’s toys. Haring_054

9 - Untitled Poster 10 Untitled, date, felt-tip marker on paper, 28 x 28 cm, owner Haring loved children and always insisted that children were part of any appearance that he made. He would hold workshops for them. One of his large murals is in the Children’s Hospital in Washington, DC! MURALS are large artworks on walls or sides of buildings. His paintings and sculptures became very expensive, but he wanted everyone to be able to buy his work. Haring_034

10 by Keith Haring, 1998 haring 2 Poster 2 – Book 10 by Keith Haring, 1998, Hyperion Books In 1986 he opened his Pop Shop in Soho. He sold t-shirts, caps, buttons, prints and inflatable babies of his design. Some artists disagreed with Haring for selling his art on other materials for cheaper. Do you think it was still art if he was selling his designs on different objects? haring 2

Untitled, October 7, 1982 Poster 6 - Emotions Untitled, October 7, 1982, vinyl ink on vinyl tarp, 168 x 168 in, owner This piece is titled “emotions.” What kind of emotion/ritual do you think Keith Haring is expressing in this artwork? (love and marrige)

Untitled (Mother and Child Center), 1986 Poster 21 Untitled (Mother and Child Center), 1986, Estate of Keith Haring Even though these figures have no facial features, Haring used color and line to express feeling and emotion. What feeling to you get from looking at this piece?

Keith Haring drawing Haring_003 Poster 1 Keith Haring drawing In 1988 Haring became ill with AIDS. He made art to create awareness about AIDS. At first it did not affect his work, but later he was too weak to hold a pen. He died February 16, 1990 A memorial service was held on May 4, 1990 in New York City, with over 1,000 people in attendance. Haring_003

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