Mondialement reconnu, artiste prolifique, Keith Haring, en un temps très bref, produit une œuvre faite de primitivisme et de raffinement, de réflexion et de spontanéité, de vitalité énergique, de sexualité débridée mais aussi de déprime et d’abattement mortifère et de pulsions de mort. Ses contradictions au service d’une virtuosité artistique éblouissante expliquent le rayonnement extraordinaire de sa renommée qui touche aussi bien le grand public que les amateurs d’art pointilleux. Dès ses premiers cahiers de 1978 Haring compose les images qui vont l’imposer partout. Il va conquérir le monde par ses dessins à la craie blanche dans le métro de New York et imposer son iconographie faite de silhouettes de personnages, de chiens stylisés, d’un graffiti de sexe d’homme... accompagnés de symboles : croix, cœur, pyramide. Sa profonde humanité et son désir de toucher le plus grand nombre va ainsi de pair avec son engagement assumé dans des projets commerciaux lucratifs. Tout un commerce prend forme avec sa production comme prétexte. Il ouvre à Soho en 1988 le Pop Shop pour vendre ses créations, sur t-shirts, cartes postales, sacs et meubles... Haring proclame très tôt : « Le public a droit à l’art (...) l’art est pour tout le monde. » Il s’engage pour la liberté, la fraternité, la paix, la non-violence, la tolérance, la protection de la jeunesse et de l’environnement, la reconnaissance des homosexuels, contre le nucléaire, l’Apartheid en Afrique du Sud et la propagation du SIDA. Pour le monde des années 1980, Haring devient l’incarnation même de l’art du graffiti et du Street Art et symbolise la vie et l’esprit de l’Amérique toute entière, prenant la suite de son ami Andy Warhol !Si sa formation reste traditionnelle, à la différence de Jean-Michel Basquiat qui est autodidacte, très vite il investit comme nouveaux territoires pour sa création : la rue, le métro, les entrepôts, les boites de nuits... Avec ses amis de l’East Village, Kenny Scharf, Julian Schnabel, Madonna, Basquiat... c’est le monde underground qui le fascine et l’inspire . Il signe des pochettes de disques pour Malcolm Mc Laren, David Bowie, Sylvester, Run DMC, Crystal Waters et des collaborations historiques avec Grace Jones : il peint directement sur le corps de la reine du Disco et réalise les décors de sa vidéo « I’m not perfect ». Son monde grouillant, joyeux et dansant laisse souvent la place à un mélange de personnages fantastiques, d’êtres humains qui rappellent les éléments terrifiants des peintures infernales de Bosch et de Breughel. Ses œuvres sur le SIDA évoquent les fresques médiévales et témoignent de la dimension spirituelle et sacrée de son art. D’ailleurs le Radiant Baby, un de ses premiers célèbres graffiti, est une référence explicite au sacré. Pour Keith Haring « L’art devrait libérer l’âme et exciter l’imagination, encourager les gens à aller plus loin. »
World-renowned, prolific artist, Keith Haring, in a very short time, produced a work made of primitivism and refinement, of reflection and spontaneity, of energetic vitality, of unbridled sexuality, but also of depression and mortifying despondency and of death impulses. His contradictions in the service of a dazzling artistic virtuosity explain the extraordinary radiance of his fame which touches the general public as well as the fussy art lovers. From his first notebooks in 1978, Haring composed the images that were to make him famous everywhere. He conquered the world with his white chalk drawings in the New York subway and imposed his iconography made of silhouettes of characters, stylized dogs, graffiti of a man's sex... accompanied by symbols: cross, heart, pyramid. His deep humanity and his desire to touch the greatest number of people go hand in hand with his commitment to lucrative commercial projects. A whole business takes shape with his production as a pretext. In 1988, he opened the Pop Shop in Soho to sell his creations on t-shirts, postcards, bags and furniture... Haring proclaims very early: "The public has the right to art (...) art is for everyone. He is committed to freedom, fraternity, peace, non-violence, tolerance, protection of youth and the environment, recognition of homosexuals, against nuclear power, Apartheid in South Africa and the spread of AIDS. For the world of the 1980s, Haring became the embodiment of graffiti and street art and symbolized the life and spirit of America as a whole, taking over from his friend Andy Warhol! If his training remains traditional, unlike Jean-Michel Basquiat who is self-taught, very quickly he invests as new territories for his creation: the street, the subway, warehouses, nightclubs ... With his friends from the East Village, Kenny Scharf, Julian Schnabel, Madonna, Basquiat... it is the underground world that fascinates and inspires him. He signed record covers for Malcolm Mc Laren, David Bowie, Sylvester, Run DMC, Crystal Waters and historic collaborations with Grace Jones: he painted directly on the body of the Queen of Disco and made the sets for her video "I'm not perfect". His teeming, joyful and dancing world often gives way to a mixture of fantastic characters and human beings reminiscent of the terrifying elements of Bosch and Breughel's infernal paintings. His works on AIDS evoke medieval frescoes and testify to the spiritual and sacred dimension of his art. Moreover, the Radiant Baby, one of his first famous graffiti, is an explicit reference to the sacred. For Keith Haring, "Art should liberate the soul and excite the imagination, encouraging people to go further."
World-renowned, prolific artist, Keith Haring, in a very short time, produced a work made of primitivism and refinement, of reflection and spontaneity, of energetic vitality, of unbridled sexuality, but also of depression and mortifying despondency and of death impulses. His contradictions in the service of a dazzling artistic virtuosity explain the extraordinary radiance of his fame which touches the general public as well as the fussy art lovers. From his first notebooks in 1978, Haring composed the images that were to make him famous everywhere. He conquered the world with his white chalk drawings in the New York subway and imposed his iconography made of silhouettes of characters, stylized dogs, graffiti of a man's sex... accompanied by symbols: cross, heart, pyramid. His deep humanity and his desire to touch the greatest number of people go hand in hand with his commitment to lucrative commercial projects. A whole business takes shape with his production as a pretext. In 1988, he opened the Pop Shop in Soho to sell his creations on t-shirts, postcards, bags and furniture... Haring proclaims very early: "The public has the right to art (...) art is for everyone. He is committed to freedom, fraternity, peace, non-violence, tolerance, protection of youth and the environment, recognition of homosexuals, against nuclear power, Apartheid in South Africa and the spread of AIDS. For the world of the 1980s, Haring became the embodiment of graffiti and street art and symbolized the life and spirit of America as a whole, taking over from his friend Andy Warhol! If his training remains traditional, unlike Jean-Michel Basquiat who is self-taught, very quickly he invests as new territories for his creation: the street, the subway, warehouses, nightclubs ... With his friends from the East Village, Kenny Scharf, Julian Schnabel, Madonna, Basquiat... it is the underground world that fascinates and inspires him. He signed record covers for Malcolm Mc Laren, David Bowie, Sylvester, Run DMC, Crystal Waters and historic collaborations with Grace Jones: he painted directly on the body of the Queen of Disco and made the sets for her video "I'm not perfect". His teeming, joyful and dancing world often gives way to a mixture of fantastic characters and human beings reminiscent of the terrifying elements of Bosch and Breughel's infernal paintings. His works on AIDS evoke medieval frescoes and testify to the spiritual and sacred dimension of his art. Moreover, the Radiant Baby, one of his first famous graffiti, is an explicit reference to the sacred. For Keith Haring, "Art should liberate the soul and excite the imagination, encouraging people to go further."