Keith Haring: Is his art really for everybody?
Recently I had the good fortune to be in Los Angeles and see the Keith Haring show, which had caught my eye on a list of 12 Must See Art Show in artnet news.
Exceeded Expectations
Art is for Everybody is an appropriate name for a show with such a breadth and diversity of medium and subject matter. This show is provocative, stimulating, and fun. Most of all it’s accessible, which was Haring’s oft proclaimed intention. It feels very timely even though much of this work was done in the 70s and 80s (1968-1990). And Haring only lived to age 31.
Bottom line: It exceeded my expectations. That’s what I want you to take away from this blog. The Keith Haring exhibit at The Broad, a contemporary museum in downtown Los Angeles, CA runs thru October 8, 2023. Read on for the details (and there are many! Hopefully not too many…).
I wasn’t the only one who felt this way. You can see Bonnie enjoying herself below. This was one show where I didn’t have to ask anyone to interact with the paintings – it just happened spontaneously! Haring’s love of dancing and music comes through in his work and is contagious.
But is Keith Haring’s art really for everyone? Or is it more accurate to say it’s accessible to everyone?
Certainly it’s simplified bold strokes and colors, dancing figures and barking dogs won’t appeal to everyone, especially art fans primarily drawn to traditional chiaroscuro paintings. While it’s not intended to be highbrow, it’s energetic shapes, bright colors, and diversity of subjects tend to appeal to younger generations who are receptive to new art concepts and constructs.
Haring essentially created his own visual language that is easily recognizable.
Recreation of 1982 Major Show at Tony Shafrazi Gallery, NYC
My most recent exposure to Keith Haring was during several Street Art lectures via zoom during the pandemic. I was prepared for a raw feeling that is typical of that genre.
Instead, this splash of sophisticated and bright neon-color greeted us, signaling this show was going to be different. As you can see, Bonne got into the swing of things right away.
Upon closer viewing, you can see the Statue of Liberty is covered with Keith Haring’s recognizable marks.
This painting was inspired by NYC and the break dancing of the 50s and 60s. All the works in this room shared bold lines, colors and shapes, along with Haring’s signature people.
Art Historical Influences
Keith Haring surprised me by displaying an awareness of art history, which didn’t fit with my preconception of him as a graffiti artist. This section shows the influence of early Greek vase painting patterns, which we had seen at Getty Villa in Malibu the day before.
Here’s a photo I happened to take at the Getty Villa Museum (which is a lovely way to spend an hour or two). Notice how Haring appropriated the geometric banding concept and unglazed terracotta in his vases, but we see Haring’s dogs and human figures in the registers instead.
Influence of Indigenous Cultures
My favorite room was this one with 3 totem-like sculptures set amidst huge patterned Haring paintings. These bold, whimsically shaped totem had an indigenous feel from South America. Also they were very creative, and had such a distinctive character. Bravo!
When you got closer, you could see that each was engraved with unmistakably Haring imagery in yellow and against the black.
I particularly liked this view of the gallery, which evoked the complex patterns of Mayan and Aztec art that permeated South American cultures. Click here for an example of a typical Mayan portal to see what I mean.
The curators did an excellent job of placing the objects, and coordinating patterns of the paintings and sculptures so they played off of each other, creating a playful space with a lot of movement and energy.
Art History References
When I first saw work below, I thought about Michelangelo’s Creation on the ceiling of the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel. And then I turned the corner to read how he drew on art history and cultures for his imagery – specifically the Vatican. The irony of these naked creatures – with their tongues hanging out – imitating famous Vatican art was not lost on me. Only here we’re witnessing the creation of consumerism vs. the creation of Adam.
Haring hung out with a group of well known Manhattan artists, including Andy Warhol. Rhese paintings are his personal tribute Andy Warhol and his repeated imagery (think Campbell Soup Cans) with its consumerism theme.
This Tree of Life is a symbol that is traceable through all of art history. This was one of the more lyrical, optimistic and peaceful images in the show, with happy colors. I wish I had taken a photo of the wall tag to confirm there isn’t some sinister meaning behind it… as in many of his other pieces.
X Rated
Of course, no Haring show would be complete without a few sexual images and more than a few penises.
Art and Activism
Haring spent a chunk of his short career trying to change the world by calling awareness to issues that troubled him. He was fearless when confronting the establishment, whether he was expressing his strong views on AIDS (which ultimately took his life), apartheid and global social justice, systemic racism, capitalism, or the atomic bomb and nuclear warfare..
There are a lot of different interpretations of Haring’s work, but the following images indicate he was an original who pushed the boundaries of expression. He constantly experimented. He had courage to make and create art that would make viewers uncomfortable.
Capitalism
One of his favorite themes that he often returned to is capitalism, which he presented with the stereotypicial “capitalist pig”. As explained in the wall texts, Haring often used this image “in political cartoons to depict greedy businessmen… Haring’s pig paintings comment on the ills of capitalism and abuses of power in the name of profit.”
This work is a good example of a brightly colored Haring paintings with a very dark message.
“This tarp painting portrays a pig spewing money-green vomit made up of computers, TVS, clocks, airplane, and other objects of modern life. The green vomit occupies the ground of the painting out of which little figures climb, suckling the sickly peg’s teats. This work is a monstrous depiction of the struggle of production in an era when everything was deemed consumable.”
In this next tarp painting, we see a weapon piercing the central handcuffed figure, representing a tool of oppression. The bleeding globe we see here often represents the worldwide social ills, including systemic racism right here in New York.
Systemic Racism, Social Injustice and Aparteid
In this particular work, red represents blood of a specific person, Michael Stewart, as well as the blood of the world. Michael Stewart was a young black artist, a student at Pratt Institute, who was brutally arrested for writing graffiti in NYC and died after spending 13 days in a coma. This work was created to call attention to systemic racism and social injustice right here in New York.
In addition, the bleeding globe is a symbol Haring often used to represent the ills of institutionalized racial issues such as segregation, in this case apartheid in South Africa – as indicated in the title that references Africa. Yet the US maintained trade ties with the country ostensibly to neutralize off the Soviet Union during the Cold War. In this respect, the red represents the blood of the world. The yellow figures remind me of the quote: “See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil”.
Here’s another piercing of body parts by the devil himself using a long Pinnochio like nose as a sword. It’s an unusually powerful horizontal image, and I can only imagine what it means since I can’t read the wall plaque… Please feel free to use your own imaginations.
Frustrated by AIDS
Haring was a visible AIDS advocate, and used his talent to bring attention to the magnitude of the crisis. Here he promoted safe sex and the AIDS hotline. After being diagnosed with AIDS in 1998, he created the Keith Haring Foundation to provide funding to AIDS organizations to support education, research and care.
Keith Haring as a Capitalist Pig
Given his desire to fight against consumerism and for the oppressed underdog, it feels like a contradiction in terms that Haring embraced consumerism. He opened his own Soho Pop Shop which sold Haring branded merchandise in lower Manhattan.
Haring argues that his Pop Shop is a legitimate alternative avenue to reach the mass audience. And certainly we’ve all bought branded merchandise. But after making fun of the “capitalist pig”, Keith Haring essentially becomes one by opening this store.
End of Life Works
Similar to other artists, Haring’s last paintings foreshowed the end of his life. They have an unfinished quality and missing pieces. It’s almost as if he’s commenting on the work he still wanted to do to change the world.
To me, these two painting feel incomplete and yet satisfying at the same time. They provide a proper coda to a distinguished career.
Love
On the way out, there’s a mirror where Bonnie and I took pictures that summarized our feelings about this show.
In case you noticed, that is me in a wheelchair still recovering from a March leg injury. I enjoyed the show with Bonnie’s help.
Thanks to these two ladies for making it a wonderful day, especially Lauren who had the foresight to buy tickets way in advance.
It certainly looks like Lauren and Natalie loved the show too!
Before the trip, I was most excited about the All Consuming: Art and the Essence of Food exhibit at The Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena. It was underwhelming. However, it did get me to think about the delivery of food, and there are a few images that I’ll probably use in a food in art talk.
But the Keith Haring exhibit was the standout show. It’s so relevant today. That’s what I remember and recommend when I’m talking to people about my CA trip.
The rest of The Broad Museum has some pretty stellar art, enough that it’s worthy of a separate blog should I ever get around to it.
If you’re in LA before October 8th, I would highly recommend that you purchase tickets in advance for the show. Weekends are selling out quickly. It’s probably easier to get weekday tickets.
Is Haring’s art really for everybody?
That’s still the burning question. While your initial reaction may be “No, this art isn’t for me”, there’s an excellent chance it is for your kids and grandkids. So bring the family.
And if nothing else, you can appreciate a contemporary artist who was marching to his own drummer in his goal to create positive change.
Haring believed that art made the world a better place. It was his mission.
Today his art and activism deeply resonates in the upheavals that have occurred around the world. Many paradigm shifts have occurred following COVID. The pandemic brought many issues to the surface, including more awareness of inequities, racial issues (#Black Lives Matter); identity (#LGBTQI); plus Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (#DEI).
The world has evolved in many ways since Haring passed away in 1990. Yet the big unresolved issues feel somewhat the same, perhaps even more pressing today.
It’s important that we become more aware, tolerant and accepting of the inevitable social, economic and political change that is taking place outside of our own little silos. And hopefully there will be some compassion in the mix that will bring help to people who need it most. And Haring saw art as his tool to do just that.
In that sense, Keith Haring’s art is for everybody!
