Catalogue Raisonne
Below you can find all Keith Haring prints and paintings from 1981 to 1990. The Keith Haring catalogue raisonné provides a holistic view of the artist’s masterworks, and allows one to see how Haring’s themes and style developed over time. Simultaneously, the primitive heartbeat of his work remains specified throughout, especially prominent in signature compositions including human figures, babies, dogs, UFOs, and other symbols.
Media and Technique
From chalk drawings on empty advertising paper in the New York subway system, Keith Haring graduated to incorporate many different types of media. He chose many of his artistic tools based on the same key ideas: strong lines, swiftness, and the ability to draw continuously without interruption. Haring’s desire for quick execution came partly from his time spent graffitiing the subway, where he needed to avoid interference by police. “To draw chalk on this soft black paper, that was a totally new experience for me. It was a continuous line; you didn’t need any interruptions to dip your brush or whatever in paint. It was a constant line, a graphically really very strong line, and you were working under a time limit. You had to work as fast as you could. And you couldn’t correct. Mistakes couldn’t happen” (Haring. Kolossa 2016, p. 27).
Having to work fast helped give rise to his unmistakable style: his quick-drawn figures, simple yet powerful motifs, and a consistent artistic process that carried his mark across the city. Vinyl ink soon became one of his favorite tools, which he often used in conjunction with vinyl tarpaulin to create works like the electric boogie-inspired Untitled from 1983, and the Untitled celebration of family from the same year. Other staple media from Haring’s catalogue includes acrylic and oil on canvas, markers, gouache and black ink, simu ink, muslin, and paper. For many works, especially his subway drawings, his technique was the same: he began with the frame, and without making mistakes, in as few strokes as possible, he would chart the bold lines that make up the image.
Notes on Style & Content
Keith Haring’s catalogue is perhaps one of the most consistent visual oeuvres in all of art history. At the same time, his repeated hieroglyphic images take on various connotations and appear across a spectrum of contexts throughout his work. Thus, Haring’s subject matter becomes widely varied while effortlessly staying true to its original nature. This becomes more apparent when considering common perceptions of Haring’s work alongside some of his more grisly depictions.
The seemingly universal and lucid visual language of Haring’s art, paired with his many simple and easily-digestible characters, often results in interpretations of the artist as a child-friendly storyteller/illustrator. His early inspiration from the likes of Dr. Seuss, Walt Disney, and his father’s comic book illustrations bolster such a view. Despite Haring’s cartoonish influence, and his affinity for youth and the many works he created for children, to dub Haring as a “child-friendly” artist would be incorrect.
While his works often contain likenesses to fairy-tales or cartoons; sex, horror, and gruesome scenarios are equally present. In some of his more startling interpretations, characters like Pinocchio and Cruella De Vil are vigorously alienated from their original form, becoming sexually charged and overtly violent. One of the most bleak examples of Haring’s transgressive content may be his Untitled painting from 1985, which depicts a hellish world of sexual aggression and helpless, tortured souls. Still, despite its reach into dark subjects, Haring’s work simultaneously carries messages of love, fellowship, safety, and peace. He often warns against potential catastrophe, exemplified in Untitled from 1983, depicting a nuclear holocaust. He is also known for his persistence to raise consciousness about AIDS and sexual health, as well as fighting the crack-cocaine epidemic.
Our firm has dealt in many of the paintings and editions you’ll find in the Keith Haring catalogue raisonne. Sculptures and some drawings, while not pictured here, are of interest to us as well. For more information on Keith Haring prints and paintings and the market value of certain pieces, please contact us.
