On Friday, the Brooklyn Museum unveils Keith Haring: 1978-1982, the first large-scale exhibition to explore the early career of the legendary queer artist. Curated by Raphaela Platow, the exhibit traces the development of Haring’s visual vocabulary with 155 works on paper and videos as well as 150 archival objects—sketchbooks journals, flyers for exhibits, posters, subway sketches and documentary style photographs.
Haring was born in 1958 in Reading, PA, and in Pittsburgh, but it was in New York, where he moved in 1978, that he truly blossomed. The exhibition chronicles Haring’s early years in New York, where he worked alongside Jean-Michel Basquiat, Kenny Scharf and other emerging artists, creating graffiti and street-style art that inspired a generation of artists and activists, many of whom were involved in ACT UP.
The Brooklyn Museum will show several pieces never before seen in public, including Painting Myself into a Corner, Tribute to Gloria Vanderbilt and collages created from cut-up fragments of his own writing, history textbooks, and newspapers. Haring died of complications from AIDS in 1990 at the age of 32.
Click through for artwork from the Brooklyn Museum retrospective on Keith Haring
Keith Haring: 1978-1982 runs from March 16-July 8, 2012. Images courtesy of the Brooklyn Museum
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Rick
I gasped when I saw this… Such a part of my young adulthood. Thank you! 🙂
The Real Mike in Asheville
@Rick: Me too!
In 1978, I chose Berkeley to experience young adulthood but spent more time in NYC than any other place, and got to see Haring’s work as he progressed — a great talent and a sad loss. We were not only born, graduated HS and came out in the same time frame, we were also infected around the same time, struggled losing so many friends, got diagnosed in same time frame, participated in ActUP, too.
I loved the freedom to be that Haring expressed in his art, the life, love and energy. Admiring his work simply made me happy.
There were more than a handful of times when I needed some self-pity to just let loose all the anger and stress that I would put on my old Best of Bread album and flipped through my collection of Keith Haring books for a good cry.
CBRad
That’s pretty cool. I appreciate Haring a lot.
Yuval
I love that you’re doing more queer art on this site, it’s refreshing. Love the Keith Haring images.
Thank you, Queerty!
Shar100
All hail the late, great Keith Haring!
Clarissa
I look forward to seeing this exhibition! It’s always interesting to see the doodles and sketchbooks behind the artist; it’s cool to see some of the “process” is included in this show. My curiosity is piqued thanks to the slideshow you posted.
Navi
I’m taking a class in art and activism in the 80’s and we are observing his work so much right now. I truly admire him, it is so incredibly sad that he died so young. He is a true New York Icon and a Gay Rights Icon.