16.5 × 13.5 in
in
cm
Price: $45,000 USD
Please enquire for a custom shipping quote.
$65,500
plus shipping & taxes
This emphatic silkscreen print is rendered in Keith Haring’s instantly recognizable Neo Pop style. Implying and highlighting motion through bold black dashes, Haring clearly communicates to his viewers the movement of his characters, one red and one yellow, who interact in the most intimate way possible—with one figure literally emerging through the other. Part of his recognizable Pop Shop IV series, this print uses a slightly more muted background colour that places the curiously posed characters in even starker dramatic relief.
Pencil signed, dated and numbered.
| Medium | Prints |
| Signature | Signed |
| Frame | Unframed |
| Condition | Excellent |
| Seller | Professional |
| Location | USA |
| Provenance | Private Collection, USA |
Keith Haring, born on May 4, 1958, in Reading, Pennsylvania, developed a passion for drawing at an early age. He learned the basics of cartooning from his father and drew inspiration from popular culture figures like Dr. Seuss and Walt Disney. After graduating high school, Haring moved to New York City and enrolled in the School of Visual Arts.
In New York, Haring became part of a thriving alternative art scene that flourished outside traditional galleries and museums. This community of artists, musicians, performers, and graffiti writers worked in unconventional spaces like subways, clubs, and former dance halls. During this time, Haring befriended artists such as Kenny Scharf and Jean-Michel Basquiat. Immersed in the energy of this creative environment, Haring began showcasing his work at venues like Club 57 and developed a distinct style centred on the primacy of line.
In 1980, Haring discovered an innovative way to reach a wider audience when he noticed unused advertising panels covered in matte black paper in subway stations. Using white chalk, he transformed these blank surfaces into spaces for his drawings. Over the next five years, he created hundreds of these “subway drawings,” sometimes producing as many as 40 in a single day. For Haring, the subway became a “laboratory” where he refined his ideas and experimented with his bold, rhythmic lines. Commuters often paused to watch and interact with him as he worked, making his art a part of New York City’s daily life.
From 1980 to 1986, Haring gained international acclaim, participating in numerous group and solo exhibitions. His first solo show, held at the Tony Shafrazi Gallery in New York in 1982, was both a critical and popular success. During this period, Haring’s work was included in prestigious international exhibitions, such as Documenta 7 in Kassel, Germany, the São Paulo Biennial, and the Whitney Biennial. He also completed several public projects, with many created for charities, hospitals, and children’s centres, reflecting his commitment to community-oriented work.
Public art became a significant focus of Haring’s career. Between 1982 and 1989, he produced more than 50 public works in cities worldwide, often incorporating social messages. Haring used his art to advocate for causes and to bring attention to critical issues, including children’s welfare and AIDS awareness.
In 1988, Haring was diagnosed with AIDS. During the final years of his life, he used his imagery to address his illness and promote activism and awareness around the AIDS epidemic. Despite his brief but prolific career during the 1980s, Haring participated in over 100 solo and group exhibitions. His work addressed universal themes like birth, death, love, sex, and war, with a simplicity of line and directness of message that made his imagery accessible and enduring. Haring’s visual language has since become one of the most recognisable of the 20th century.
Keith Haring passed away from AIDS-related complications on February 16, 1990, at the age of 31. His legacy lives on through international retrospectives and the continued presence of his work in major museums around the world.
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