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Lot Essay
Executed in 1983, and included in Keith Haring’s historic exhibition at the Fun Gallery in New York that year, Untitled captures the raw, vibrant energy of his heady early career. From a flurry of bold red and black lines, one of the artist’s signature figures springs to life, arms and legs akimbo in a state of joyful euphoria. Following on from the success of his first solo exhibition the previous year, Haring’s show at the Fun Gallery placed him at the centre of New York’s thriving contemporary art scene. The gallery was the first to be established in Manhattan’s East Village, and quickly became a hub for young urban artists, showcasing the work of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Kenny Scharf and others. For his exhibition, Haring painted the walls with writhing motifs and colours, creating a dizzying, immersive backdrop for the present work and its companions. One of a number from this period executed upon freely-shaped pieces of found calf hide, Untitled harbours a primitive, tribal quality that operates in scintillating counterpoint with the influence of graffiti and comic books.
As a child, Haring spent hours drawing with his father – a keen amateur cartoonist. Later on, he would find inspiration in a wide variety of sources: from the ‘art brut’ of Jean Dubuffet, to Jackson Pollock’s drip paintings, Andy Warhol’s Pop creations and ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. Upon moving to New York, where he threw himself into the city’s surging underground scene, Haring began to make a name for himself drawing on vacant subway billboards. His distinctive symbolic language – including barking dogs, spaceships and animated stick-like figures – captured the public’s imagination. As his practice progressed, Haring began to transfer these motifs to other media, favouring unstretched supports that lent his works a primal, unstudied aura. Believing that art should be for the people, he infused his characters with a powerful, optimistic energy, choreographing them into wild dance-like formations. This quality is palpable in the present work: at once ancient and futuristic, the figure captures the ecstatic, frenetic spirit with which Haring took his place on New York’s creative stage.
As a child, Haring spent hours drawing with his father – a keen amateur cartoonist. Later on, he would find inspiration in a wide variety of sources: from the ‘art brut’ of Jean Dubuffet, to Jackson Pollock’s drip paintings, Andy Warhol’s Pop creations and ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. Upon moving to New York, where he threw himself into the city’s surging underground scene, Haring began to make a name for himself drawing on vacant subway billboards. His distinctive symbolic language – including barking dogs, spaceships and animated stick-like figures – captured the public’s imagination. As his practice progressed, Haring began to transfer these motifs to other media, favouring unstretched supports that lent his works a primal, unstudied aura. Believing that art should be for the people, he infused his characters with a powerful, optimistic energy, choreographing them into wild dance-like formations. This quality is palpable in the present work: at once ancient and futuristic, the figure captures the ecstatic, frenetic spirit with which Haring took his place on New York’s creative stage.