#politicalharing

Keith Allen Haring (May 4, 1958 – February 16, 1990) was an American artist and social activist whose work responded to the New York City street culture of the 1980s by expressing concepts of birth, death, sexuality, and war. Haring's work was often heavily political and his imagery has become a widely recognized visual language of the 20th century.

We saw the exhibtion this weekend at the De Young in San Francisco. A MUST SEE!
It ends on the 16th of February, so those of you that are local, you should get over there this week.

Amazing, tape and headlines can send powerful messages.

Feels familiar.

moses and the burning bush

one of his most famous pieces.

Apartheid

"I'm sure inside I'm not white. . . I'm proud to be gay.  I'm proud to have friends and lovers of every color.  I am ashamed of my forefathers, I am not like them."

In his work Silence=Death Haring portrays multiple figures covering their eyes, mouths, and ears. The piece is intended to illustrate the oppression and invisibility that AIDS victims felt in the 1980s. Works like Haring's helped to give those living with AIDS more visibility at a time when many were suffering in absolute silence, with no voice, no visibility and no support from those around them. In Silence=Death, the figures are all laid over a pink triangle, a symbol associated with homosexual men. Originally used during the Holocaust, the pink triangle was used to signify those who were being targeted for their homosexuality. Since then, the symbol has often been reclaimed and re-appropriated by the gay rights movement. The AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) also used the symbol starting in 1987.

It is incredible how you walk thru the journey of an artist and be completely consumed and taken by their work.  Relating to the struggle and the power.  The images and the intention.

Bravo, Keith Haring!

RIP.

Haring died on Friday February 16, 1990 of AIDS-related complications.[15]

As a celebration of his life, Madonna declared the first New York date of her Blond Ambition World Tour a benefit concert for Haring's memory and donated all proceeds from her ticket sales to AIDS charities including AIDS Project Los Angeles and amfAR; the act was documented in her film Truth or Dare.