Keith Haring was an artist and activist known for his pop art in the 1980s New York City subway system. He began creating chalk drawings on unused advertising panels, producing hundreds of rapid line drawings in a day that became familiar to commuters. Haring's artwork responded to NYC street culture and often featured social messages. He worked in multiple mediums including ink, acrylic, and vinyl to create stylized figures and images.
2. WHO IS KEITH
HARING?
Keith Haring (May 4,
1958 – February 16,
1990) was an artist
and social activist
whose work
responded to the New
York City street
culture of the 1980s.
3. In 1980, Haring noticed
the unused advertising
panels covered with matte
a
black paper in
subway station
in New York. He
began to create drawings
in white chalk upon these
throughout the subway
system and these were his
first recognized pieces of
POP ART.
4. Between 1980
and 1985, Haring
produced
hundreds of
these public
drawings in rapid
rhythmic lines,
sometimes
creating as many
as forty “subway
drawings” in one
day.
5. This flow of
images became
familiar to New
York commuters,
who often would
stop to engage the
artist when they
encountered him
at work.