Keith Haring's vital art

Born in Pennsylvania in 1958, Keith Haring was one of the most influential artists of the 1980s. And had he not died of AIDS-related complications at the age of 31 in 1990, Haring would probably still be playing an important role in the art world today. His creative drive and sense of social criticism would certainly have found an audience in the Trump era.

His style was built on simple lines and figures, which often were drawn in black and white. Yet Keith Haring's works remain timeless and are already classics. He rarely named his pieces; this drawing, created in 1981, is called "Untitled" ⁠— like so many other of his works. Even after 40 years, there's plenty of room for interpretation here: Who is the recipient of this illumination?

In the first half of the 1980s, much of Haring's work was dedicated to his "Subway Drawings." The New York subway served as his canvas during this time, when he created thousands of drawings. He would draw figures and symbols on small black panels that were actually intended to be used for advertising purposes. But his "stories" were so simple that even the rush hour crowd could relate to them.

Here's another work that bears no title, created in 1982. Haring would often use enamel paint and neon colors on metal. When it came to interpretations, he would rarely comment. To this day, people want to know what he was trying to say. What is this big red figure in the painting? Is it an animal that is taking some kind of revenge on little green humans? Is it juggling or singing to them?

But there also is some repetition among the motifs in Haring's imagery. Soon after the murder of John Lennon in 1980, he started to create drawings of people with holes in their bodies. In this example, Haring combined that motif with religious symbolism, creating a human cross. The death of the Beatles singer had left a strong impression on the artist.

Haring took a clear and strong stand against racism, homophobia and any other form of ignorance. This was especially the case when there was script to complement his motifs. Haring was aware that he, too, had contracted HIV, which at that time was still a fatal disease. He vehemently opposed any silence and repression around AIDS, which was particularly affecting the gay community.