One of today’s most recognized contemporary artists, KAWS’s artistic vision is rooted in his origins in the skateboarding culture of the 1980s, his work initially confined to the skateboards and billboards of downtown New York. Experimentation with this synthesis of graffiti and commercial art began by integrating his trademark figures into the narrative of the advertisements, curling limbs around nude models, facetiously altering text, and replacing faces with cartoon skulls. This seamless inclusion of his own elements into commercial works, created his distinct identity and ultimately pushed his name into the mainstream.
“ My first interest in graffitti came when I was in grammar school, around '87 or '88 I was about twelve years old. I did not know much about writing, I just knew that I liked to write my name everywhere I could in my neighborhood.”
Born Brian Donnelly, KAWS chose his famed moniker for its graceful translation into the intricate lettering of 1980s graffiti. Commuting into Manhattan from his childhood home in Jersey City, KAWS became one of the many aspiring artists in search of recognition within the city’s blossoming “graff” community. As each searched for their own iconic symbol, style or image, KAWS’s attempts evolved to include his use of skulls, softened lines, and references to popular culture. Throughout this period, his ideas shifted and developed, with his Moon Man one day becoming his famed skull and crossbones and his tags, which began covering only the corner of billboards, grew to cover their full size.Recording his efforts in sketchbooks and small-scale works, KAWS made permanent the evolution of his ideas and creative ambitions.
Even with the variance in his works over the course of his career, KAWS’s commitment to subversive and culturally-conscious art touched even his earliest pieces. Through his collaboration with brands such as Supreme and BAPE, KAWS assured his continued relevance to the widest audience while also maintaining a connection to the fashions and trends of the skating subculture. Having produced a vast and diverse oeuvre over the course of almost three decades, this philosophy of adaptation and growth has taken inspiration from the technique of his early influences and allowed the style to transform both physically, with the commission of immense public sculptures, and as a movement, moving graffiti out of subways and off of billboards into the realm of fine art. KAWS’s origins place him both within the larger storyline of New York City’s street art renaissance and outside of it, having made a name beyond the confines of this genre with incredible success. However, this accomplishment is perhaps the purest distillation of his identity as a street artist, as he created a moniker so widely known that it can exist beyond the boundaries of its physical form and enjoy true universal recognition.