Keith Haring // Untitled, 1985 // Offset Lithograph

"Untitled, 1985" by Keith Haring, Offset Lithograph.

Keith Haring was an American artist whose simplified line shapes and bold colors make his style one of the most widely recognized in contemporary art. He was a social activist, and his work was often political in nature, responding to the New York City street culture of the 1980s. He explored themes of birth, death, love, sexuality, money, social justice, the human experience and more. Influences from his childhood in Pennsylvania included Walt Disney cartoons, Dr. Seuss, Charles Schulz and the Looney Tunes characters in The Bugs Bunny Show, and he clearly draws inspiration from the ancient history of written letterforms. He studied commercial art for two years in school, but lost interest in it, inspired to focus on his own art after reading Robert Henri's The Art Spirit (1923). He got his first recognition as a true NYC subway street artist.