KAWS is currently on display at the National Gallery of Victoria, showing his full spectrum of artistic endeavours based on four identifying themes. The exhibition titled, ‘KAWS: Companionship in the Age of Loneliness’ is on view until 13 April, 2020 and provides a thorough overview of the popular artist’s career.
Divided into the categories of Public Intervention, Iconography, Order and Chaos, and Companionship, this exhibition boasts KAWS’s career setting subvertising antics, his largest bronze sculpture to date, paintings reworking pop-culture figures, as well as his collection of human-scale sculptural Companions.
With works ranging from as early as KAWS’s preparatory drawings, sketchbooks, and graffiti documentation from 1991-1996, the exhibition includes advertising poster collaboration with David Sims, KAWS’s acrylic reinterpretations of pop icons such as the Smurfs, The Simpsons, Snoopy, Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, SpongeBob SquarePants, Jiminy-Cricket, and the Michelin Man, as well as collaborations with brands such as Estudio Campana, UNIQLO, Nike, and Pharrell Williams.
Alongside the above, KAWS’s signature CHUM and COMPANION take their appropriate positions in NGV in acrylic, bronze, aluminium, and fibreglass form. Sculptures on show include: TOGETHER, 2017; WAITING, 2017; COMPANION (RESTING PLACE), 2013; GOOD INTENTIONS, 2015; CLEAN SLATE, 2015; SEEING, 2018; COMPANION (ORIGINAL FAKE), 2011; ACCOMPLICE, 2010; and WATCHING, 2018.
For this exhibition NGV have stepped up the level of interactivity with students and youngsters gaining the best tickets into the fun. Australia’s oldest and most visited art museum have included specialised segments of the show called PLAYTIME and the Student Learning Program, which provide in-depth educational and participatory pathways into understanding the subject matter and creative process of KAWS; with options to playfully explore or sign up for in-house tours and classes, as well as alternative virtual tours and online classes for out-of-town students.
Designed to answer questions like: how does KAWS’s work straddle the worlds of art and design? What role does humour and emotion play in his work? How does it connect with contemporary audiences? – this segment of the exhibition offers participants the opportunity to learn and even create their own personal companion to take home.
While the above may make some collector-crazed grown-ups cry with envy, the exhibition comes equipped with a pop-up shop with all sorts of memorabilia and merchandise available for you to purchase in-store and online. For those of you looking for a similar educational experience, included in the shop is a book that documents KAWS’s artistic practice across his whole career and incorporates installation documentation of the NGV exhibition.
KAWS is a Brooklyn based, contemporary American artist who is globally recognised for his success in crossing over into the fine arts realm. ‘The Age of Loneliness’ is a comprehensive survey of 25 years of KAWS’s creations, described by NGV as, full of humour, hope and humanity, celebrating his ability to connect with broader audiences.
For information on ticketing and opening times, visit the exhibition homepage on the NGV website.
Visit kawsone.com and follow KAWS on Instagram: @kaws