157
KAWS
TENSION
- Estimate
- £40,000 - 60,000‡
£44,100
Lot Details
screenprint, in 10 parts
each signed, dated and numbered '68/100 KAWS..19' lower margin
each 88.9 x 58.4 cm (35 x 23 in.)
Executed in 2019, this work is number 68 from an edition of 100 plus 20 artist's proofs.
Specialist
Full-Cataloguing
Provenance
KAWS
American | 1974To understand the work of KAWS is to understand his roots in the skateboard and graffiti crews of New York City. Brian Donnelly chose KAWS as his moniker to tag city streets beginning in the 1990s, and quickly became a celebrated standout in the scene. Having swapped spray paint for explorations in fine art spanning sculpture, painting and collage, KAWS has maintained a fascination with classic cartoons, including Garfield, SpongeBob SquarePants and The Simpsons, and reconfigured familiar subjects into a world of fantasy. Perhaps he is most known for his larger-than-life fiberglass sculptures that supplant the body of Mickey Mouse onto KAWS' own imagined creatures, often with 'x'-ed out eyes or ultra-animated features. However, KAWS also works frequently in neon and vivid paint, adding animation and depth to contemporary paintings filled with approachable imagination. There is mass appeal to KAWS, who exhibits globally and most frequently in Asia, Europe and the United States.
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