KAWS - 20th Century & Contemporary Art Day Sale London Wednesday, October 2, 2019 | Phillips
  • Description

    Phillips believes that this lot was manufactured or created in mainland China and if imported to the USA may be subject to an import tariff. For more information, see paragraph 12 of the Conditions of Sale in our auction sale catalogue or contact one of our specialists.

  • Provenance

    Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Wakefield
    Private Collection, London

  • Artist Biography

    KAWS

    American • 1974

    To 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.  

    View More Works

228

Three works: (i) SMALL LIE (Brown); (ii) SMALL LIE (Black); (iii) SMALL LIE (Grey)

(i-iii) printed with the artist's name, date, fabricator and title 'KAWS..17 SMALL LIE MEDICOM TOY CHINA' on the underside
painted vinyl, in original Medicom packaging
(i-iii) 27.5 x 12.9 x 12.2 cm (10 7/8 x 5 1/8 x 4 3/4 in.)
(i-iii) Executed in 2017, this work is from a limited edition fabricated by Medicom Toy, Japan.

Estimate
£1,000 - 1,500 

Sold for £3,000

Contact Specialist

Tamila Kerimova
Director, Specialist
Head of Day Sale
+44 20 7318 4065
tkerimova@phillips.com

20th Century & Contemporary Art Day Sale

London Auction 3 October 2019