KEITH HARING, BAYER SUITE 1, BAYER SUITE SERIES, SIGNED OFFSET LITHOGRAPH, EDITION OF 70, 1982
Keith Haring’s lithograph print Bayer Suite 1 from his Bayer Suite series (1982) is an early example of the artist’s trademark figurative style. The series was commissioned by Bayer AG on the occasion of the release of the heart medication ‘Sali-Adalat’ and consists of six different motifs on the theme of movement and the heart.
Bayer Suite 1 shows an image of two genderless figures with their arms outstretched, holding up a large heart in the centre of the frame. Graphic lines radiate from the heart to give the effect that it is pulsating, and action lines are shown at the figures’ feet making them look as though they are dancing with joy. This celebratory image bursts with energy and vigour, a sensibility that makes Haring’s work so appealing and unique.
Across the series, Haring limits his colour palette to black, red and white, producing a highly simplified and stylised set of works. The simplistic form and positive visual language of Bayer Suite 1 recalls the artist’s early subway drawings, where he spent his days drawing in white chalk on the empty advertising panels of the New York subway system.
Read more about Bayer Suite by Keith Haring.
ABOUT KEITH HARING
Known for his bold graphic style and playful sense of humour, Keith Haring is one of the most influential and adored artists of the 20th century.
Born in Pennsylvania, in 1958, Haring was a talented draughtsman as a child and developed his cartoonish style at the hands of his father and the work of Walt Disney and Dr Seuss. However it would take some time before he realised he could marry this kind of drawing with being a fine artist. Upon graduating from high school he enrolled in a commercial art school before realising he had little interest in pursuing a career as an illustrator or graphic designer. After dropping out of college he joined the hippie movement and hitchhiked across the country where he made anti-Nixon t-shirts to pay for food and Grateful Dead tickets. Learn more about Keith Haring.
