KEITH HARING, STONES 3, STONES SERIES, SIGNED LITHOGRAPH, EDITION OF 60, 1989
Keith Haring’s Stones 3 is a lithograph print from his Stones series showing a black and white abstract pattern. This print is a striking example of the Pop artist’s ability to create complex images while maintaining the simplicity of line he is known for.
Produced as lithographs just one year before he passed away from AIDS-related complications, the works in this series are reminiscent of Haring’s early subway drawings, stealthily executed in white chalk on the black paper panels put up before a new advertisement was pasted in place, with which he made his name.
Stones 3 inverts Haring’s characteristic bold black lines to white to create an elaborate labyrinth or maze made up of his dancing figures’ limbs and concentric circles that could be seen as heads. Though the labyrinth is an enduring symbol of western art since the ancient Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur, the work also expresses Haring’s debt to non-western traditions, echoing the bold lines of Pre-Columbian art – especially those of Nazca lines – and aboriginal art. By bringing together these various influences, the Stones series can be seen as the epitome of Haring’s hybrid style that knew no difference between high and low, ancient and modern, east and west.
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.
