The Buyer’s Guide To Keith Haring

Growing 1 by Keith Haring - MyArtBrokerGrowing 1 © Keith Haring 1988
Rebecca Marsham

Rebecca Marsham, Sales Director[email protected]

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If you are in the market to buy a Keith Haring print, here are a few pieces of advice before you start your search, to make sure you find the right piece at the right price.

Read MyArtBroker's Keith Haring Investment Guide In 2024.

Looking to sell a Haring print instead? Read our dedicated Keith Haring Sellers Guide.

Why Collect Keith Haring?

Famous for his bold black-outlined figures and joyful primary colours, Keith Haring believed art was for the people. He produced street art on the Berlin Wall and billboards for Times Square, as well as construction sites and New York’s subway system. In his printed work, Haring tried to recapture the same accessibility, producing art that was heavily related to life at the time and could be purchased by anyone.

Haring’s work continues to be revered by the critics and kids alike, thanks to his continuing presence on the market and in museums. The Keith Haring Foundation has collaborated with streetwear brands and established fashion houses, such as Uniqlo and Coach, to ensure his work is as iconic now as it was during his lifetime.

Starting a Keith Haring Collection

The first thing to do if you are considering collecting a Keith Haring is to familiarise yourself with his oeuvre, since Keith Haring prints constitute a large and diverse body of work.

Haring’s initial foray into prints and printmaking began with traditional methods, such as lithography and etching; as his style developed, he began experimenting with screenprints, undoubtedly inspired by Andy Warhol, who was one of Haring’s most important influences. As he progressed with screenprinting, Haring’s style developed from simple colours, like in Bayer Suite, to bolder, brighter and more sophisticated images like Apocalypse, ​​made in collaboration with writer William Burroughs.

Pop Shop prints

Haring’s fascination with accessibility led him to open numerous ‘Pop Shops’, where people could buy his work for as little as 50 cents. His experimentation with printmaking allowed him to reproduce his paintings over and over again, making his Pop Shop sales viable. It was a way of subverting art market elitism.

“I could earn more money if I just painted a few things and jacked up the price. My shop is an extension of what I was doing in the subway stations, breaking down the barriers between high and low art,” said Haring. The Pop Shops were a way of “taking art off the pedestal. I’m giving it back to the people.”

Portfolios

Some of Haring’s most sought after series – including Stones, Icons, Retrospect and the Pop Shop sets – continue to fetch high prices due to their striking designs, iconic imagery and high quality. A full portfolio is normally valued higher while single prints from the set. A complete set of five prints of the Fertility Suite sold for £175,503 with fees at auction in September 2019, while a single print from the portfolio sold for £44,000 with fees in June 2021.
Navigating the Haring market, knowing whether to make a purchase privately or at auction, buying a specific print, or building a collection can be tricky. But to get you started, we have put together the most essential factors to look out for when you’re landing a Haring.

Is Keith Haring a good investment?

With an established, medium sized market, Keith Haring's commercially iconic print works have been met with success at auction and private sale for decades. Haring's secondary print market is now stronger than it was in 2018 and 2019. Individual prints and complete sets by Haring continue to be worthwhile investments as we enter 2023, with positive projected returns.

Artist-cum-activist Keith Haring has been one of the most prolific and animated forces of Pop Art since his rise to fame in the 1980s. Haring still typifies the socially conscious nature of Pop & Urban Art in the 1980s, and collecting Haring's limited print editions affords collectors the opportunity to own crucial pieces of social, political, and art history.

Learn more about Keith Haring's print market in our latest 2023 American Pop Print Report.

Andy Mouse (complete set) by Keith HaringAndy Mouse (complete set) © Keith Haring 1986

How much are Keith Haring prints worth?

Keith Haring’s prints can sell for up to six-figure at auction; in 2022, individual signed limited edition Keith Haring prints sold for anywhere between around £500 (though most prints from edition sizes smaller than 1000 begin around £1000) and £214,200 at auction.

At the top end of this range is an Andy Mouse (1986) print, from an edition of only 30, which sold at auction for £504,000 when offered by Christie’s on the 28th September 2022. While this is no small sum of money, complete portfolios by Keith Haring regularly sell for even more. In 2022, for example, the most expensive Haring print sale was of a complete set of Andy Mouse (1986) silkscreens, which sold for £905,754 or $1,008,000 (including fees) at Sotheby’s 'Contemporary Curated' auction on the 30th September 2022.

Of course, popularity, edition size, rarity, condition, provenance as well as whether a print is signed or unsigned can significantly affect a print’s value. Nonetheless, the prices that Haring’s work achieves at auction today remain a far cry from the 50 cent sales in his Pop Shops.

What are some popular Keith Haring prints among collectors?

Keith Haring’s work is often collected for its social commentary, its connection to the issues of the time, and the revolutionary attitudes of Haring trying to subvert the art world. As a result, prints laden with some of his most politically inflected motifs– his barking dog, who sounds the alarm on various social injustices, fertility symbols, homaging mothers with HIV, or phallic flowers to celebrate gay love– remain eternally powerful. Andy Mouse is undoubtedly also among Haring’s most popular collection of prints with collectors, given its tribute to ‘King of Pop’ Andy Warhol documents the significance of Warhol’s influence on the younger artist’s style as one of Haring’s earliest inspirations.

After extensive data analysis, which looks at the last 5-years of Haring’s prints' auction performance, these are some of the prints that we think are worth looking out for in 2023:

  1. Best Buddies: Themes of peace and unity underscore Haring's socio-politically driven oeuvre, and that is perhaps no better expressed than in Best Buddies. Originally designed as the logo for Anthony Shriver's Best Buddies organisation, the work was reproduced as a limited print series which was sold to raise over $500,000 for the project. Best Buddies worked to help create opportunities for those living with developmental disabilities, and Haring's print is an enduring homage to this organisation. The print is one of Haring's most instantly recognisable and universally readable, and is unsurprisingly his most investable print by a considerable margin. Since 2017, the print has experienced colossal growth in value of approx. 640%.
  2. Untitled 1985: Haring was renowned for crafting a universal iconography, like modern hieroglyphics which could be read beyond all race, class, sex, gender, and language barriers. Untitled 1985 perfectly exemplifies that universal approach to imagery, with his ubiquitous figures harmoniously moving about the composition. Created in 1985 as a limited edition of 150, Untitled 1985 has proved particularly popular in the last five years, with value growth reaching approx. 470%.
  3. Dr Winkies Wedding Invitation: Though this work was created as a personal wedding announcement for Estefania Kong and Lawrence ‘Dr. Winkie’ Lin, Dr Winkies Wedding Invitation is characterised by its universal appeal. Two purple figures gyrate and lean in towards one another, their union cemented with a red love heart at the centre of the composition. These conjoined figures were a frequent motif in Haring's oeuvre, symbolising togetherness and intimacy. The romantic print has realised approx. 470% growth in value since 2017, speaking to the enduring nature of Haring's sentimental work.

Of course, when buying a print, the primary guiding factor should always be which artworks appeal to you, and which you will take most pride in owning.

To explore our full breakdown of the top 10 most investable Keith Haring prints for 2023, read our Haring Market Watch here.

How to authenticate Keith Haring art

As when buying any work of art, authenticity and provenance are key considerations when purchasing a print. Most editions by Haring are signed by the artist so this should be the first thing to look for. There are also many unsigned prints on the market but collectors should always ensure these are authenticated by the Keith Haring Foundation.

Provenance is essential – always make sure the print you are buying is accompanied by a certificate of authentication, gallery or auction receipt, or documents detailing previous owners. These paperworks are important for proving the print’s authenticity, and retaining its value.

Our "How to Authenticate Keith Haring Prints" offers an even more in-depth view of the authentication process for Keith Haring artworks.

How to check the condition of a Keith Haring print

You should make sure the Haring print you want to buy is in pristine condition: anything less will affect its value. If possible, ask to see the print unframed so you can check for signs of damage, like tears, stains or warping of the paper. MyArtBroker can advise on if the print should be brought to a restoration expert – contact us for more information.

Once you have bought your Haring print, you should protect it in a frame with UV-protective glass and hang it away from direct sunlight and moisture. If you decide not to display your print, keep it in a dark place away from sunlight. Lay it flat, not rolled, in order to maintain its condition and value.

Find out more in our guide to restoring and caring for modern and contemporary prints.

Where can I buy a Keith Haring print in 2023?

Whether you are a seasoned collector or buying your first print, it is important to choose a trusted source. Galleries and auction houses are reputable options but their premiums are very high.

At MyArtBroker, our brokers offer the trust and confidence that comes with meeting with a specialist, as well as the ease and convenience of buying online; we can assist you with buying a Haring print from our international network of sellers, and also help with provenance, authenticity and checking the condition.

Why use MyArtBroker to find your first Keith Haring?

At MyArtBroker we offer a safe and simple solution to buyers, connecting you directly with our expert brokers, who — if you are wishing to purchase a particular piece of Keith Haring art to either start or grow your collection — can assist you in this search with our large network of collectors looking to buy and sell daily. Our brokers will also condition check and authenticate artworks, so you can have confidence before you buy.

A dedicated broker

MyArtBroker offers a secure space to connect you as a buyer with an expert broker— you can get to know our friendly specialists here.

Your personal broker will work with you to find the Keith Haring you’re looking for at the price you’re willing to pay. Our experts will also condition check and authenticate artworks, so you can have confidence before you buy, as well as help arrange delivery.

We offer both the sense of trust and comfort that comes with meeting with a specialist personally, as well as the efficiency, transparency and ease of an online process.

Our network

Our global network consists of over 30,000 collectors buying and selling works daily, as well as dealers, collectors, galleries and independent experts globally that work with us to ensure we can offer the most covetable and authentic Keith Haring works. Our website has 75,000 visitors every month, and we regularly publish pieces tracking the artist’s market performance, keep up to date with new works, auction results and news, as well as offer his updated biography and informative essays on all Keith Haring editions.

MyArtBroker has access to a worldwide network of art collectors selling Keith Haring artwork, so get in touch with us if you’re interested in buying a Keith Haring print and we’ll talk you through the process.

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