By Jane Pauley, Anchor, CBS News Sunday Morning
Keith Haring’s art is characterized by interlocking silhouettes and bold lines. As he expressed, “It was made for lots of people. You don’t have to know anything about art to appreciate it.” Austen Bailly, a curator at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, describes Haring’s work as graphic, fun, direct, and appealing. Many people recognize his artwork from everyday items like T-shirts and posters, but there is more to his artistic practice.
An exhibition named “Keith Haring in 3D” is currently on display at Crystal Bridges Museum. It showcases Haring’s widespread influence across New York City, featuring items like a suit worn by Madonna and diverse works such as a painted Buick, a papier-mache elephant, and a painted television. Some of Haring’s works were originally displayed underground, gracing the subway walls, which connected art to everyday commuters who rarely visit galleries. As Haring told CBS News in 1982, “Most of the people that ride the subway don’t go to galleries, and wouldn’t really see the work.”
“He is thinking about what art can be, and he’s thinking about who art is really for,” said Olivia Walton, chair of the Crystal Bridges Museum. Haring’s work tackled the flourishing art scene and pressing issues like the AIDS crisis during the 1980s. His art approached tough topics with a spirit of joy, leaving a profound legacy upon his passing from AIDS-related complications in 1990.
The exhibition “Keith Haring in 3D” runs through January 25, 2027. Other notable exhibitions this fall include:
- The Memphis Art Museum reopens December 6 with works from the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art.
- San Francisco Museum of Modern Art hosts “RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me,” curated by Korean pop star RM of BTS, featuring nearly 200 works.
- The Art Institute of Chicago’s “Lee Miller: Fearless,” celebrates the legacy of war photographer Lee Miller.
- New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art hosts “Krasner and Pollock: Past Continuous,” showcasing works by Lee Krasner and Jackson Pollock.
- Whitney Museum of American Art presents “Roy Lichtenstein: Like New,” featuring over 130 works.
- The Bayeux Tapestry is exhibited at the British Museum in London, marking its first display in England in nearly a millennium.