DEAR KEITH
Back in the 80s you were one of the very few American artists that I looked up to, held my interest, and cared to know about. Maybe it was just easy to to connect with your visual messages and expressions. They were always bold, fun, fresh, immediate and primal. Every piece was an adventure; you painted with no preliminary sketches or plan. You did it, shared it...and traveled the world.
Keith Haring Documentary: https://youtu.be/GPlzHR_WyVA
Keith Haring - CBS News: https://youtu.be/W04j0Je01wQ
Back then I was a young man, stuck; still "California Dreaming" of starting a life in NYC, until the day I did it, and announced to my parents I was moving to the Big Apple. To this day, I try to imagine the "petri dish" that East Village life probably was, and flashback to the "raw & edgy" NYC you infused with your energy, artistry and vision. I was situated far from it, but wanted to be in it, if not close to it one day.
Luckily for me on the West Coast your rocket soared. Sought after by the media and popular culture, you became the prized prince of mass/pop art. Your art was everywhere - in print, public service announcements, t-shirts, baseball caps, headbands, AIDS awareness posters. Exposed also were your celebrity stints with Andy Warhol, Basquiat, Madonna and Grace Jones, just to name a few.
It is what I felt that seemed most important to you: connecting with everyday people. People who used the subways; people who walked the streets. You communicated thru your art: thought provoking visuals, playful sexuality, political statements, ideas and life affirmations. You pushed into the everyday, serious issues, at the same time, not taking yourself too seriously. You understood the power of these day-to-day connections and you embraced it...made it easy for us to swallow. You shared wholeheartedly; expressed fearlessly. I did not dream of being a street artist. What you did was help me to realize that I had to pursue a dream that would allow me to express myself creatively.
By the time I moved to New York City in 1991...we had already lost you to AIDS at age 31. Some of your street art was still present on bldg. walls (maybe even today) and your Pop Shop (for the world) was still open for business. It would have been amazing to have seen you evolve as an artist. Who knows? I could have come upon you at some random moment, on some random street or subway passage, discovering you passionately at work. Looking back. Your life, as spontaneous as your work, seemed like a fleeting moment, we wish had no end.
Thank you for inspiring courage in the young lost naive gay boy I was, struggling to be alright with his sexuality. Because of you, it was A-OK to be myself, to be different, from somewhere else, in a big city of dreamers and do-ers. You were definitely a role model at a time we had less role models and needed them the most. SO MANY...gay men losing lives and those living, pre-occupied with surviving. You faced your AIDS bravely. You made a difference!
I'm decades older, but you still inspire me to be better; to dig deeper. Definitely a long way to go with some artistic dreams still unrealized here. I look to your "radiant baby" now, as a call to action, a constant vibrating birthing of new ideas.
Happy Birthday Keith
I know you're out there!
I.O.U. rodrigo
Keith Haring Documentary: https://youtu.be/GPlzHR_WyVA
Keith Haring - CBS News: https://youtu.be/W04j0Je01wQ
Keith Haring - CBS News: https://youtu.be/W04j0Je01wQ
