KMK: Keith Haring Show at SOMA

You may or may not know his name, but I’m sure you’ve seen the work of Keith Haring. You know, the bold bright reds, greens, blues, yellows, and purples; the ambigously asexual human figures posed in almost alphabetic positions, the tribal design lines and simple but powerful depictions of life, death, and rebirth.

Keith Haring’s work is iconic and known around the world. His emergence on the New York art scene in the 1980’s placed him alongside other notable artists of the time like Madonna, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Grace Jones, and Andy Warhol.  His graffiti influenced pop art reflected his New York surroundings but still remained infused by the eclectic juxtaposition of the everyday images and products that provides the common thread of the style.

In the midst of the big social events of the Eighties his work took on a decidedly socio-political bent. He tackled subjects such as HIV and Apartheid in South Africa. He traveled the world on commission to paint murals across the globe including stops in Australia, Paris, Phoenix, Amsterdam, and Berlin. His exhibitions continue to cross the world exposing more and more people to his work despite his death in 1990.

In Seoul, at the SOMA in Olympic Park, you can catch the Keith Haring Show which includes his sketches, paintings and sculptures.

The Good:

Olympic Park is a breathtakingly awesome venue

Your favorite Keith Haring pieces will be there!

Promoting Queer identified artists in Korea

The Bad:

No photographs in the galleries!

The Weird:

With all the risqué sexy images on TV shows and commercials why is it that young adults are banned from a gallery in the museum?

SOMA

June 17 to Stemptember 5

10 to 7 pm Wednesdays and Saturdays 10 to 9pm

Adults: 12,000 KRW

Teacher Discount

SOMA on Twitter

To get to SOMA, you can either go to Mongchontogsung Station (Line 8), exit 1 or go to Olympic Park Station (Line 5), exit 3

Be Sure to Check out the Video Below Of Haring’s work with Grace Jones.