Kaws goes solo

I'm not a big fan of Kaws' work, but I thought it was worth mentioning this first solo museum exhibition opens today at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Connecticut.

The exhibition runs through until Jan 2nd, 2011 and features Kaws' most recent paintings, sculptures, and drawings along with a retrospective of his highly recognizable street art, clothing, and graphic designs.

"KAWS’s first aesthetic influences came from skateboarding, as did his familiarity with New York City. 

Around 1991, he started marking his name in different areas of New Jersey and Manhattan. By the time he finished high school, he was mostly focused on graffiti and started intervening on advertising billboards. While exploring new strategies and locations for his work, he obtained a tool for opening bus shelter advertisement boxes. This allowed KAWS to seize the posters, integrate his work, and then replace them. 

He added an inflated skull with crossed bones and X-ed-out eyes; sometimes the skull was part of a serpentine-looking body that wrapped around the models, a blend that was humorous and daring. Word got around, and when it came to the point where the posters were pulled down and collected almost as soon as KAWS had replaced them, he decided to move on. 

Next he channeled his creativity into his studio practice, as well as products he developed and distributed on his own and in his boutique in Tokyo, OriginalFake, in partnership with Medicom Toy." Mónica Ramírez-Montagut, curator.