KAWS, born 1974 in New Jersey, is a multi-faceted New York based artist. KAWS began his career as a graffiti artist in Jersey City, taking to the streets at night and painting over advertisements. In the early 1990s, KAWS moved to New York City, where he earned a Bachelor's Degree of Fine Art, with an emphasis in illustration, from the School of Visual Arts. Soon after, KAWS began working as a freelance animator for the Walt Disney Company, where he contributed to films such as 101 Dalmatians, Daria, and Doug. During the 1990s, KAWS also began designing and producing limited edition vinyl toys, which became an instant sensation in the global art toy collecting community. More recently, KAWS has designed toys and clothing for established brands and companies, such as Original Fake, Undercover, Kung Faux, Comme des Garcons, Vans, and Nike. He worked with Nike and Uniqlo in 2017 to produce garments inspired by his distinctly recognizable iconography. KAWS has reworked many well known television and cartoon characters, including characters from The Simpsons, Mickey Mouse, The Smurfs, Spongebob Squarepants, and Peanuts, to name a few. KAWS subverts these figures to question the lines between consumerism and cultural value. Critics have compared KAWS to masters such as Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring, whose careers also began as street artists. KAWS challenges the categories of ‘high’ and ‘low’ art and blurs the lines between commercial and fine art. KAWS skillfully participates in both the art and design worlds with a breadth of murals, paintings, prints, and large-scale sculptures located in hot spots all over the world. KAWS currently lives and works in New York City.

S E L E C T E X H I B I T I O N S

1995 . STAATLICHE KUNSTHALLE, BADEN-BADEN

1996 . INSTITUTO VALENCIANO DE ARTE MODERNO, VALENCIA

1997 . P.S. 1/INSTITUTE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, NEW YORK

1998 . THE SAATCHI GALLERY, LONDON

1999 . GALLERIA CIVICA DI ARTE CONTEMPORANEA, TRENTO

. ‘KAWS’, COLETTE, PARIS, FRANCE

2000 . KUNST UND AUSSTELLUNGSHALLE DER BUNDESREPUBLIK
DEUTSCHLAND, BONN

2001 . ‘TOKYO FIRST’, PARCO GALLERY, TOKYO, JAPAN

2002 . ‘C9’, MU ART FOUNDATION, EINDHOVEN, NETHERLANDS

2003 . ‘ORIGINALFAKE’, BAPE GALLERY, TOKYO, JAPAN

2008 . ‘KAWS’, GERING & LÓPEZ GALLERY, NEW YORK, NY

. ‘SATURATED’, GALERIE EMMANUEL PERROTIN, MIAMI, FL

2009 . ‘THE LONG WAY HOME’, HONOR FRASER, LOS ANGELES, CA

2010 . A RETROSPECTIVE OF KATZ’S PRINT WORK WAS HELD AT THE
ALBERTINA MUSEUM IN VIENNA

. ‘COMPANION (PASSING THROUGH)’, HARBOUR CITY, CHINA

. ‘PAY THE DEBT TO NATURE’, GALERIE PERROTIN, PARIS, FRANCE

. ‘KAWS’, GALERIA JAVIER LOPEZ, MADRID, SPAIN

2011 . ‘KAWS: COMPANION’, HIGH MUSEUM OF ART, ATLANTA, GA

. ‘FOCUS: KAWS’, MUSEUM OF FORT WORTH, TX

. ‘HOLD THE LINE’, HONOR FRASER, LOS ANGELES, CA

. ‘COMPANION (PASSING THROUGH)’, THE STANDARD, NY, NY

2012 . ‘COMPANION (PASSING THROUGH)’ MUSEUM OF FORT WORTH, TX

. ‘IMAGINARY FRIENDS’, GALERIE PERROTIN, PARIS, FRANCE

. ‘THE NATURE OF NEED’, GALERIE PERROTIN, HONG KONG, CHINA

. ‘KAWS: DOWN TIME’, HIGH MUSEUM OF ART, ATLANTA, GA

2013 . ‘KAWS AT 30TH STREET STATION: COMPANION (PASSING
THROUGH)’, PENNSYLVANIA ACADEMY OF THE FINE ARTS,
PHILADELPHIA, PA

. ‘KAWS GISWIL’, MORE GALLERY, GISWIL, SWITZERLAND

. ‘KAWS @ PAFA’, PENNSYLVANIA ACADEMY OF THE FINE ARTS,
PHILADELPHIA, PA

. ‘SCULPTURE PLINTH EXHIBITION PROGRAM: KAWS’, PA

. ’UPS AND DOWNS’, NERMAN MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART,
KANSAS, US

. ‘PASS THE BLAME’, GALERIE PERROTIN, NEW YORK, NY

2014 . ‘PLAY YOUR PART’, GALERIA JAVIER LOPEZ, MADRID, SPAIN

. ‘MAN'S BEST FRIEND’, HONOR FRASER, LOS ANGELES, CA

. ‘CLEAN SLATE’, HARBOUR CITY, HONG KONG, CHINA

. ‘FINAL DAYS’, CENTRO DE ARTE CONTEMPORÁNEO, MÁLAGA, SPAIN

2015 . ‘PERMANENT VACATION II’, EDEN ROCK GALLERY, ST. BARTHS

. ‘ALONG THE WAY’, BROOKLYN MUSEUM, BROOKLYN, NY

. ‘CLEAN SLATE, LA NAVE’, LAS SALINAS, IBIZA, SPAIN

2016 . ‘WHERE THE END STARTS, MUSEUM OF FORT WORTH, FORT WORTH, TX

. ‘KAWS: BFF’, CENTRAL EMBASSY, BANGKOK, THAILAND

. ‘KAWS: GISWIL’, MORE GALLERY, GISWIL, SWITZERLAND

. ‘KAWS’, YORKSHIRE SCULPTURE PARK, WEST YORKSHIRE, UK

2017 . ‘KAWS’, THE GREENBERG GALLERY, ST. LOUIS, MO

. ‘FAR FAR DOWN’, CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM OF ST. LOUIS, ST.
LOUIS, MO

. ‘WHERE THE END STARTS’, YUZ MUSEUM, SHANGHAI, CHINA

2018 . ‘GONE’, SKARSTEDT, NEW YORK, NY

. ‘KAWS: HOLIDAY’, SEOKCHON LAKE, SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA

. ‘KAWS’, GALERIE PERROTIN, TOKYO, JAPAN

2019 . KAWS: HOLIDAY, Dhow Harbour, Doha

. KAWS: HE EATS ALONE, Fire Station, Qatar Museums, Doha, Qatar

. KAWS: BLACKOUT, Skarstedt, London, United Kingdom

. KAWS: COMPANIONSHIP IN THE AGE OF LONELINESS, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia

. KAWS: HOLIDAY, Mount Fuji, Japan

. KAWS: ALONE AGAIN, Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, Detroit, MI

. KAWS: HOLIDAY, Virginia Beach, VA

. KAWS: ALONG THE WAY, HOCA Foundation, Hong Kong

. KAWS: HOLIDAY, Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong

. KAWS: HOLIDAY, Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall, Taipei, Taiwan

2020 . ‘KAWS: WHAT PARTY’, SEAGRAM BUILDING, New York, NY

. ‘KAWS: WHAT PARTY,’ K11 ART MUSEA, Hong Kong

. ‘KAWS: EXPANDED HOLIDAY (AUGMENTED REALITY)’, New York, NY; Los Angeles, CA; LONDON, UK; PARIS, FRANCE; SAO PAULO, BRAZIL; SEOUL, KOREA; TAIPEI, TAIWAN; TOKYO, JAPAN; DOHA, QATAR; KATAVI NATIONAL PARK, TANZANIA; MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA

2021 . ‘KAWS: SPOKE TOO SOON,’ SKARSTEDT, New York, NY

. ‘KAWS: TOKYO FIRST’, MORI ARTS CENTER GALLERY, TOKYO, JAPAN

. ‘KAWS: WHAT PARTY’, BROOKLYN MUSEUM, BROOKLYN, NY

. ‘KAWS: HOLIDAY’, SKARSREDT, PALM BEACH, FL

. ‘KAWS: WHAT PARTY’, SEAGRAM BUILDING, New York, NY

. ‘KAWS: SHARE’, ROCKEFELLER CENTER, New York, NY

. ‘ KAWS: HOLIDAY’, BRISTOL, UK

2022 . ‘KAWS: NEW FICTION’, SERPENTINE NORTH GALLERY

. KAWS: HOLIDAY, CHANGBAI MOUNTAIN, CHINA

K A W S