Unfortunately, Darlings, There Is No Official Keith Haring Museum In NYC!!!!!!!!!!!!! Deplorable Isn't It? However, In A Way, I Will Show You, NYC Is A Keith Haring Museum!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                            Now, ANNA could do a fashion show on him at her Costume Institute at The Met, whcih I am waiting for, but the best way to see Haring's work is to run all over New York.  This can be done either in a day, or to one place at a time, depending on schedules and needs.  

                            Besides Cecil Beaton and cover art like The Beatles' 'Sgt. Pepper,' Haring was influenced by the likes of Jean Michael Basquiat, Kenny Scharf, and, as does make sense, Andy Warhol.

                              Let's take a look--

                  1.    Here is one of Haring's most famous works--1986's "CRACK IS WACK."  Isn't the color just stunning, hons?   The exploration starts in Harlem at a handball court on East 128th Street.

                                                                          

                      2.  From uptown, head downtown, like ANNA, to see this lovely mural at the Carmine Street Pool, in the West Village.  Completed by Haring in August of 1987, the blue on blue look, in tandem with the filled pool, is especially striking.

                                                                              

                          3.  "Once Upon A Time--" This was my introduction to Haring's work, beside subway walls, in the Men's room at The LGBQT Center.  I would go in there just to view it, even if I had no other reason for going.  Today, there is a Keith Haring Wing in The Center, which I must visit, darlings, and this work can now be seen there, and in a virtual online tour.  It is one of Haring's few titled works.

                                                                               

                         4.  "The Life Of Christ--" This triptych, which can be seen in The Cathedral Of St. John The Divine, at Morningside Heights--back to uptown, girls!!!!!!!!!!!--is the last work completed by the artist before he died.  It is exhilarating in its detail, and while not colorful in itself, blends in the with the textured artistry of the cathedral.  Probably the most unusual, yet striking, of Haring's offerings.

                                                                       

                           5.  Woodhull Hospital 

And Health Center--The mural was completed in 1986, and Haring hung out at the hospital, signing shirts and other items graciously to those who requested it.  His labor was a gift to the hospital for its wonderful way in handling pediatric AIDS patients.  You have to travel all the way to 760 Broadway, in Brooklyn, darlings, but it is well worth it.

6.   "Two Figures Dancing"

Located at 17 State Street, along with another Haring work, "Balancing Dog,"

                              these works were created in 1989.  They are down near the Battery. Haring's distinctive use of color and linear geometrics is again in evidence.  Another reason to venture downtown     In 1992, this second piece was donated to a park in Haring's hometown of Kutztown, Pennsylvania.

                                                                          

                        7.  "Self-Portrait--" Go a little further uptown for this one, darlings, located at Astor Place.  The title was dubbed by Haring himself.  It has traveled to Chicago and back but is now permanently ensconced at Astor Place and Third Avenue.  Suggestive of the nature beneath Haring's serious exterior.  And that shade of green, darlings--fabulous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!     

                                                                       

                          8.  In Conclusion--This linear black and white mural was originally part of a larger work at Haring's Pop Shop in SoHo, which lasted from 1986 to 2005.  It is now above the reception desk at The New York Historical Society, at 170 Central Park West.  How fitting to end with a quintessential Haring.

                           I feel as if I have running all over the city, just writing this blog.  But whether you do it like that, or in daily increments, make sure the artistry of Keith Haring is continually appreciated and not forgotten.

                             Trust us queens for artistry, darlings!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!