KAWS, one of the most recognised and collectible artists of the 21st Century, is celebrated for his playful pop colors, gigantic sculptures, and a street art pedigree. KAWS’ work occupies a space in fine art, design, and pop culture, with characters like COMPANION and BFF becoming iconic emblematic symbols of contemporary art worldwide. His monumental sculptures, limited edition prints, and collectibles are highly sought after in the field of cultural collecting and investment. Shop our KAWS artworks for sale and own a piece of this pop culture craze.
About KAWS
Born Brian Donnelly, in 1974, in Jersey City, New Jersey, KAWS started out as a graffiti artist, tagging up bus shelters and billboards across New York City, starting in the mid-1990s. In true graffiti artist form, his endeavors on advertising posters helped establish KAWS outside graffiti, getting his style noticed as an emergent street artist. From this point, KAWS turned away from graffiti and into fine art, bringing the dimensions of cartoon imagery, consumerist culture, and design into fine arts. KAWS creates works across painting, screenprints, toys, and large-scale installations and sculpture. His approach provides lots of access to the public while still receiving critical acclaim.
Iconic Series and Artworks
At the centre of KAWS’s creative practice, are his characters, especially his main character COMPANION with its cartoon features, crossed out eyes, and slouched, emotive body language. COMPANION has appeared in every conceivable form, from collectible vinyl figures to monumental outdoor sculptures on public display internationally, making it one of the most recognized images in contemporary art. In addition to COMPANION, characters including BFF, based on Elmo from Sesame Street, and CHUM, a playful version of the Michelin Man, represent the same initial investigation of pop cultural archetypes twisted with humor, pathos, and accessibility. KAWS has also made an impact in the print marketplace and several of his screen prints are iconic.
Urge (2020), featuring layers of COMPANION figures in bright, saturated colour, and You Should Know I Know (2015), of two COMPANIONS sharing a dynamic embrace, are among the most sought after editions. Prints including Tension (2019), Ups and Downs (2013), Stay Steady (2015), and No Reply (2015) are further evidence of his deft use of flat colour, graphic clarity, and depth of emotion, and his editions are highly collectible as a result. Beyond the prints, KAWS paintings, and large-scale canvases, continue this same graphic intensity into his unique pieces, often abstracting cartoon pieces into colorful fields that meld figuration and abstraction. His public sculptures - HOLIDAY, the massive COMPANION figure that has been installed in cities from Seoul to Taipei, and Along the Way, which can be interpreted as two COMPANION figures supporting one another, display his compendious capacity to express love and humanity through light-hearted, cartoonish forms. Collectively, KAWS demonstrates how he has developed his unique visual language where he is immediately familiar and deeply impactful across fine art, design, and popular global culture.
Art Market and Investment
KAWS has experienced exponential growth in their market in the last twenty years. His limited edition toys and prints often sell out immediately at launch, while his paintings and sculptures have achieved unprecedented auction prices. In July 2019, his painting The KAWS Album, sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong for HK$115.9 million (approx. $14.8 million), evidencing his demand around the world.
KAWS brings collectors back into the fold with their degree of cultural access and expansion into investment. Editions remain relatively affordable entry points, while originals and large-scale works earn millions in value. KAWS has produced a market that merges fine art, design, and popular culture, providing both impulsive and longterm collectables, rendering KAWS as one of the most lucrative artists for institutional investors today.
Authenticity and Provenance
Due to KAWS’ great demand for his works and editions, authentication is paramount. Most prints and limited editions are signed and numbered, while vinyl figures and collectibles come with certificates of authenticity from authorized publishers like Medicom Toy or Perrotin. At FairArt, all KAWS works are subject to rigorous verification for provenance and authenticity. With all authentication, for prints, sculptures, and collectibles, each artwork is warranted under the FairArt guarantee. If you have any queries about KAWS artwork authentication, please reach out to us at support@fairart.io