Best Buddies 1990

Keith Haring made this print, Best Buddies, with screen printing. It’s like a visual shout, full of bright flat colors and bold black outlines. The thing about screen printing is that you have to be so organised to get such simple shapes. Look at how the yellow figure reaches out to the other, both of them energized with movement from the radiating lines. Haring isn’t afraid of just putting it all out there. Each color and line is laid down with intention. No fuss, no muss, just pure feeling. Haring reminds me a little of Miró in his use of abstracted figures and playful compositions, though Haring’s got that streetwise edge. In the end, it’s not about what it means, but how it makes you feel. It is about embracing uncertainty and living in the moment.