Family by KAWS is a 2022 screenprint that presents a tender yet enigmatic grouping of the artist’s signature figures. Four characters stand closely together, their rounded forms and stitched textures suggesting softness and vulnerability, while their crossed-out eyes introduce an emotional distance. Rendered in a restrained palette of grey, white, and deep blue with a small accent of yellow, the composition balances intimacy and ambiguity. The figures vary in scale, evoking generational relationships and the quiet bonds of family life. Despite their cartoon origins, the scene carries a contemplative tone, inviting reflection on connection, protection, and identity. Measuring 73.5 × 66 cm, the work was produced in an edition of 100, is signed, dated, and numbered on the front, and exemplifies KAWS’s ability to merge popular imagery with subtle emotional depth.
KAWS (USA, 1974), born Brian Donnelly, is a contemporary artist and designer celebrated for his cartoon-inspired sculptures, paintings, and collectible toys. Merging street art and pop culture, his iconic 'Companion' figures and bold graphics have reached global audiences, bridging the worlds of fine art, fashion, and commercial design.
Screen-print Screen printing is a technique where ink is transferred through a mesh onto a substrate, with areas blocked by a stencil to prevent ink from passing through. This method, also known as serigraphy or silkscreen printing, is commonly used to produce prints on posters, T-shirts, vinyl, stickers, wood, and other materials. The process is a type of stencil printing, allowing for vibrant, detailed designs on various surfaces.
Family by KAWS is a 2022 screenprint that presents a tender yet enigmatic grouping of the artist’s signature figures. Four characters stand closely together, their rounded forms and stitched textures suggesting softness and vulnerability, while their crossed-out eyes introduce an emotional distance. Rendered in a restrained palette of grey, white, and deep blue with a small accent of yellow, the composition balances intimacy and ambiguity. The figures vary in scale, evoking generational relationships and the quiet bonds of family life. Despite their cartoon origins, the scene carries a contemplative tone, inviting reflection on connection, protection, and identity. Measuring 73.5 × 66 cm, the work was produced in an edition of 100, is signed, dated, and numbered on the front, and exemplifies KAWS’s ability to merge popular imagery with subtle emotional depth.
KAWS (USA, 1974), born Brian Donnelly, is a contemporary artist and designer celebrated for his cartoon-inspired sculptures, paintings, and collectible toys. Merging street art and pop culture, his iconic 'Companion' figures and bold graphics have reached global audiences, bridging the worlds of fine art, fashion, and commercial design.
Born Brian Donnelly but creating under a pseudonym, Kaws is an artist renowned for his acrylic paintings and sculptures that often employ repeated and distinctive graphics while reworking highly recognisable pop culture icons – Companion is one of his most notable sculptures, a large-scale, clown-like and darker take on the universally-recognised Mickey Mouse. Kaws’ early foray into art was through the form of street-graffiti; his trademark ‘x’ symbol, often applied over the hands, eyes and mouths of his characters, sprung from this phase in which Kaws would often replace public advertisements with his own artwork, a technique known as subvertising. Kaws uses a number of different materials throughout his creative processes including wood, aluminium, fiberglass and a steel pontoon inflatable raft; he has also collaborated with numerous companies and artists including Santastic! and John Mayer. (Artist website)
Appropriation in art involves using pre-existing images or objects with little or no modification. This technique has played a significant role across various art forms, including visual arts, music, performance, and literature. In visual arts, appropriation refers to the practice of adopting, sampling, recycling, or borrowing elements—or even entire forms—of existing visual culture, integrating them into new works to create meaning or critique.