Keith Haring remains one of the most important and celebrated artists of his generation and beyond. Through his signature bold graphic line drawings of figures and forms dancing and grooving, Haring’s paintings, large-scale public murals, chalk drawings, and singular graffiti style defined an era and brought awareness to social issues ranging from gay rights and AIDS to drug abuse prevention and a woman’s right to choose. Haring-isms is a collection of essential quotations from this creative thinker and legendary artist.

Gathered from Haring’s journals and interviews, these lively quotes reveal his influences and thoughts on a variety of topics, including birth and death, possibility and uncertainty, and difference and conformity. They demonstrate Haring’s deep engagement with subjects outside of the art world and his outspoken commitment to activism. Taken together, this selection reflects Haring’s distinctive voice and reminds us why his work continues to resonate with fans around the globe.

Art lives through the imaginations of the people who are seeing it. Without that contact, there is no art. It’s a huge world. There are lots and lots and lots of people that I haven’t reached yet that I’d like to reach. Art is one of the last areas that is totally within the realm of the human individual and can’t be copied or done better by a machine. The artist, if he is a vessel, is also a performer. No matter how long you work, it’s always going to end sometime. And there’s always going to be things left undone.