KAWS

With his giant, inflatable ‘Companion’ sculptures floating in Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour and suspended above Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, KAWS has come a long way since the 1990s, when he graffiti-bombed trains, walls and billboards in Lower Manhattan with his cartoonish cast of characters. Born on the streets of New York, his iconic style has blossomed into a thriving marketplace of limited-edition toys, paintings, sculptures and prints, with a clear vein of Pop culture running through them.

Influenced by the great Pop Art icons Andy Warhol and Claes Oldenburg, his practice both participates in and questions consumer culture. Some of his characters are his own creation - like his coveted ‘Companions’ with crossed-out eyes - while others are appropriated from familiar cartoon heroes. All are instantly snapped up by frenzied fans, with Pharrell Williams, Drake, Travis Scott, and Justin Bieber among the many famous collectors of his work.

Born in Jersey City in 1974, KAWS is the professional name of the New York-based artist Brian Donnelly. One of just a handful of artists to successfully bridge the gap between fine art and mass production, his rapid ascension from graffiti artist to art world wunderkind reveals his vast pop cultural appeal.