Along the Way
KAWS
Contemporary Art
On View: Martha A. and Robert S. Rubin Pavilion, 1st Floor
About this Brooklyn Icon
The Brooklyn Museum is commemorating its 200th anniversary by spotlighting 200 standout objects in its encyclopedic collection.
When you come to the Brooklyn Museum, what catches your eye after you head inside? Could it be the larger-than-life wooden sculpture Along the Way by the artist KAWS? This work is a favorite among audiences of all ages because of its scale, gorgeous reddish patina, and striking resemblance to Mickey Mouse. KAWS started his career in graffiti and then transitioned to sculpture resembling cartoons, which has become internationally recognized. The figures in Along the Way have skull-like heads, oversize ears, and X’s in place of eyes, shifting perceptions on what “cartoonish” can mean.
This work is part of the artist’s COMPANION series, the theme of which is reflected by the two figures’ partial embrace. The companions gaze downward as they share a quiet gesture of mutual support. These two have pride of place in the Museum’s pavilion, depicting friendship and love and delighting their viewers.
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Gallery Label
ALONG THE WAY is a colossal example of KAWS's COMPANION figure, first produced in the late 1990s as a small, limited edition toy collectible. Standing eighteen feet tall, these two sculptures resembling popular cartoon characters have been altered with the artist's signature skull-and-crossbones motif and crossed-out eyes. Subsequent COMPANION works feature the figure in a range of sizes, poses, materials, and colors. Through COMPANION, KAWS investigates how altering the character's scale to an extreme degree can invert the relationship between human beings and their handheld playthings. Gently embracing one another, the pair in this work suggests a range of sentiments, as observed in their gestures, that are open to interpretation; the figures themselves act as surrogates for human beings and their emotional and psychological states of being. Born Brian Donnelly, KAWS lives and works in Brooklyn.
The Brooklyn Museum is commemorating its 200th anniversary by spotlighting 200 standout objects in its encyclopedic collection.
When you come to the Brooklyn Museum, what catches your eye after you head inside? Could it be the larger-than-life wooden sculpture Along the Way by the artist KAWS? This work is a favorite among audiences of all ages because of its scale, gorgeous reddish patina, and striking resemblance to Mickey Mouse. KAWS started his career in graffiti and then transitioned to sculpture resembling cartoons, which has become internationally recognized. The figures in Along the Way have skull-like heads, oversize ears, and X’s in place of eyes, shifting perceptions on what “cartoonish” can mean.
This work is part of the artist’s COMPANION series, the theme of which is reflected by the two figures’ partial embrace. The companions gaze downward as they share a quiet gesture of mutual support. These two have pride of place in the Museum’s pavilion, depicting friendship and love and delighting their viewers.
***
Gallery Label
ALONG THE WAY is a colossal example of KAWS's COMPANION figure, first produced in the late 1990s as a small, limited edition toy collectible. Standing eighteen feet tall, these two sculptures resembling popular cartoon characters have been altered with the artist's signature skull-and-crossbones motif and crossed-out eyes. Subsequent COMPANION works feature the figure in a range of sizes, poses, materials, and colors. Through COMPANION, KAWS investigates how altering the character's scale to an extreme degree can invert the relationship between human beings and their handheld playthings. Gently embracing one another, the pair in this work suggests a range of sentiments, as observed in their gestures, that are open to interpretation; the figures themselves act as surrogates for human beings and their emotional and psychological states of being. Born Brian Donnelly, KAWS lives and works in Brooklyn.
ARTIST
KAWS, American, born 1974
MEDIUM
Wood
DATES
2013
DIMENSIONS
overall: 216 x 176 x 120 in. (548.6 x 447 x 304.8 cm)
storage (002 body as crated): 66 × 75 × 118 in., 2646 lb. (167.6 × 190.5 × 299.7 cm, 1200.22kg)
storage (003 Body as crated): 66 × 75 × 118 in., 2580 lb. (167.6 × 190.5 × 299.7 cm, 1170.28kg)
storage (003 Head as crated): 70 × 68 × 96 in., 2414 lb. (177.8 × 172.7 × 243.8 cm, 1094.98kg)
stora (show scale)
COLLECTIONS
Contemporary Art
ACCESSION NUMBER
2015.11a-b
CREDIT LINE
Gift in honor of Arnold Lehman
EXHIBITIONS
MUSEUM LOCATION
This item is on view in Martha A. and Robert S. Rubin Pavilion, 1st Floor
CAPTION
KAWS (American, born 1974). Along the Way, 2013. Wood, overall: 216 x 176 x 120 in. (548.6 x 447 x 304.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift in honor of Arnold Lehman, 2015.11a-b. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 2015.11a-b_PS11.jpg)
IMAGE
in situ, 2015.11a-b_PS11.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2020
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RIGHTS STATEMENT
© KAWS, courtesy of Mary Boone Gallery, New York
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