Friday 4 March 2011

Kenny Scharf

A contemporary, and friend of both Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat later in New York, Kenny Scharf was born in 1958 in Los Angeles. He received his B.F.A in 1980 at the School of Visual Arts in New York. Scharf's works consist of popular culture based shows with made up science-related backgrounds.

Scharf often uses images from the animated cartoons popular during his childhood, such as The Flintstones and The Jetsons. In 2001, he released a cartoon of his own ‘The Groovenians’ of which there was only one episode.
Scharf was a key figure in the East Village art scene of the 1980s with shows at Fun gallery in 1981 and Tony Shafrazi in 1984, before seeing his work embraced by museums, such as the Whitney, which selected him for the 1985 Whitney Bienniale.

He did the album covers of The B-52's in the mid-80s. In 1995, Scharf designed a room at the Tunnel nightclub in New York.


Scharf was friends with the graffiti artist Keith Haring and appears in the documentary ‘The Universe of Keith Haring’. In 2004, he appeared in The Nomi Song, a documentary about his friend, opera singer and new wave star Klaus Nomi.

Scharf has had featured exhibits at the Monterrey Museum of Contemporary Art, Miami Center for the Fine Arts, and The Queens Museum of Art. Scharf is represented by New York City’s Paul Kasmin Gallery, which also represents Andy Warhol, Frank Stella, David Hockney, Morris Louis, Al Held, and others.


1983 Architoungture


 1983 The Fun's Inside


 1983 The Idea Falls


 1983-84 Juicy Jungle


 1984 The Days of Our Lives


 1984 When Worlds Collide


1985 Glip Drip


 1985 Op Bop


1986 Blind


1986 Faika Rebo


1987 Inner Space

 1988 Obglob


1989 American Cheese


1989 Ob Globs #11


1990 Brainmatter

1990 Globz 3


1991 Against All Odds


1991 Kaosorder


1994 Globulecular


1994 Serpentwine


1995 Fabuvalia


1995 Galicksky


1996 Bloop Blip Bop


1996 Boomering


1996 Hapidala


1997 Glips


1998 Ancient Chinese Secret


 1998 Felix on a Pedestal



2000 Bolbz


2000 Slosch


2002 Drlop


2002 Jelobz


2003 Blobzo


2003 Objet der Floate


 2003 Squabs


 2003 Zrobz


2004 Balls n' Black Hole


2004 Space n' Blob


2005 Ebony Approved


 2005 Free Fuel


2005 T.V.Starlacash


 2006 Ketchup (detail)


2006 Peas n' Butter


2006 Pump N' Go


2007 Blobs n' Globs


2007 Blurple


 2007 Sonho Molhado



2008 Chevyblobs


2008 Greewormscape


 2008 Hot Dog


 2008 Hurdy Gurdy


 2008 Smiling Spermy Spiralies



2009 Blobism


2009 Junglocity


 2009 Nike Stages


2009 Pink Frosted Donut in Space


2010 Chocolate Donut with Sprinkes on a Lovely Day


2010 Glazed Cruller in Space


2010 Here it is!


2010 Jungleyea