“When I was younger, I wasn’t going to galleries, I wasn’t going to museums […] There was a lot of ‘this is fine art’ or ‘this is not fine art’; ‘this is commercial’, ‘this is high art’. In my mind I thought, art’s purpose is to communicate and reach people. Whichever outlet that’s being done through is the right one.”
—KAWS

Few contemporary artists have successfully navigated the intersection of high art and popular culture with the precision and impact of KAWS. Born Brian Donnelly in 1974, KAWS has spent the last three decades reshaping the way audiences engage with art, seamlessly merging the visual languages of street culture, consumerism, and fine art. His instantly recognisable characters—hybrid figures that reference cartoon nostalgia while carrying deep emotional resonance—have solidified his status as one of the most influential artists of his generation.
 

Among these, GONE stands as one of KAWS’ most poignant and sophisticated works, distilling the essence of his practice into a single sculptural moment. Debuting at Skarstedt Gallery in New York as part of KAWS’ inaugural exhibition with the gallery - also titled GONE - the work depicts his iconic ‘COMPANION’ figure carrying the lifeless body of ‘BFF’ in an unmistakable reference to Michelangelo’s Pietà. This powerful composition transforms KAWS’ familiar characters into a meditation on grief, loss, and the passage of time—an evolution of his practice that deepens the emotional weight behind his work.

 

Since the late 1990s, KAWS’ artistic trajectory has been shaped by a commitment to reimagining mass culture. Beginning as a graffiti artist known for subverting advertisements on billboards and bus shelters, KAWS quickly developed a signature visual language: rounded forms, bold colour palettes, and the ever-present X-ed-out eyes that imbue his figures with a unique blend of melancholy and universality. COMPANION, first introduced in 1999 as a limited-edition vinyl figure, has served as the linchpin of his oeuvre—a character who, despite its cartoon-like origins, speaks poignantly to the human condition.
 

In scaling-up his originally toy-sized figures, KAWS shifts the dynamic between the viewer and the work: ‘something somebody could hold in their hand at one point […] can probably now hold you.’ⁱ This change in scale dramatically alters the way we relate to KAWS’ sculptures, especially works like GONE which not only reflect human emotions but also mirror a human-like scale.
 

In stark contrast to earlier iterations of COMPANION—who has often been depicted covering its eyes in shame or sitting in introspective repose—here, the character takes on a tragic heroism. By cradling BFF’s limp body, COMPANION shifts from a symbol of personal anguish to one of collective mourning. The evocation of the Pietà lends the work an art-historical gravity, situating KAWS within a lineage of artists who have explored themes of sacrifice and loss. This sculptural composition does more than monumentalise his characters—it elevates them to the realm of universal myth.

 

The Universal Nature of KAWS

 

While GONE speaks to the depth of KAWS’ conceptual framework, it also underscores his unique ability to reach audiences beyond the traditional art world. His practice exists at the intersection of multiple cultural spaces: fine art, fashion, collectible design, and street culture. KAWS has successfully maintained his integrity across these platforms, producing work that is as at home in the Brooklyn Museum as it is in a Supreme collection. His collaborations with brands like Dior and Uniqlo have only further cemented his role as a cultural force—one whose appeal spans generations and demographics.

“With a practice formed outside the art world in a parallel world where commerce, craftsmanship, consumption, popular imagery, and taste-making came together, KAWS’s work makes the categories of high and low art irrelevant. His use of cartoon characters offers access to art through a familiar point of entry, one that is not restricted by geography or cultural barriers.”
—Eugenie Tsai

GONE encapsulates the artist’s ability to bridge high and low culture while maintaining an acute sense of emotional truth. It shares a thematic lineage with works like the 2011 PASSING THROUGH, where COMPANION sits in dejection, and KAWS’ 2019 Art Basel installation, where his figure lays in a sea of existential dread, afloat in Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour. Yet, unlike these works, GONE possesses a cinematic drama that propels KAWS’ work into the realm of narrative potency. The sculpture invites viewers share in a moment of loss, to feel the weight—both literal and figurative—of COMPANION's grief. As Anne Pasternak remarks, ‘[KAWS] emphasises that even within a world shaped by image and consumption, universal emotions–from love and friendship to loneliness and alienation–are what binds us.’ⁱⁱ

 

KAWS’ enduring impact stems from his ability to distil human emotion into forms that are simultaneously playful and reflective. GONE is a testament to this rare alchemy, a work that transcends its materiality to become a symbol of contemporary pathos. As collectors and institutions continue to embrace his work, pieces like GONE will be recognised not just as striking sculptures, but as touchstones of an era—one in which art, culture, and commerce collide in ways that redefine the landscape of contemporary visual expression.

 

Collector’s Digest

 

• KAWS has exhibited extensively in renowned institutions, including solo exhibitions at The Parrish Art Museum, Water Mill (2024); The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh (2024); The Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto (2023); Serpentine Gallery, London (2022); Mori Arts Center Gallery, Tokyo (2021); The Brooklyn Museum (2021); The National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia (2019); Fire Station Garage Gallery, Qatar Museums, Doha (2019); and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Detroit (2019).
   

• Bridging the gap between fine art, design and popular culture, KAWS has had multiple collaborations with a vast array of brands, including BAPE, Uniqlo, Supreme, MTV, Commes des Garçons, Air Jordan, Dior, Reese’s, Disney and the Campana brothers.
   

• KAWS, whose real name is Brian Donnelly, started his artistic career as a graffiti artist in the 90s, tagging buildings in New Jersey and Manhattan with his pseudonym ‘KAWS’, chosen for the pleasant way the letters looked together.

 

 

ⁱ KAWS quoted in ‘KAWS · Just do it All’, filmed by Out of Sync, New York 2013.

ⁱⁱ Anne Pasternak, ‘Kaws: What Party’, in KAWS: WHAT PARTY, exh. cat., Brooklyn Museum, New York, 26 February-5 September 2021, p. 7.