Separated 2020

Editor: This is "Separated," a mixed-media work by Kaws from 2020. There's this immediate feeling of… well, separation, of course. The figure is covering their face, almost childlike. What symbols or ideas jump out at you? Curator: The pose, wouldn't you agree, recalls the age-old gesture of hiding, perhaps shame or grief. But Kaws infuses it with a flattened affect, characteristic of his cartoon-based style. Think about the "X-ed" out eyes he often uses—what do they negate or obscure, but also what might they point toward, in terms of emotional complexity or hidden depths? Editor: That makes sense. It feels contemporary, like a comment on… social anxieties, maybe? Curator: Precisely! Consider the lineage of cartoon imagery in art – from Pop Art's embrace of commercial culture to its current ubiquitous presence. How do you see Kaws engaging with that tradition while also adding his own distinct visual language and iconography? Does it soften or intensify these feelings? Editor: I guess it’s a little of both. The cartoonish style is approachable, but the gesture is so vulnerable. The "X-ed" eyes, or lack thereof, leave the rest to our imaginations. Curator: It does, doesn’t it? Think about how the facelessness encourages projection—a blank canvas for our own feelings of isolation. The genius of Kaws is how he layers accessible pop imagery with very human, and even difficult emotions. Editor: So it's about finding common ground even in moments of "Separation." That changes how I see the piece; there is potential for something more beyond face value. Curator: Indeed. And the ongoing resonance of certain symbols through artistic reinterpretation shows the connective tissues across time and media. There is an underlying universality that emerges from the personal.