Photography Project

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The city of Cardiff is a melting pot of diversity perfectly mixed together by the people that live here. This photography project came about from a desire to make the engraved cultural diversity of Wales’ capital known, to showcase the everyday rhythms of life that people from various backgrounds live out. These photographs show the hubs and hotspots of our little city from Cardiff City Centre, to Cathays and Roath - specifically the renowned City Road. All of these places have their charm, beauty and mess, all of which continually draw people from around the world to experience Cardiff’s beauty both seen and unseen.

In an upcoming charity auction, the Keith Haring Foundation is set to auction nearly 140 artworks from the late Keith Haring’s private collection, by cultural dignitaries such as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein to raise money for ‘the Center’, an LGBTQ+ community organisation in New York’s West Village.

Keith Haring was a popular street artist and activist who was a very prominent character in New York’s 1980s art scene, with it not being very long before his instantly recognisable pop style art became famous worldwide. He had a vision to make powerful art accessible to everyone, and took his advocacy for gay rights, the ending of Apartheid, awareness of the New York 80s crack epidemic, and awareness of HIV and AIDS (to name a few) to the streets and subways of New York City.

Following his passing due to HIV related complications, The Keith Haring Foundation has released the artist’s personal art collection to be auctioned off for charity. It is predicted that these sales could raise almost 1 million dollars for New York LGBTQ+ nonprofit charity Center. Haring’s career was unfortunately very short-lived, as he died from AIDS aged 31 in 1990, following his huge success as a graffiti artist in the 80s. The auction commemorates the 30th anniversary of his death.

Each year more than 400 groups visit the Center to meet new people, make connections and find support alongside other members of the LGBTQ+ community and their families. Open every single day, the Center provides a constantly welcoming environment to ensure members of the community are supported, comfortable and celebrated for who they are all year round.

Keith Haring and The Keith Haring Foundation

The Keith Haring Foundation seeks to “sustain, expand, and protect the legacy of Keith Haring, his art, and his ideals”. The Foundation has been established to support two areas: one to support other non-profit organisations that work in education, prevention and care related to HIV and AIDS; and the other to provide grants to organisations that work with underprivileged children and young people. HIV and AIDS is one of the most serious public health challenges in the world, and has taken the lives of 33 million people worldwide since the beginning of the HIV and AIDS epidemic. With the WHO estimating that 38 million people were living with HIV at the end of 2019, raising awareness of the virus and its catastrophic effects is still as important as ever. Due to its prevalence within

the LGBTQ+ and African regions, a historical stigma surrounding the HIV virus and AIDS still prevails today - which is extremely disappointing for 2020.

Haring would often donate his art to charitable causes and paint murals for multiple hospitals and orphanages to attract donations and attention to the institutions and their work. Before his death, Haring also chose the Foundation to protect not only his legacy as an artist and advocate, but also maintain his personal art collection. By auctioning the pieces now, the Foundation will be fulfilling this wish by

using the donations to provide further financial support to their chosen organisations.

Lasting Relationship with the LGBTQ+ Community

In an interview with The New York Times journalist Glennda Testone, the Executive Director of the Center, reflected on how “Keith Haring fostered hope and resilience during difficult times,” and also told of how he painted his 1989 mural, Once Upon a Time, on our walls to “celebrate sexual liberation and envision a world without AIDS, in direct opposition to the fear and stigma that fueled that pandemic.” The cultural impact of art can change perceptions and assist in de-stigmatising things like HIV and AIDS, and thanks to this fundraiser, The Keith Haring Foundation will be using art to continue this legacy by helping to fund the liberation and support of the community at the LGBTQ+ Community Center. Haring’s iconography at the time made New York take notice of the surging epidemic, and discuss his illness through his line drawings that often personified the virus and emotions

surrounding a diagnosis.

Haring decorated New York with messages of acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community, safe sex and inclusivity, whilst embracing his iconic bold style to make even bolder moves towards freedom of sexuality and sexual identity. His work also mirrored his own struggle with HIV and acceptance. This led to him transforming his artwork into specifically HIV awareness and safe sex campaigns that would be seen by the whole city. As Keith Haring once said “art is nothing if you don’t reach every segment of the people ‘’, and he strongly believed that art was for everybody, regardless of their sexuality, sexual identity, HIV status or community. These infamous designs became extremely prominent in pop culture and fashion, as mixing his advocacy with commercialism was a perfect way to burst into mainstream film and media at the time. As a new celebrity and icon, Haring became friends with the likes of Andy Warhol and even Madonna, with the ‘Queen of Pop’ donating all proceeds from the opening night of her 1990 Blonde Ambitions tour to a charity of the Foundations choice following Keith Haring’s death.

The money raised from the auction will undoubtedly change the lives of many young people and LGBTQ+ communities forever and continues the phenomenally impactful legacy that Keith Haring has left behind. Whilst his work has shown many street artists and members of marginalised communities that mainstream success can be achieved, Haring has also paved the way for artists who wish to mix activism, advocacy, politics and creativity in one, without having their success hindered. Without his courageous moves in a time of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, advocacy for gay rights, safe sex and inclusivity may never have been so bold or prominent. Homophobia and prejudice could not prevail as much as some intended it to when figures such as Haring used this fuel to fill the City with colour and art that successfully campaigned for the exact opposite.

words by: Caitlin Parr design by: May Collins