Restless. Keith Haring in Brazil

During the 1980s, Keith Haring traveled around the world, creating public works in many cities; among the last of these is the mural “Tuttomondo”, painted in Pisa in 1989, which the Soprintendenza per i Beni Artistici has slated for preservation, due to its “particularly important historical-artistic value”. After participating in the São Paulo Biennale in 1983, as a guest of painter Kenny Scharf and his wife Teresa, Haring often visited the village Serra Grande, where he left many works inspired by the place’s life and atmosphere. Following the restoration of a large circular mural, created in 1985, only a few meters from the beach, the documentary follows a significant and little-known moment in the famous American graffiti artist’s biography. Testimonials by several of his closest friends (aside from Scharf, Bruno Schmidt), are interspersed with Polaroids, audio recordings and text-extracts from Haring’s personal collection. A portrait of the artist emerges: aware and generous, a philosopher of “cum-passion”, as critic Lea Vergine defined him. The film was recently screened at CENTQUATRE in Paris, within the context of the major show “Keith Haring. The Political Line” at Musée D’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris.