Gone Companion is a screenprint by british artist Brian Doenlly. This edition was published at the NGV in Melbourne.Brian Donnelly (born 1974), aka KAWS, is one of the most prominent and prolific artists of his generation. His body of work straddles the worlds of art, fashion and design to include paintings, murals, large-scale sculptures, street and public art, and fashion, graphic and product design. His work is infused with humour, humanity and affection for our times. Admired for his larger-than-life sculptures and colour-filled paintings, KAWS’s cast of hybrid cartoon and human characters are drawn from pop-culture animations and form a distinctive artistic vocabulary.

The exhibition title KAWS: Companionship in the Age of Loneliness foregrounds the emotional content of the artist’s work. Through his works KAWS celebrates generosity, support for others and the deep need we have for companionship. KAWS represents someone who is very much of our time in terms of working across contexts and in hybrid and collaborative ways, and his work presents an antidote or rejoinder to the increasingly toxic nature of public discourse and social media, and division within and across societies. He reminds us we need one another and that life should be lived as compassionately as possible to combat this ‘Age of Loneliness’, in the face of fear and hatred.

KAWS: Companionship in the Age of Loneliness is a major contribution to the growing international reputation of this contemporary artist. It follows KAWS’s recent solo presentations at Yorkshire Sculpture Park and the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth (2016), the Yuz Museum Shanghai and the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis (2017) and the Hong Kong Contemporary Art Foundation (2019). This exhibition introduces audiences to the full range of KAWS’s artistic output, including a newly commissioned monumental sculpture (his largest bronze sculpture to date), paintings reworking pop-culture figures and an impressive collection of human-scale sculptural figures.

Printed in New York under the supervision of the artist, this screenprint on Arches Aquarelle 300 gsm is based on GONE. An emotional depiction of loss, GONE, 2019, shows KAWS’s well-known characters COMPANION and BFF in a pose reminiscent of a classic pietà. It is among the most powerful of KAWS’s sculptural works, which often embody humility, pathos and vulnerability. Whether as a monumental sculpture, vinyl edition, or screenprint, the exquisitely rendered and immaculately finished work engages with contemporary issues such as loneliness and celebrates supportiveness in today’s increasingly fractured world.

Edition of 750
On the occasion of the exhibition KAWS: Companionship in the Age of Loneliness the National Gallery of Victoria presented a limited-edition art book with accompanying screenprint by renowned artist KAWS. Each book and screenprint is signed and numbered by the artist.

This latest NGV Edition is presented in a stunning grey Wibalin Buckram-bound box with foiled title, and features:

edition of 750 signed and numbered
an original screenprint based on a pencil drawing of GONE, 2019. Printed on Arches Aquarelle 300gsm paper
the print is presented in a Wibalin Buckram-bound print wallet and archival-grade print envelope inside the print wallet
limited-edition copy of the exhibition catalogue
KAWS: COMPANIONSHIP IN THE AGE OF LONELINESS

Original screenprint, GONE, 2019, and limited-edition copy exhibition catalogue

The Print

Printed in New York under the supervision of the artist, this screenprint on Arches Aquarelle 300gsm is based on GONE. An emotional depiction of loss, GONE, 2019, shows KAWS’s well-known characters COMPANION and BFF in a pose reminiscent of a classic pietà. It is among the most powerful of KAWS’s sculptural works, which often embody humility, pathos and vulnerability. Whether as a monumental sculpture, vinyl edition, or screenprint, the exquisitely rendered and immaculately finished work engages with contemporary issues such as loneliness and celebrates supportiveness in today’s increasingly fractured world.

The Book

KAWS is one of the most prominent and prolific artists of his generation. Working across art, fashion and design, he creates colour-filled paintings, murals, large-scale sculptures, street and public art, products, and streetwear. His work is infused with humour and humanity and is deeply tied to our times. KAWS draws his cast of characters from pop-culture animations to form a distinctive artistic vocabulary.

Featuring a new text by Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid’s Tale), a biographical essay by NGV Senior Curator of Contemporary Art, Dr Simon Maidment, and more than 200 images, including documentation of the career-survey exhibition KAWS: Companionship in the Age of Loneliness at the National Gallery of Victoria, this publication is a comprehensive overview of the artist’s work to date.