Keith Haring‘s Dog, created in 1985, is a lithograph that showcases Haring’s ability to assimilate complex and profound symbolism into his creations with clarity and simplicity. This piece features a large dog, a recurring motif in Haring’s art, which is rendered with bold lines, geometric edges, and gestural lines that evoke the artist’s passion for graffiti and nostalgic childhood illustrations.

At first glance, the Dog appears as a playful and friendly character, a creature of enchantment full of exuberance and whimsy. The dog is depicted in a dynamic pose, with its body elongated and contorted, almost as if it is in motion. Haring’s use of simple, curvilinear forms in the dog‘s depiction gives it a sense of fluidity and liveliness.

Upon closer examination, one can discern that Dog is more than just a representation of an animal. Haring was known for infusing his work with social and political commentary, and this piece is no exception, especially considering the “dog” is one of the most recurring symbols in Haring’s artistic vocabulary. Guided by the wisdom and techniques of the ancient Egyptians, Haring shaped a personalized pictorial language of his own making, offering a code through which to interpret his illustrative messages and infusing his works with rich narrative and making it readily understandable cross-culturally. Often, the dog was Haring’s allusion to oppressive institutions, a reflection of the artist’s social and political concerns, and a warning to trust authority with a discerning mind.

In addition to the symbolism of its larger self, in Dog, Haring compounds complexity in the body of the canine by animating it with an impious vascular system of shocking imagery. Vignettes of zoophilia, monstrous creatures, humans being walked by dogs, violence, and even more cryptic ciphers layer the composition; among it all, “radiant baby”, Haring’s signature, crawls peacefully, acting as the emblem of the new generation’s experience growing up in chaos and the hope that they transcend that temptations and scars of pre-existing evils. This is no “dumb dog”. In fact, Keith Haring’s Dog may be one of the most insightful and challenging animals to tackle.