Square One Gallery and Lococo Fine Art Publisher collaborate to showcase his works that respond to the dire health needs of the planet.

by Grayling Holmes / photos of Scharf’s artwork compliments of Lococo Fine Art Publisher

Get ready, St. Louis art lovers! October and November are the months to “fall” in love with renowned artist Kenny Scharf. Trip the fantastic world of “Woodz ‘N Thingz”, a portfolio exhibition responding to the dire health of the planet. Walk into Square One Gallery in the Central West End October 18 through November 22nd, and you will discover why the gallery and Lococo Fine Art Publisher teamed up to bring Scharf’s works to the you – the art afficionados of our fair burg.

Scharf’s work has been shown and lauded everywhere stretching one coast to the other – from New York’s Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney, also in New York, to Miami’s Center for the Fine Arts, and on the West Coast to the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles and San Francisco’s Museum of Modern Art. His works have even crossed the pond and are on display at The Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. Now is your chance to see his works in the heart of the Midwest, right here in St. Louis.

Kenny Scharf in front of the NYAA mural which became the new edition - Courtesy of the Artist and The New York Academy Art - photo Matteo Prandoni/BFA.com.

Be the first to glimpse and savor the St. Louis debut of Scharf’s “Woodz ‘N Thingz” at Square One Gallery on Friday, October 18th, from 6-9pm. Consider this a formal invitation from Kenny Scharf, Lococo Fine Art Publisher and Square One.

A continuation of his legendary œuvre, “Woodz ‘N Thingz” illustrates a constant interplay between ecosystems - the awareness of the observer and the delicacy of the environment. In the exhibition, Scharf creates magnetic compositions that exist in the ambiguity of transition and change while highlighting contemporary environmental perils and impending global crises. What could be more topical as changing weather patterns? Witness the devastating wrath of Hurricane Helene this month and rising sea levels across the globe as our climate warms. Through his art, Scharf is putting a spotlight on this existential crisis.

By employing a recognizable visual lexicon with imagery found frequently throughout his works, Scharf has crafted a new template to explore the interconnectedness of living things, and the ways in which we interact with each environment we find ourselves in. Through “Woodz ‘N Thingz”, Scharf has unveiled a utopic vision and architecture unique to his painterly style, suggesting the possibility of attaining a deeper conscious awareness by simplifying the ways in which we live, and reconnecting to the natural world.

While the sold out original paintings first exhibited in 2022 with TOTAH in New York City, “Woodz ‘N Thingz” has become a landmark series in Scharf’s career, now spanning almost 5 decades, and resulted in the exclusive publishing of the edition portfolio with Lococo based in Saint Louis, Missouri. Since 1990, Lococo has collaborated with master printmakers to present editions and multiples from world class international artists.

About the Artist

Kenny Scharf (born in Los Angeles, 1958) attended Manhattan’s School of Visual Arts and came of age in the 1980s New York downtown art scene alongside his contemporaries Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat. A painter and performer inhabiting the visual worlds of both street art and popular culture, Scharf’s graffiti paintings gained him notoriety and established a vernacular language all his own. Often working with improvisation, he creates playful, gestural pieces that blend stylized motifs with references to the surreal, science fiction, and icons of popular culture. Scharf uses cartoon images in his art work to bring popular culture into the fine arts. Scharf wants to see how far he can push the line between high and low art. Scharf to this day is making art work that makes the viewers think about where the line is and how far has the artist pushed it. For more information on Kenny Scharf, please visit kennyscharf.com.

About Lococo Fine Art Publisher

Lococo Fine Art is a publisher of contemporary fine art prints and multiples since 1990. Their portfolio of fine art works includes 25 international artists. Located at 9320 Olive Boulevard in St. Louis, Missouri, their editions have been exhibited and are in the collections of many museums world-wide, including: The Metropolitan Museum of Art | New York, NY, The Museum of Modern Art | New York, NY, Whitney Museum of American Art | New York, NY, Saint Louis Art Museum | Saint Louis, MO, Los Angeles County Museum of Art | Los Angeles, CA, Boston Museum of Fine Art | Boston, MA, Orlando Museum of Art | Orlando, FL, Colby Museum | Waterville, ME, The Marseille Museum | Marseille, France, Maison des Ecrivans | Paris, France, Kochi Museum of Art | Kochi, Japan, and Albertina Museum | Vienna, Austria. Their extensive collection includes artists Derrick Adams, Katherine Bernhardt, Alex Katz, Kenny Scharf, and Andy Warhol. For more information on Lococo, please visit lococofineart.com.

About Square One Gallery

Square One Gallery is a contemporary art gallery located in the historic Central West End of St. Louis, Missouri. Established in 2024, Square One Gallery strives to showcase contemporary artistic voices while connecting St. Louis to the greater international arts community with a diverse, global roster of exceptional artists. For more information on Square One, please visit squareonegallery.com.