February 7, 2017 | Arts / Entertainment

Picture book being released about Keith Haring's life

Keith Haring: The Boy Who Just Kept DrawingThe life and work of queer artist Keith Haring has been captured in a new book for children.
 
Keith Haring: The Boy Who Just Kept Drawing was written by Kay A. Haring, Keith’s sister. She had been working on the book for over a decade, and hopes it will do justice to her late brother's legacy (he died in 1990).
 
“The actual content of the story was easy to write about. I wanted to give children an example of his generosity and his easy going, fun-loving personality,” she said. “There were dozens of scenarios I could choose from where he gave away his artwork or his time to benefit others. Over the years there were a few situations that stood out to me as hallmarks of Keith’s dedication and his care for other people. The difficult part of a story like this is to edit it down to a reasonable length.”
 
Keith was openly gay. His work often dealt with issues of sexuality and fighting AIDS. In fact, much of his work post-1988 focused on HIV, following his own diagnosis with the disease. His work is still often used to help raise money for HIV/AIDS research and support. 
 
Keith Haring
 
Kay hopes children will be inspired to follow her brother's lead of living out loud, no matter who you are. 
 
“Keith used his work as a tool for organizations to raise money, to raise awareness and to disrupt society norms,” she continued. “My book tells the story of how Keith kept drawing, no matter who questioned what he was doing or why. I hope the passion he had as an artist is apparent to the kids who read it. I also want to highlight his philanthropy and hope that it inspires children to give back in their own community."
 
With that in mind, 25 percent of the proceeds from book sales will support the Berks County Community Foundation Youth Advisory Committee, which is based in their family hometown of Reading, Pennsylvania.
 
The book will be released on February 14, 2017, and costs $16.99, making it a better gift than a silly box of chocolates for Valentine's Day (though we still want a silly box of chocolates, thank you very much).

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