KAWS

Donnelly was born in 1974 in Jersey City, New Jersey where he attended St. Anthony High School. As a teenager, he painted his tag "KAWS" on the roof of an area building so that he could see it outside while attending class in high school. He went on to attend the School of Visual Arts in New York City, receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts in illustration in 1996. Following graduation, he briefly worked for Jumbo Pictures as a freelance animator painting backgrounds for the animated series 101 Dalmatians, Daria and Doug. Animator by day, and graffiti artist by night, Donnelly created a name for himself, KAWS. Illegal graffiti was the first step of Kaws learning his craft. After moving to New York City in the 1990s, he started subvertising billboards, bus shelters, and phone booths  using a key gifted to him by friend and fellow graffiti artist, Barry Mcgee, as well as bus shelters using a key he created for himself. Since, he has subvertised in Paris, London, Berlin, and Tokyo. In 1999 KAWS made his first toy, Companion, a vinyl figure of Mickey Mouse with x-ed out eyes, with Japanese company Bounty Hunter. His influences come from traditional life painters, such as Gerhard Richter, Claes Oldenburg, and Chuck Close, and he has been compared to the likes of Andy Warhol for his appeal across the market and ability to blur lines between commercial and fine art

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