MTV partners KAWS for 2013 video music awards

With works featured in prestigious museums and galleries from Los Angeles to Paris, Tokyo and Hong Kong, KAWS’ art will be present throughout the award show, influencing the design for the set as well as the logo.  Other artists who win a 2013 Video Music Awards will take home a special-edition of KAWS ‘Moonman’, which […]

With works featured in prestigious museums and galleries from Los Angeles to Paris, Tokyo and Hong Kong, KAWS’ art will be present throughout the award show, influencing the design for the set as well as the logo.  Other artists who win a 2013 Video Music Awards will take home a special-edition of KAWS ‘Moonman’, which was created exclusively for this year’s event.
According to MTV President, Stephen Friedman, “creative experimentation and reinvention are in MTV’s DNA.  We have a history of partnering with groundbreaking artists – from Jean-Michel Basquiat to Andy Warhol – to bring inventive, thought-provoking works directly to our audience.”
He said the “KAWS is the perfect partner to continue this legacy, and his redesigned ‘Moonman’ is the perfect centerpiece for music’s most irreverent award show.”
The legendary artist said he grew up watching MTV and the Video Music Awards, “so I was excited to interject my work into this world. It’s a honour to be able to re-imagine such an iconic symbol in music and pop culture, especially since the show is taking place in Brooklyn.  I’m looking forward to seeing KAWS ‘Moonmen’ take over the 2013 VMAs.”
KAWS, who has also collaborated with the likes of Kanye West and Pharrell, kept the design true to the ‘Moonman’s’ iconic image, while re-contextualizing it with his signature inflated skull and crossbones.  The special-edition ‘KAWS Moonman’ draws influence from ‘KAWS’ COMPANION’, and echoes the artist’s earlier works which have created a dialogue with iconic characters such as ‘Mickey Mouse’ and ‘The Simpsons’.
MTV’s collaboration with KAWS builds on the network’s rich legacy of introducing its audience to vanguard art, including early works from Keith Haring, Stephen Sprouse and Doug Aitken, as well as Andy Warhol’s ‘15 Minutes’
Additionally, glass sculptor Dale Chihuly’s work made an MTV ‘Video Music Award’ appearance in 2004, when one of his pieces was built into the show’s set.  In 2012, MTV partnered with MoMA PS1 and Creative Time to revive ‘Art Breaks’, airing a series of ten original video art pieces by some of the most exciting emerging artists from around the world.
The event which is scheduled to take place on August 25 at the Barclays Center will be the first major awards show to hold in Brooklyn, New York.