KAWS, “FAMILY,” 2021; private collection; © KAWS
Before an exhibition by KAWS opened at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA), more than 20 million people had already viewed it. Titled KAWS: FAMILY, the popular show traveled to sites including Hong Kong, Doha, and Melbourne before finally landing at SFMOMA in November 2025. Visitor numbers have undoubtedly climbed higher as the U.S. public enjoys the mononymous artist’s creative output over the past 30 years, through painting, sculpture, and commercial enterprises.
KAWS is the nom de guerre for Brian Donnelly, who got his start by painting graffiti on the streets of Jersey City and Manhattan in the 1990s. He would alter phone booths and bus shelters before choosing to enroll in the School of Visual Arts and majoring in illustration. Since 1996, he has created a variety of work in various media, often with a recognizable cast of characters—or, at the very least, a distinctive visual language that instantly reads as his handiwork.
The 100-piece KAWS: FAMILY is organized on SFMOMA’s Floor 4 as a series of “encounters,” with families of related works positioned throughout the space. While the grouping helps provide a natural way to organize a long career, the exhibition’s title was first inspired by a single sculpture. KAWS’ FAMILY (2021) is a bronze sculpture featuring three of his recurring characters: COMPANION, CHUM, and BFF. This is fitting, as his work frequently centers around these figures. They tangentially reference American animation and popular culture, such as Mickey Mouse, The Simpsons, and Sesame Street. It helps create a sense of ease and familiarity with KAWS’ work. Even if it’s the first time we’ve seen it, these types of figures are embedded in our cultural lexicon. But beyond the curved, friendly, and playful lines, KAWS shows that they can be a conduit for more human emotions like loneliness, grief, and joy.
“KAWS has a distinct appeal to a vast array of audiences with his iconic characters and meticulous work in a stunning range of mediums,” notes Christopher Bedford, Helen and Charles Schwab director of SFMOMA. “The playful and contemplative works—a dynamic blend of his street art practice and formal education—offer something for everyone. His large-scale public installations have wowed audiences worldwide, and his playful and poignant retrospective exhibition promises to connect museum visitors with art in entirely new ways.”
With a background in street art and illustration, KAWS has continued to lean into artistic accessibility, even while being a world-famous artist. He has long lent his art to everyday objects, such as shoe designs, cereal boxes, and more. They sit alongside his more formal sculptures and paintings, showing that all expressions have equal footing in our visual culture.
KAWS: FAMILY is currently on view at SFMOMA until May 3, 2026.
For 30 years, the artist KAWS has been creating iconic art via painting, sculpture, and commercial enterprises.
Photo: Shaniqwa Jarvis
Now, an expansive exhibition at SFMOMA is showing off 100 of his works.
KAWS, “GONE,” 2020; ©KAWS
KAWS, “SEPARATED,” 2021; ©KAWS
The 100-piece KAWS: FAMILY is organized on SFMOMA’s Floor 4 as a series of “encounters,” with families of related works positioned throughout the space.
KAWS, “SPACE,” 2021; ©KAWS
KAWS, “NEW MORNING,” 2012; ©KAWS (Photo: Tom Powell)
The work tangentially references American animation and popular culture, such as Mickey Mouse, The Simpsons, and Sesame Street.
KAWS,“URGE (KUB3),” 2020; ©KAWS (Photo: Farzad Owrang)
KAWS, “THE PORTRAIT,” 2021; © KAWS (Photo: Farzad Owrang)
KAWS, “UNTITLED (BAM),” 2013; ©KAWS
It helps create a sense of ease and familiarity with KAWS’ work, even if it’s the first time we’ve seen it.
KAWS, “CHUM,” 2002; ©KAWS (Photo: Farzad Owrang)
KAWS, “UNTITLED (DKNY),” 1999; ©KAWS (Photo: Farzad Owrang)
KAWS: FAMILY is currently on view at SFMOMA, one of the largest modern and contemporary art museums in the U.S.
SFMOMA, view from Yerba Buena Gardens. (Photo: Jon McNeal, © Snøhetta)
SFMOMA’s Oculus Bridge, featuring Olafur Eliasson’s “One-way colour tunnel,” 2007;© OlafurEliasson. (Photo: Adam Jacobs Photography, courtesy SFMOMA)
Snøhetta expansion of SFMOMA. (Photo: © Henrik Kam, courtesy SFMOMA)