Search - Drawing the Line - Portrait of Keith Haring on DVD

As a high school art teacher in California

zbarr | MODESTO, CA USA | 07/03/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As a high school art teacher in California, I am always looking for interesting art videos for my students (most art videos even put me to sleep). This Keith Haring video has interviews showing how Haring started his art on the walls of subway stations in N.Y. and proceeded to become famous throughout the world. (Did he "sellout" or not? You decide) My students love this video!"

He Must Be Rolling in His Grave!

Jeffery Mingo | Homewood, IL USA | 06/22/2006

(2 out of 5 stars)

"This work was painfully de-gayed. This film made it look like Keith Haring cared about causes for communities in which he was not a member. He was valiant on those issues too. However, he was a proud gay man. He made art that had homoerotic themes. Andy Warhol was a mentor to him, but not just as an artist, both were openly gay men in the heavily homophobic 1980s. This disc showed some of Haring's safer sex messages, but they just breeze past the art he produced on a large pink triangle. At the end, they say he died in 1990. However, they should have said, "He died in 1990 due to complications from AIDS." If Madonna could do AIDS activism in Keith's name during the time this documentary was made, then this documentary could have been bolder. Keith worked hard to liberate gay men. This disc is not a respectful tribute to him. It's offensive in its erasure."

Informative and thoughtful

humanista | CA, Bay Area | 11/13/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I've used this video for my high school students and it is perfect for teaching art because of the succinct content and short 30 minute length. Good introduction to Keith Haring and by no means a thorough account of the complexities of this artist. I'd recommend reading his published journals for greater insights."