Totem (Concrete) by Keith Haring is a monumental sculptural relief created in grey concrete and reflects a significant expansion in Haring’s practice where he moved beyond drawing and printmaking into sculpture, public installation and permanent architectural projects.

By the late 1980s, Haring had achieved international recognition through exhibitions, murals and public commissions, yet remained committed to the accessibility and immediacy that defined his earliest subway works. Sculpture offered a way to extend this into physical space, allowing his imagery to function not only as a graphic symbol but as permanent public form.

In Totem (Concrete), the use of industrial material marks a clear departure from the temporary supports and brightly coloured drawings associated with his earlier practice. The relief is organised as a vertically stacked structure composed of stylised abstract and anthropomorphic forms rendered in shallow carved contour.

Concrete plays a central conceptual role within the sculpture. Associated equally with modern urban construction and ancient monumentality, the material bridges the urban-ness of the contemporary city with references to older sculptural traditions. Haring’s choice of concrete also reflects his increasing interest in permanence and durability during this period, as he sought ways to preserve the immediacy of his imagery beyond the transient nature of street intervention.

Totem (Concrete) demonstrates how Haring adapted his to a more architectural and enduring sculptural form. The work connects the directness of his street-based imagery with a broader engagement with monumentality, public space and permanence, translating the energy of his line into a materially grounded and physically durable object.

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