I'm reading Keith Haring's diaries at the moment. After visiting the museum last month I felt I needed to read more about him so I though his personal diaries would be a good starting point.

Haring talks about his trips to a town in Belgium called Knokke, his 'home from home' he calls it.

He was often hosted by a couple by the name of Nellens, locals and art fans.. They had a Niki De Sainte Phalle designed dragon house (1971) in their garden and this was where Haring would stay, sleeping in the dragons belly.

I dug around and found some stuff on the dragon on the net.

During one stay Haring painted the stairs inside the dragon, you can see the finished stairs 
in the video and also some other Haring works..

​I want to check this house out and also some other works by Niki De Sainte Phalle.

最近キース・へリングの日記を読んでいます。先月中村キース・へリング美術館を訪れてから、彼についての書籍をもっと読む必要があるなと感じたからです。キース・ヘリング自身が残した個人的な日記は、その良き第一歩になるのではないかと思いました。

彼は日記の中で、ベルギーにある町クノックをよく訪れたことについて触れています。このクノックは彼が”第二の故郷”と呼ぶ町なのです。
クノックに行く際、彼は地元の美術愛好家であるNellensという夫婦の所にしばしば滞在していました。この夫婦は自宅の庭の中にニキ・ド・サンファルがデザインしたドラゴンハウスと称される建物を所有しており、キースはこのドラゴンハウスに泊まって丁度ドラゴンのお腹のあたりで寝起きしていたそうです。

このドラゴンハウスのことが気になったので、色々ネットで調べてみました。
ヘリングはクノックに滞在中のある時、そのドラゴンハウスの中にある階段にイラストを施しました。その制作風景と完成した階段等が以下のYouTubeビデオの中に収録されています。

このドラゴンハウスと他のニキ・ド・サンファルの作品についてもっと調べてみたいです。

Some of the Comic Art Tokyo team popped into Harajuku on Sunday to enjoy the end of show party for the Lucas Beaufort exhibition.

If you don't know Lucas' work you should definitely check him out, especially his awesome work on the LB project..

The event was put on by the guys at Osaka based MINT Skateboarding. They did a fantastic job, handmade frames and all..

The event was promoted by Shibuya based  HIDDEN magazine, a free magazine that you should definately keep and eye out for when you are in Japan

日曜日に、Comic Art Tokyo運営チームの数名が集合し、渋谷で開催されたLucas Beaufort氏の展示会パーティに足を運んできました！
（彼の名前を知らない方、そして知ってはいるけど作品を見たことがない方、是非LB projectをチェックしてみて下さい。彼の素晴らしい作品が楽しめますよ！）

このイベントは大阪をベースに活動するMINT Skateboarding.、そして渋谷を拠点とするフリーマガジン HIDDEN magazine,によって主催されました。アートやスケートボード等、幅広いジャンルをカバーした読み応えのある雑誌HIDDEN magazine必読です！：）

Black Hook Press gallery is currently running and exhibition of Keizo Miyanishi's works including new pieces created for this show. We will also have a live music performance by Miyanishi and his band on 16th April.

​Miyanishi's draftsmanship is impeccable, the precision in his line is amazing.I have taken a few photographs but his work is very much the father of Shohei, or Manabu Ikeda.

​Miyanishi's background is varied, the Manga Updates website gives an overview of his career,
"Miyanishi Keizo is best known as an author of erotic manga during the 1970s. As a magazine described his work in 1979, Miyanishi's is "a sensual beauty that is grotesque but sophisticated," explored through characters that are "eccentric and abnormal." He started off as an assistant for the renowned manga author and animator Misaki Mamoru, and after the 70s ero-boom waned made a living as an illustrator. His band, Onna, reached number one on the Japanese indies chart in 1983. He has long been devoted to modern Russian literature, and his recent work bears the distinct influence of that tradition's themes of existentialist suffering and decadence. "

http://keizomiyanishi.com/

Nakamura-san began his interest in Keith Haring’s artwork in 1987.He was on a business  trip from Japan and checking out the smaller galleries of New York when he came across an early exhibition of Haring’s work. He was immediately interested in Haring’s work but was shocked at the price.The gallery owner offered Nakamura-san layaway terms so he could pay in instalments, and so began Nakamura’s interest and collection of Haring pieces.

The purpose built gallery building was designed by Atsushi Kitagawara and it is a wonderful building, bright and airy,it refreshingly pulls the beauty of the location and the collection together.The surrounding area was a Jomon settlement and artifacts from that period are included within the exhibition space bringing the historical context of the surroundings and Haring’s works together in a meaningful way but not an overpowering way.It works really well.

The collection is well spaced and descriptions are plentiful, any fan of Haring’s will enjoy delving a bit further into Haring’s timeline of creation,his methods, and his thoughts and opinions but there really is nothing better than to read than The Keith Haring Journals which are fantastic personal artifacts of Haring.

Personal favourites at the museum were <Sweet Saturday Night> 1985, an Acrylic on heavy woven fabric that was the backdrop of a stage set for a dance performance The Brooklyn Academy of Music during Black History month (Feb 5-10th, 1985) and <untitled> 1984 a Yamaha 250 motorbike with marker pen drawings.

Details -

The museum is about 2-3 hours by train or bus from Shinjuku Station, Tokyo. We stayed at Tomo’s Air BnB which is about 25 minutes walk from the museum.

​The museum has a no photography policy, and also, unfortunately, a no drawing policy (it would be great to see this removed for special artist days).

http://www.nakamura-haring.com/english/index.html​

http://www.haring.com/