Photo courtesy of Pop Shop, 1986 © Keith Haring Foundation Photo by Tseng Kwong Chi, 1986 © Muna Tseng Dance Projects, Inc., New York

The Kutztown Area Historical Society is honored to announce the dedication ceremony for a Pennsylvania Historical Marker commemorating its most famous hometown native, Keith Haring (1958-1990).  The ceremony will be held rain or shine on Friday, October 11, 2024 at 1 p.m. on the grounds of the Kutztown Area Historical Society, 212 South Whiteoak St., Kutztown, PA 19530.  Following the ceremony, the society will host a reception inside the 1892 Public School Building, its museum, where a special temporary exhibition of art, books, and artifacts reflecting Haring’s life and legacy will be on display alongside original chalk drawings that he drew for the society in November 1982. Please be aware that some exhibit items are sexual in nature. Light refreshments will be provided.

The special exhibition, “Keith Haring: Kutztown’s Native Son,” will also be open on Saturday, October 12 and Sunday, October 13 from 1pm to 4pm. This is a temporary exhibition, so see it while you can.

Born on April 4, 1958, Haring was raised in Kutztown in two residences near the 1892 Public School Building, where he attended junior high school, by which time he had already developed a life-long fascination with drawing.  After graduating from Kutztown Area High School in June 1976 and spending several semesters at the Ivy School of Professional Art in Pittsburgh, Haring moved to New York City in 1978, where he enrolled in courses at the School of Visual Art and quickly became enmeshed in the Downtown art, music, and culture scene centered in the East Village during that era.  Frequenting galleries, nightclubs, and such alternative spaces as the Mudd Club and Club 57, Haring experimented in various media including video, collage, and performance art before commencing his signature chalk drawings on expired advertising panels throughout the city’s subway system in 1980.  Within several years, Haring received international exposure, and his iconic artwork of prominent lines, bold colors, and energized figures could be found not only in leading art museums and galleries but also on magazine covers, MTV, and apparel, articulating his philosophy that “art is for everybody.”  In his brief but frenetic career, Haring painted dozens of murals not only in New York but throughout Europe and Japan, including most famously on the Berlin Wall in 1986; mounted dozens of group and solo exhibitions in New York’s leading galleries; and occupied a unique and prominent position as Neo-Pop art and Downtown culture, no longer a localized ephemeral movement, exploded globally and captured the public consciousness.  Haring passed away in New York from AIDS-related complications on February 16, 1990, a few months shy of his 32nd birthday.

Dave and Jean Adam share PA Dutch humor, history, stories, and more!

Our annual end-of-summer event! Bring your own lawn chair and relax in the shade of the beautiful garden at the 1892 Public School Building and listen to music. The ice cream is free, courtesy of the Kutztown Area Historical Society.

Kutztown Folk Festival Quilt Barn Director Cyndi Hershey will discuss “Here & Now: How Old Quilt Designs Are as Interesting as Ever with Current Quilters.”  She’ll share antique quilting patterns and modern twists that today’s quilters have added to them.  Cyndi has over 30 years of experience in the textile and quilting industries, serving in several creative and marketing capacities.  She has authored two quilting books for Martingale & Company: Sudoku Quilts and Nine by Nine.  FREE ADMISSION

Author Brad Huebner will discuss his book, “Titles For Our Town,” which documents three small-town basketball dynasties, including Kutztown High under John Silan. See how tiny boroughs managed to win multiple state titles during the golden age. That was when future basketball titans like Dream Team coach Chuck Daly, Nike guru Sonny Vaccaro, Final Four announcer Billy Packer, Kentucky coach John Calipari, and many others began to impact Dr. Naismith's great game. See how those who studied under John Silan would go on to success coaching at Albright College, Alvernia University, and Muhlenberg College. Books will be available for purchase and autographs.