Keith’s Commandments

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Keith Haring’s
final altarpiece was
one of the first artworks
featured here at the GoBA

:

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A link
at the end of
that article pointed to
a series of ten large canvases
Keith painted based on the
Ten Commandments
.

Since I don’t know the
Ten Commandments by heart,
I had to flip back and forth from
the Bible to the exhibit to try
to understand the images
.

It
wasn’t
an ideal way
to experience
the series
…

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A
bit of
background
before we start
:

These
paintings are
HUGE
!!!

Haring got
the idea for them while
dancing at the Paradise Garage,
when he wondered if he could fill
the large arches of the CAPC,
Bourdeaux with paintings
.

There were five
arches, and he thought of the
Ten Commandments as two
paintings back-to-back
in each arch
.

This photo
will give you an
idea of the
size
:

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The paintings don’t have
Titles or Numbers, so this is
my best attempt to show them
in proper order. I searched every
source I could find for clues,
but if anyone thinks I got
it wrong, please leave
a Comment below

.

For example,
many websites quote
Keith as saying,

The way I worked
on the “Ten Commandments” is;
even though its says “thou shalt not
steal”, the picture I show is some-
one stealing: the antithesis.
I present what
not to do
…

Only one of the images
looks like stealing to me,
so I’m fairly certain that
I got that one right
.

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Here
is the first
Commandment
:

I am the LORD your God;
you shall not have strange
gods before me
Exodus 20:3

The First Commandment

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You
shall not
take the name
of the LORD
your God
in vain
Exodus 20:7

The Second Commandment

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Remember to
keep holy the
LORD’s Day
Exodus 20:8

The Third Commandment

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You can see
Keith in the bottom
right corner of
this one
:

Honor your
father and mother
Exodus 20:12

The Fourth Commandment

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You
shall not kill
Exodus 20:13

The Fifth Commandment

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You shall not
commit adultery
Exodus 20:14

The Sixth Commandment

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You
shall not steal
Exodus 20:15

The Seventh Commandment

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You shall not bear
false witness against
your neighbor
.

The Eighth Commandment

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You shall
not covet your
neighbor’s wife
Exodus 20:17

The Ninth Commandment

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You shall
not covet your
neighbor’s goods
Exodus 20:17

The Tenth Commandment

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To be honest,
I’m not sure I understand
some of his interpretations,
but you can learn more about
what he was thinking in
this interview with
Sylvie Couderc
:

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The icon
for this article is a
detail from Keith Haring’s
“The Ten Commandments”
:

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