# @sfmoma on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DQXAijuCTFp
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/36322463-sfmoma-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/a1881a92cf.jpg
- **Posted:** 2025-10-28T16:24:15.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** SFMOMA (@sfmoma) — https://gondola.cc/sfmoma

## Caption

🎨 Before KAWS’ bold colors and clean lines make it to the canvas, there’s a meticulous process rooted in his background in animation and visual design.

Here’s how a KAWS painting comes to life:

1️⃣ It starts with a sketch.
KAWS often begins with a simple silhouette—sometimes inspired by a pop culture reference and sometimes rooted in abstracted forms and lines sourced from animations. These elements aren’t meant to be obvious; they’re his private “entry point into the picture.”

2️⃣ Then comes the composition.
KAWS reworks his drawings in Adobe Illustrator, fine-tuning each line. He layers together different elements like he’s developing a collage.

3️⃣ Mapping the color.
Once the composition is sketched onto a canvas, KAWS sits in front of it to plan his color placements. KAWS plans every hue through a system of dots and handwritten color numbers, mapped onto what he calls a “color chart.” Each schematic sheet becomes part of his own color archive—a bindered catalog of every painting he’s created.

4️⃣ Paint, layer, outline.
He builds the work in stages: flat base coats, shadows, and finally, his bold black outlines—always freehanded—that give each piece its crisp, graphic edge.

✨ The result: a perfect balance of play and precision, spontaneity and structure.

🖌️ See the artistic process of kaws come to life in “KAWS: FAMILY”
📍 Opening November 15 at SFMOMA
🎟️ Ticket link in bio.

—
Video courtesy of KAWS; photos by Jason Schmidt (jasonschmidtstudio) 
#KAWS #KAWSProcess #StudioPractice #SanFrancisco #ArtBehindTheScenes

## Stats

- **Views:** 0
- **Likes:** 2,039
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- **Comments:** 43

## Credits

| Name | Username | Profile | Role |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| SFMOMA | @sfmoma | https://gondola.cc/sfmoma | Non-Profit Organization |
| Dyemond | @DyemondDye | https://gondola.cc/DyemondDye | Content Producer |
| Dyemond | @DyemondDye | https://gondola.cc/DyemondDye | Copywriter |
| Dyemond | @DyemondDye | https://gondola.cc/DyemondDye | Social Lead |

## Tags

kawsprocess, studiopractice, sanfrancisco, artbehindthescenes, kaws

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