Gauntlet Gallery — Complete KAWS Index
Clean Slate Print
Work Summary & Collector Notes
Clean Slate is one of KAWS's most tender Companion compositions, depicting the iconic X-eyed COMPANION figure seated and cradling a small child-like COMPANION in its arms. Released as a limited screenprint, the image translates KAWS's painted and sculptural treatment of the same subject into a flat, graphic format with his signature crisp outlines and bold, controlled color fields. The work reads as a quiet meditation on caregiving and protection, rendered through KAWS's instantly recognizable cartoon-derived vocabulary. As with much of his print output, it brings a museum-scale motif into an accessible, wall-ready edition for collectors.
Collector notes: Edition label was not stated, and total quantity was not documented in the saved record. Edition-specific signature, numbering, and stamp details were not stated in the saved release record. Verify signing and numbering against a documented example of this edition.
Why It Matters
Clean Slate belongs to KAWS's mature Companion era, when his cartoon-rooted figures became vehicles for genuine emotional weight. The parent-and-child embrace is among his most affecting recurring images, echoing the monumental sculptures and paintings that have anchored major museum and gallery presentations. For collectors, the print encapsulates the tension at the core of KAWS's appeal: a character born from skate, graffiti, and toy culture deployed to express vulnerability, tenderness, and the universal experience of holding someone close. Owning the screenprint connects a collector to a composition that also exists in painting and sculpture, giving the image cross-media gravity. It demonstrates how KAWS broadened the Companion beyond brand-driven cool into something quietly humanist, which is a large part of why his work bridges streetwear audiences and traditional fine-art institutions. The image's clarity and warmth make it one of the more emotionally resonant entries in his print catalogue, and a frequently sought reference point when discussing the softer, family-oriented side of his practice.
Collector Perspective
Clean Slate appeals to collectors who prize KAWS's emotional register over his louder, more product-driven pieces. It sits naturally alongside other Companion prints and the family-themed works in a collection, anchoring a wall with a tender, instantly legible image. Buyers drawn to it tend to value narrative and warmth, and the composition photographs and displays beautifully in both domestic and gallery-style hangs. Because the motif also exists in painting and sculpture, the print is attractive to collectors who want an accessible entry point to a composition with deeper institutional pedigree. It tends to hold steady interest as a recognizable, well-loved KAWS image rather than a niche curiosity.
Historical Context
Clean Slate fits within KAWS's Companion and fine-art arc, well after his origins tagging the streets and subway ad spaces of the 1990s and his breakthrough into vinyl toys. By the time of this composition, Brian Donnelly had fully transitioned the Companion from a subversive cartoon riff into a serious vehicle for painting, sculpture, and editioned prints exhibited in museums worldwide. The parent-and-child embrace reflects a recurring theme in his later practice, where the X-eyed figures convey care, loss, and tenderness. The print form continues KAWS's long-standing strategy of making monumental imagery widely accessible, a democratizing impulse rooted in his street-art beginnings and amplified through his prolific editioned output.
Documented Release Details
- Object type
- Editioned print or object
- Release date
- 2022
- Release-date note
- Catalog-listed release year from the saved secondary record; primary release-page confirmation remains pending.
- Series
- Companion Series
- Medium and materials
- Medium and materials were not documented in the saved record.
- Edition details
- Edition label was not stated, and total quantity was not documented in the saved record.
- Signature and marks
- Edition-specific signature, numbering, and stamp details were not stated in the saved release record. Verify signing and numbering against a documented example of this edition.
Documented History and Meaning
History note: This page treats KAWS's broader career as background context, not proof that this specific edition belongs to any single exhibition or event. Release-level facts here come from a saved secondary catalog record.
Meaning / interpretation: No per-work artist statement is recorded for this edition. Any thematic reading should be treated as interpretation of the imagery, not a documented statement of the artist's intent. This interpretive note follows the cited artist or publisher context.
Release context: The saved catalog lists 2022. It is grouped under Companion Series in the saved record.
Authentication, Presentation and Provenance
- Original presentation
- Original packaging or presentation was not documented in the release sources reviewed.
- Authentication note
- Compare the support, dimensions, edition number, and signature against a documented example of this edition. Gauntlet Gallery does not authenticate works purchased from third parties.
- Provenance note
- Edition origin is attributed in the saved record to the release source named in the saved record. That does not establish the ownership history of an individual copy: retain the original invoice, reseller or gallery paperwork, labels, correspondence, and condition photographs.
Sources and Verification
Verification status: Secondary catalog snapshot; artist-level context added
- KAWSONE — official site — KAWS studio · primary artist source · Accessed 2026-07-13 · Official artist site; career context, not an individual-edition record.
- KAWS — Wikipedia · reference encyclopedia · Accessed 2026-07-13 · General artist-level biographical and career reference.
- KAWS (Q3194367) — Wikidata · reference knowledge base · Accessed 2026-07-13 · Structured identifier used for the artist across catalog metadata.
Market Context
- Estimated value. The median of recorded public sale prices for this piece, matched by title and colorway. We use the median (not the average) because it resists outliers.
- Min / max sale. The lowest and highest individual recorded sale prices; the range shows dispersion, not a guaranteed band.
- Recorded comps. The number of independent comparable sales; reliability rises with sample size (1–2 sales are indicative only).
- Liquidity & sales volume. Our liquidity rating reflects sales velocity — the number of recorded comparable sales and how recent the latest sale is. More frequent and more recent sales rate as more liquid (Highly Liquid → Liquid → Moderate → Thin → Very Thin); a piece with no recorded public sales is Extremely Rare.
- Estimate confidence. A traffic-light read on how well the data supports the estimate: green high, yellow medium, red low / indicative.
- Data source & currency. Compiled from recorded public marketplace and auction sales of US$200 or more, in US dollars, as of the latest recorded sale shown. Coverage is not exhaustive.
- Not financial or investment advice. For collector reference only — not an appraisal, offer, or guarantee of resale value. Art is volatile and illiquid; do your own research. Use is subject to our Terms & Conditions.
FAQ
What does Clean Slate depict?
It shows KAWS's X-eyed COMPANION figure cradling a smaller child-like COMPANION, a tender parent-and-child embrace that recurs across his paintings, sculptures, and prints.
Is Clean Slate a print or a unique work?
This is the print version, issued as a limited screenprint edition. The same composition also exists in painting and sculpture form.
How does it relate to the grey version?
Clean Slate (Grey) is an alternate colorway of the identical composition, so the two function as companion variants within the series.
Why is this image significant in KAWS's work?
It represents the tender, family-oriented side of his Companion era, using a cartoon-rooted figure to express caregiving and emotional vulnerability.
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