Gauntlet Gallery — Complete KAWS Index
Kaws Companion : Resting Place (Black Version)
Work Summary & Collector Notes
Companion: Resting Place (Black Version) presents KAWS's signature Companion in a seated, slumped pose, head bowed and gloved hands at rest, rendered here in a sombre all-black colorway. The Companion, KAWS's Mickey-Mouse-derived everyman with crossed-out X eyes, appears in a posture of exhaustion or contemplation that gives the work its title and its unmistakably melancholic charge. The black version strips away color to heighten the mood, reducing the figure to silhouette and emphasizing the slumped, grieving body language. Issued as a collectible figure, it distills the emotional undertow that has made the Companion KAWS's most enduring and resonant invention, balancing cartoon cuteness against a palpable sense of weariness and sorrow.
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
The Companion is the cornerstone of KAWS's entire practice, the character through which he is most recognized worldwide, and Resting Place is among its most emotionally legible incarnations. The slumped, head-in-hands posture crystallizes the melancholy that critics regard as the deepest theme in KAWS's work, the idea that his cheerful pop surfaces conceal vulnerability, fatigue, and loss. Rendering it in black amplifies that reading, turning the figure into something closer to a mourning silhouette. For collectors, Resting Place is significant because it captures the Companion not in a neutral standing pose but in a charged emotional state, making it one of the more expressive and conceptually weighty figures in the line. The black version also participates in the colorway culture that structures KAWS collecting, where the darker, more restrained palettes are often prized for their gravity. As a Companion object it anchors a collection, connecting to the broad family of Companion prints, sculptures, and dissected variants that together form the spine of KAWS's market and the most reliably collected segment of his output.
Collector Perspective
Resting Place (Black Version) appeals to dedicated Companion collectors and to buyers drawn to the melancholic, emotionally resonant side of KAWS rather than his brightest pop pieces. The black colorway makes it a striking, gallery-like object that reads as a sculptural silhouette and integrates easily into a sophisticated interior. Within a collection it pairs naturally with other Companion works, from dissected variants to standing figures and prints, deepening the central thread of any KAWS holding. Collectors value the expressive pose and the restraint of the monochrome palette; condition, completeness of packaging, and authenticity are the key drivers of desirability and resale standing.
Historical Context
Resting Place belongs to the Companion and fine-art era in which KAWS's Mickey-derived figure became his defining motif and a global emblem of his practice. The Companion grew out of his graffiti and vinyl-toy beginnings and matured into a vehicle for the melancholic, mortality-tinged themes that distinguish his mature work. Resting Place's slumped posture extends the emotional vocabulary KAWS developed across dissected, resting, and standing Companions, and its black colorway reflects the variant-driven collecting culture that surrounds the series, situating it firmly within the most documented and sought-after strand of his output.
Documented Release Details
- Object type
- Editioned print or object
- Release date
- 2013
- 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: Read as documented context rather than stated intent: Resting Place belongs to the Companion and fine-art era in which KAWS's Mickey-derived figure became his defining motif and a global emblem of his practice. This is an interpretive reading of the release context, not a statement of the artist's intent for this specific work. This interpretive note follows the cited artist or publisher context.
Release context: The saved catalog lists 2013. 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.
- Product-level estimate. This colorway has few or no recorded sales of its own, so the figure is pooled from sales across all colorways of the same product (median, with the 25th–75th percentile as the range). Indicative; specific colorways can trade above or below.
- 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 pose is Companion: Resting Place in?
The Companion is shown seated and slumped, head bowed with hands at rest, a posture of exhaustion or contemplation that gives the work its name and its melancholic mood.
Why is the Companion so important to KAWS?
The Companion is KAWS's signature character and the figure through which he is most widely recognized; it anchors his market and carries the emotional themes central to his practice.
What does the black version add?
The all-black colorway reduces the figure to silhouette and heightens its sombre, mourning-like tone. Specific edition size and release date should be confirmed against published documentation.
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