KAWS, Man's Best Friend, Panel #10, 2015

In Man’s Best Friend, Panel #10 (2015), KAWS returns to the clearest and most emotive depiction within the series — a bold, almost tender abstraction of Snoopy, the ultimate symbol of loyalty and affection. The work, executed in thick, gestural black lines on a crisp white background, captures the essence of the character while simultaneously distorting it through expressive movement. The crossed-out eyes — one of KAWS’s most recognizable motifs — transform the familiar cartoon visage into a universal emblem of vulnerability and reflection.

Part of the Man’s Best Friend series, this panel reflects KAWS’s ongoing dialogue between high art and popular culture. By abstracting one of the most iconic figures in American comics, the artist bridges the sentimental and the conceptual, transforming childhood nostalgia into a study of emotional depth and human connection. The loose, painterly lines recall both graffiti and abstract expressionism, blending street immediacy with fine art formalism.

In Panel #10, KAWS achieves a rare balance between humor and poignancy. Snoopy’s form, though fragmented, radiates a sense of warmth and memory — a reminder of companionship, devotion, and the bittersweet passage of time. Through simplicity of color and intensity of gesture, the artist turns an image of “man’s best friend” into a meditation on identity, loss, and the enduring comfort of the familiar.