Street art is coming to the Gulf Coast in a big way. On September 1st, the Mobile Museum of Art (MMoA) will open GATEWAY: From Graffiti to Gallery, a special exhibition featuring 28 significant works from some of the most influential names in contemporary street art. MMoA will serve as the exclusive host venue for the yearlong blockbuster event, running through September 1, 2027.
From Underground Movement to Fine Art
Keith Haring, (Untitled 1983), Vinyl ink on vinyl tarpaulin with metal grommets, 84.875 x 85.25 in. Courtesy of Masterworks and Level & Co Gallery. © Keith Haring Foundation
The exhibition traces the origin and evolution of a movement that reshaped global visual culture, beginning in the early 1980s when street art was emerging as a major cultural force. Basquiat’s 1982 piece Untitled (Cave Painting) anchors the show’s opening chapter, displayed alongside two monumental 1983 paintings by Keith Haring. Both Haring works were executed in vinyl ink on tarpaulin, a material he adopted after seeing similar tarps covering Con Edison equipment on New York City streets.
From there, GATEWAY moves forward in time, showing how the visual language of these pioneers evolved across generations through later works by Banksy and KAWS. Kenny Scharf’s Evolution Revolution (2023) brings the exhibition to an immersive scale, a room-sized installation of five canvases totaling nearly 60 feet in width.
Beyond the paintings themselves, a selection of ephemera illustrates just how far this imagery traveled beyond gallery walls. Highlights include Haring’s 1989 Radiant Baby ornament, Scharf’s cover art for the B-52s’ 1986 album Bouncing Off the Satellites, and a pair of KAWS x sacai Nike sneakers, together showing how these artists’ work moved into music, fashion, and everyday life.
“Any museum would be excited to have a single work on view from any of the artists in this show,” said MMoA Executive Director Jon Carfagno. “We are so excited to bring this spectacular collection of paintings to our region and for how the year-long run will support numerous programs and events that will connect our community with the creative giants on view.”
Five Artists Who Redefined Modern Art
Kaws: CHUM (KCO13) (2016) Acrylic on canvas over panel. 60 x 49 in. Courtesy of Masterworks and Level & Co Gallery. © KAWS
The exhibition is presented in collaboration with Masterworks and Level & Co Gallery, with presenting sponsor Lexus of Mobile. GATEWAY opens with 1980s New York street art pioneers Basquiat, Haring, and Scharf, whose provocative work brought underground street culture directly into fine art galleries, before advancing to contemporary icons Banksy and KAWS, whose work demonstrates how today’s leading street art voices continue to build on that foundation.
Together, these five artists have redefined how art operates in the modern world, permeating mass media and popular culture through everything from stage backdrops for Madonna and Jay-Z to commercial releases like Lego sets, playing cards, and Target apparel. GATEWAY offers visitors a rare chance to see that far-reaching influence traced back to its source, all under one roof.
A Year of Programming for the Community
MMoA will host a full slate of public programming alongside the exhibition. In 2026, highlights include monthly gallery tours led by Carfagno, a graffiti-themed Family Day on October 24, teen mural workshops, and film screenings. Programming continues into 2027 with a spring art talk featuring Kenny Scharf and a GATEWAY-themed Art After Dark on July 22, 2027.
GATEWAY is made possible with additional support from the Crampton Trust, Mobile Museum of Art Foundation, The J.L. Bedsole Foundation, Mobile County Commission, Deborah Doyle and David Kemerer, Dr. and Mrs. W. Allen Oaks, A.S. Mitchell Foundation, The Caring Foundation of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, Hargrove Foundation, and Mr. and Mrs. Harold D. Parkman. The Museum’s exhibitions and programs are also supported by the Alabama State Council on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the City of Mobile.
Located in the heart of Mobile, MMoA has served as a vital creative hub for the Deep South since 1964. As South Alabama’s only accredited art museum, it houses a collection of more than 6,400 artworks spanning paintings, sculptures, decorative arts, works on paper, and crafts.
GATEWAY: From Graffiti to Gallery will be on view at Mobile Museum of Art from September 1, 2026, through September 1, 2027. For more information about the exhibition and related programming, visit MobileMuseumofArt.com/GATEWAY.
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