Free KAWS Coloring Pages: 35 printable PDF designs featuring Companion, the gloved figure with crossed-out XX eyes, along with his fuzzy friend BFF, sports and city scenes, bold geometric backgrounds, and pages inspired by the vinyl toys that made the artist famous.
KAWS is the working name of Brian Donnelly, born in 1974 in Jersey City, New Jersey. After studying illustration at New York’s School of Visual Arts, he painted backgrounds for TV cartoons by day. He worked as a graffiti artist by night, secretly repainting bus-shelter ads with his own characters and their signature XX eyes. In 1999, he released his first vinyl Companion figure with the Japanese brand Bounty Hunter, in a run of just 500 pieces.
Companion borrows the gloves, shorts, and big shoes of a classic cartoon mouse but swaps the face for a skull and crossbones. Two decades later, the character has floated down Manhattan as a Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade balloon, and in 2019, a KAWS painting sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong for about $14.7 million, a record for the artist. These pages bring that street-to-gallery style down to paper size.
What’s Inside This Collection
The designs mix quiet character studies with active scenes and collector-style art.
Companion in Every Mood
Many pages focus on Companion alone, standing tall, sitting among stars, hugging a friend, or hiding a sad face in his hands. These emotional poses are what set KAWS apart from ordinary action figures. A classic charcoal gray body with pale gray gloves is the most recognizable starting point.
Sports, Play, and City Life
Other pages put the figure to work: kicking a soccer ball, shooting hoops, holding a volleyball, riding a bike down a busy street, or building a snowman. These are the most kid-friendly designs in the set. Give the balls and bikes their real-world colors so they pop against the figure.
Bold Backgrounds and Dream Worlds
A group of pages places Companion against geometric shapes, starbursts, stripes, a pyramid, rolling hills, or a mountain forest. They feel closest to KAWS’s paintings. Choose a saturated background, like Cobalt Blue or Tangerine, after the figure is finished, so the two work together.
Collector Figures and Crossovers
The rest of the collection nods to the toy side of KAWS, from vinyl figure displays and a dissected Companion to crossover designs with other famous cartoon faces and streetwear. These appeal most to teen and adult collectors who know the originals.
What KAWS Coloring Pages Do
Art history, made hands-on. KAWS belongs to a line of artists, including Keith Haring, who moved from city streets into major museums. Coloring his characters is an easy way to start conversations about street art, pop art, and how everyday images become fine art.
Designing a colorway. Official Companion figures come in dozens of color schemes. Choosing a body, glove, and shoe color for each page teaches the same planning a toy designer uses.
Clean edges, steady hands. Crisp outlines, flat shapes, and small X marks give fingers plenty of controlled practice. The American Academy of Pediatrics links that kind of careful work to the fine motor development children build between ages 2 and 7.
Feelings in a pose. Companion often slumps, kneels, or covers his face. In a 2005 Art Therapy Journal study, structured coloring lowered anxiety, and pairing that calm activity with emotionally honest characters can open gentle talks about how people feel.
How to Color KAWS Coloring Pages Well
- Start with the XX eyes: Color the crossed eyes in solid black first. They are the character’s signature and should stay sharp.
- Keep color flat: KAWS figures look like smooth vinyl, so fill each area evenly without heavy shading.
- Gloves lighter than the body: Whatever body color you choose, make the gloves a paler version of it or white.
- Match shoes to the body: Shoes usually match or run slightly darker than the body color.
- Try an edition palette: Classic gray, bright blue, soft pink, or all black. Each gives Companion a different personality.
- Background last: Decide the background after the figure, using one bold color to frame it like a gallery print.
5 Creative Craft Ideas With KAWS Coloring Pages
1. Limited Edition Print
Color a Companion page in a palette of your own, then sign and number it at the bottom like a real art print.
2. Colorway Lineup
Print one standing figure four times and color each in a different scheme. Mount them in a row to see how color changes the mood.
3. Stand-Up Figure
Glue a colored figure to cardboard, cut it out, and add a folded tab at the back so it stands on a desk like a vinyl toy.
4. Street Art Wall
Color several scene pages, cut them out, and arrange them on a sheet of brown kraft paper decorated with bubble-letter tags.
5. Collector Box Display
Color a figure page and glue it inside a small shoebox painted in a bright color to create a toy display case.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are KAWS Coloring Pages?
Printable outlines of the characters created by the artist KAWS, especially Companion with his XX eyes, in poses, scenes, and collector-style designs. The set has 35 free pages.
Who is KAWS?
KAWS is Brian Donnelly, an American artist born in 1974 in Jersey City. He began as a graffiti artist in New York and became known worldwide for his characters and vinyl toys.
Who is Companion?
Companion is KAWS’s best-known character, first released as a vinyl toy in 1999. He wears cartoon gloves and shorts and has a skull-and-crossbones head with X-shaped eyes.
What do the XX eyes mean?
In cartoons, crossed-out eyes usually mean a character is knocked out. KAWS began painting them on faces in advertisements, and they became the mark of every character he makes.
Who is BFF?
BFF is a fuzzy KAWS character whose shaggy look nods to Elmo-style puppets. It keeps the XX eyes and often appears to be held by a Companion.
What colors should I use for Companion?
There is no single correct color. Official figures come in gray, black, brown, blue, pink, and more, so any palette works as long as the gloves stay lighter than the body.
Are KAWS pages suitable for kids?
The sports and play scenes suit school-age kids. Some collector and crossover pages are better for teens and adults who follow designer toys and street art.
Where can I see KAWS art in person?
KAWS’s works are held in museum collections such as the Brooklyn Museum and the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, and his large sculptures have toured cities worldwide.
Start Coloring
Pick a mood for Companion today: slumped on a couch, shooting hoops, or floating over a dreamy landscape. A black fine-tip marker for the XX eyes and a set of bold colors are all you need to create your own edition. Share your finished colorway with fellow collectors on Pinterest, or post the whole series on Facebook and let friends vote on their favorite.
