True fake collaboration between Slawn and Kaws
- Delphine & Romain Class
- Aug 8
- 5 min read
In August 2025, a cryptic image shared on Instagram by Nigerian artist Slawn (Olaolu Akeredolu-Ale) sent shockwaves through the contemporary art world. The post featured a sculpture visually inspired by KAWS’s iconic Companion, accompanied by the caption “Slawn x KAWS, an ode to one of the greatest.” This led many media outlets and critics to believe that an official collaboration was underway. But KAWS quickly broke his silence: just a few hours later, the American artist took to his own Instagram account to firmly state that he had “nothing to do” with the project.
This act orchestrated by Slawn — part tribute, part provocation — opens up a rich space for analysis, touching on artistic provocation, systemic critique, viral strategy, and the question of artistic ownership.
Kaws
Brian Donnelly, born on November 4, 1974, in Jersey City, New Jersey, is a globally renowned American pop art artist best known under the name KAWS. After studying illustration at the School of Visual Arts in New York (graduating in 1996), KAWS began his career working on animated series before turning to nighttime graffiti in the 1990s, hijacking urban advertisements (on buses and bus shelters) by tagging over them. He soon created his signature characters — Companion (1999), Accomplice, Chum, and Bendy — often inspired by Mickey Mouse or The Simpsons, redrawn with crosses for eyes.
His sculptures range from small figurines to monumental installations and have been exhibited in international museums. In 2019, his painting THE KAWS ALBUM (2005) sold for $14.7 million at a Sotheby’s auction in Hong Kong — a record-breaking sale that confirmed his place at the peak of the contemporary art scene. KAWS has collaborated with major brands including UNIQLO, Supreme, Nike Air Jordan, Hennessy, Comme des Garçons, Travis Scott, BTS (J-Hope), and the Brooklyn Nets (2023–24 jerseys).
Slawn
Born on October 24, 2000, in Nigeria, Slawn holds both Nigerian and British citizenship. A graphic design graduate from Middlesex University in London, he began painting for the first time during the pandemic, funding himself through commissions in skatewear and streetwear. In 2021, he launched his first solo exhibition at the Truman Brewery on Brick Lane, quickly gaining attention for his spontaneous visual gestures — a blend of impulsive graffiti and pop caricature, marked by large red mouths and repeated faces.
In 2023, he became the youngest artist ever to design the BRIT Awards trophy, and went on to collaborate with Louis Vuitton, Rolex, Converse, and redesign the FA Cup. His approach is intentionally anti-artistic: “I’m not an artist, I paint like a 6 year old,” reads his Instagram bio. His style is raw, direct, provocative, and sometimes politically incorrect, amplified by a strong social media presence, with several hundred thousand followers.
In the summer of 2025, Slawn’s post featuring a sculpture that fused his own characters with Companion, along with a hashtag subtly implying a collaboration, triggered an immediate frenzy across Instagram, Twitter, art blogs, and net-art communities. But KAWS responded swiftly via his official accounts: “I have nothing to do with this. This is misleading!”, firmly requesting that his name not be associated with the pieces. He emphasized that there had been no contract, no authorization. The dissociation was clear and immediate. Slawn, for his part, fully embraced the gesture as a provocation designed to test the reactions of the market and the public.
Tribute or Imposture?
Slawn claims his act as a staged homage. However, critics from specialized media highlight the blurred line between tribute and visual plagiarism, pointing out that his mash-ups directly replicate the visual codes of Companion without introducing an original or autonomous creation.
KAWS, for his part, also built a universe inspired by commercial imagery—but always reinterpreted through a lens of conceptual appropriation. His works revisit icons like Mickey Mouse or The Simpsons, but in a way that creates distance and commentary. Slawn, by contrast, appears to merge these universes in a way that creates the illusion of a collaboration.
The Use of Storytelling and Buzz
Slawn is a master of narrative. Branded by some as a “con artist” and known for his wild persona, he orchestrates viral events—fight clubs, art giveaways, street interventions—turning the artist’s performance into a storytelling vehicle. His Instagram post triggered debates, articles, and reposts even before KAWS stepped in: the content became the artwork, and the controversy turned into spectacle.
Tensions Around Authenticity
Some collectors and commentators criticize this as an opportunistic strategy: blurring the lines undermines trust in the art market. Even if acknowledged as fake, a fabricated project raises concerns in a context where authenticity and provenance are essential.
Others interpret it as a conceptual act: Slawn challenges the superficiality of the art industry, its obsession with status markers over intention, origin, or technique.
The ever-rising value of KAWS’s work—whether paintings, sculptures, or collectible Art Toys—has made him one of the most copied pop street artists of the past decade. Fake KAWS items are widespread, especially online, but have even surfaced at high-profile auction houses. Buyers are advised to exercise caution. For instance, when it comes to his smaller sculptures or figurines, the first thing to verify is that they come with the original packaging.
The Broader Context of the Art Market
KAWS has become a symbol of the shift from street art to the global art market: his vinyl figurines — Companion, Chum, BFF — have generated millions, and his limited edition prints sell at record prices, attracting collectors and wealthy Asian and Western markets particularly prone to speculation.
Slawn, on the other hand, embodies the social media era artist, where personal image and storytelling replace traditional institutions. He sells drawings and canvases, builds a community around his cafés and spontaneous interventions. He represents the Young British Artist 2.0: provocative, media-savvy, a hybrid between art and personal brand.
Implications for Intellectual Property Law
Slawn visually exploits KAWS’s figures without authorization: a potentially legally contentious act under copyright and trademark law. Yet, he claims a subversive dimension to his gesture—an intentionally ambiguous act. KAWS reacts swiftly to protect his name, highlighting the importance of image control in a market where every association can carry enormous commercial value.
This case goes far beyond mere buzz: it raises fundamental questions about the nature of artistic partnership in the 21st century, about narrative authenticity in a world where everything can be staged, and about the boundary between homage and appropriation. KAWS continues to represent globalized, institutionalized contemporary art, deeply marked by his street art origins and sharp branding sense. Slawn, meanwhile, embodies an anarchic, internet-native stance, able to turn deliberate inattention into a tool for visibility and market critique.
Through this knowingly fake project, Slawn questions not only the value of art objects, but above all the way society consumes and validates art: through narrative, exposure, appearance—or simply the illusion of a prestigious partnership rather than purely artistic content.
