Thousand Introduces a Keith Haring-Inspired Helmet Collection, Bringing Art to Every Ride

June 30, 2026

First unveiled at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, the collection celebrates Keith Haring’s enduring legacy

LOS ANGELES, CA (June 30, 2026) /OUTDOOR SPORTSWIRE/ – Thousand today introduces the Thousand | Keith Haring artist edition collection, a special release inspired by the iconic visual language of Keith Haring. Launched first through the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art’s store before a broader retail release, the collection transforms Thousand’s Heritage 2.0 helmet into a moving expression of Haring’s enduring belief that art should be accessible, public, and woven into everyday life.

“Keith Haring fundamentally changed the way people experienced art by bringing it out of traditional institutions and into public life,” said Gloria Hwang, Founder and CEO of Thousand. “As a brand dedicated to designing for movement, we’re honored to help carry that legacy forward through objects people interact with every day. This collection celebrates the idea that art doesn’t have to stay on a wall, it can move through the world alongside us.”

From New York City subway stations to public murals and everyday objects, Haring’s work challenged conventional boundaries between art and daily life. Building on Haring’s longstanding commitment to bringing art into public spaces, the Thousand | Keith Haring artist edition collection explores the relationship between movement, energy, and human connection through two distinct helmet designs built on the brand’s Heritage 2.0 platform:

• Pop & Lock features a rhythmic, all-over print of some of Haring’s iconic figures creating a rhythmic expression of motion and energy.
• Take Flight is inspired by a winged figure that Haring painted on a police motorcycle helmet in 1988, featured in Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art’s Keith Haring in 3D exhibition.

“Part of Keith’s genius was his ability to see creative potential everywhere, transforming everyday objects into works of art,” said David Stark, Founder and CEO of Artestar, the global brand licensing and consulting agency representing the Keith Haring Foundation. “Bicycles and helmets were among the many unconventional canvases he embraced throughout his career. He also understood the power of movement as a vehicle for connection and expression. Thousand has done a beautiful job of bringing those ideas together in a way that feels authentic to Keith’s legacy and relevant today.”

The Thousand | Keith Haring artist edition collection (MSRP $104.95) is available on explorethousand.com today.

About Thousand

Thousand was founded in 2015 after a friend of CEO, and founder Gloria Hwang passed away from a bicycle accident. The mission behind the sustainable, vintage-inspired helmet brand was to make safety seamless. Hwang wanted riders to have a helmet that could provide safety as well as compliment style. Initiated as a Kickstarter campaign, Thousand raised enough for initial helmet molds in one week. The Los Angeles-based brand has since established itself as the top choice for modern urban cyclists and expanded its product offerings to include adult, child and toddler helmet options, innovative lights, locks and multi-functional bags.

About Keith Haring

Keith Haring (1958-1990) was one of the most renowned of the young artists, filmmakers, and performers whose work responded to urban street culture of the 1980s. Inspired by graffiti artists whose marks covered the city’s subway cars, Haring began to draw in white chalk over the black paper used to cover vacant advertising panels. Not only was Haring able to reach a large and diverse audience with his subway drawings, but eventually the subway became, as Haring said, a “laboratory” for working out his ideas. There, he developed the series of images that would become his signature: the radiant baby, the barking dog, and the running figure.

As early as 1982, Haring began exhibiting in galleries and museums around the world, but continued to participate in public projects, including literacy campaigns and anti-AIDS initiatives.

Building on earlier impulses to draw on everything from refrigerator doors to vinyl tarpaulins, Haring continued to use a variety of media in order to communicate to a massive audience, where his work often explored essential themes such as birth, death, love and war.

Diagnosed with AIDS in 1988, Haring established the Keith Haring Foundation in 1989 to provide funding and imagery to AIDS organizations, and to ensure that his philanthropic legacy would continue indefinitely. The Keith Haring Foundation continues the legacy of Haring’s art and philanthropy by providing grants for youth services, learning, and HIV/AIDS care. Revenues generated through licensing support these grantmaking activities and the Foundation’s other charitable endeavors.

About Artestar

This project was done in collaboration with Artestar, a global licensing agency and creative consultancy representing world-renowned visual artists, estates, and foundations. Artestar conceptualizes and develops some of the world’s most iconic brand partnerships across an array of categories and geographic regions, all while preserving and elevating each artist’s unique legacy. Through strategic planning and thoughtful curation, Artestar powers creative collaborations to make art accessible to everyone.

Learn more at artestar.com.

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