Jean-Michel Basquiat | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Basquiat,c. 1986 | |
| Born | (1960-12-22)December 22, 1960 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | August 12, 1988(1988-08-12) (aged 27) New York City, U.S. |
| Resting place | Green-Wood Cemetery, New York City, U.S. |
| Years active | 1978–1988 |
| Known for | Painting, drawing |
| Notable work |
|
| Style | |
| Movement | Neo-expressionism |
| Website | basquiat |
Jean-Michel Basquiat (/ˌbɑːskiˈɑː(t)/BAH-skee-AH(T),[1]French:[ʒɑ̃miʃɛlbaskja]; December 22, 1960 – August 12, 1988) was an American artist who rose to success during the 1980s as part of theneo-expressionism movement.
Basquiat first achieved notoriety in the late 1970s as part of thegraffiti duoSAMO, alongsideAl Diaz, writing enigmaticepigrams all overManhattan, particularly in the cultural hotbed of theLower East Side wheredisco,punk, andstreet art coalesced into earlyhip-hop culture. By the early 1980s, his paintings were being exhibited in galleries and museums internationally. At 21, Basquiat became the youngest artist to ever take part inDocumenta inKassel, Germany. At 22, he became one of the youngest to exhibit at theWhitney Biennial in New York. TheWhitney Museum of American Art held a retrospective of his artwork in 1992.
Basquiat's art focused on dichotomies such as wealth versus poverty, integration versus segregation, and inner versus outer experience. Heappropriated poetry, drawing, and painting, and married text and image,abstraction,figuration, and historical information mixed with contemporary critique. He usedsocial commentary in his paintings as a tool for introspection and for identifying with his experiences in the black community, as well as attacks onpower structures and systems of racism.[2]
Basquiat diedat the age of 27 in 1988 of aheroin overdose. Since then, his work has steadily increased in value. In 2017,Untitled, a 1982 painting depicting a black skull with red-and-yellow rivulets, sold for a record-breaking $110.5 million, becoming one of themost expensive paintings ever purchased.[2][3]
Basquiat was born on December 22, 1960, inPark Slope,Brooklyn, New York City, the second of four children to Matilde Basquiat (née Andrades, 1934–2008) and Gérard Basquiat (1930–2013).[4] He had an older brother, Max, who died shortly before Jean-Michel's birth, and two younger sisters, Lisane (b. 1964) and Jeanine (b. 1967).[5][6] His father was born inPort-au-Prince, Haiti, and his mother was born in Brooklyn to Puerto Rican parents.[7] He was raisedCatholic.[8]
Matilde instilled a love for art in her young son by taking him to local art museums and enrolling him as a junior member of theBrooklyn Museum of Art.[4][9] Basquiat was a precocious child who learned to read and write by the age of four.[10] His mother encouraged her son's artistic talent and he often tried to draw his favorite cartoons.[11] In 1967, he started attendingSaint Ann's School, a private school.[12][13] There he met his friend Marc Prozzo and together they created a children's book, written by Basquiat at the age of seven and illustrated by Prozzo.[11][14]
In 1968, at the age of seven, Basquiat was hit by a car while playing in the street.[15] His arm was broken and he suffered several internal injuries, which required asplenectomy.[16] While he was hospitalized, his mother brought him a copy ofGray's Anatomy to keep him occupied.[17] After his parents separated that year, Basquiat and his sisters were raised by their father.[4][17] His mother was admitted to a psychiatric hospital when he was ten and thereafter spent her life in and out of institutions.[18] By the age of eleven, Basquiat was fluent in French, Spanish and English, and an avid reader of all three languages.[19]
Basquiat's family resided in the Brooklyn neighborhood ofBoerum Hill and then in 1974, moved toMiramar, Puerto Rico.[20][21] When they returned to Brooklyn in 1976, Basquiat attendedEdward R. Murrow High School.[22] He struggled to deal with his mother's instability and rebelled as a teenager.[23] He ran away from home at 15 when his father caught himsmoking cannabis in his room.[4][17][24] He slept on park benches atWashington Square Park and tookLSD.[25][26] Eventually, his father spotted him with a shaved head and called the police to bring him home.[27]
In the10th grade, he enrolled atCity-As-School, an alternative high school in Manhattan, home to many artistic students who found conventional schooling difficult.[12] He would skip school with his friends, but still received encouragement from his teachers, and began to write and illustrate for the school newspaper.[28] He developed the characterSAMO to endorse a faux religion.[29] The saying "SAMO" had started as a private joke between Basquiat and his schoolmate Al Diaz, as an abbreviation for the phrase "Same old shit."[28] They drew a series of cartoons for their school paper before and after using SAMO©.[30]
SAMO (for "same old") marked the witty sayings of a precocious and worldly teenage mind that, even at that early juncture, saw the world in shades of gray, fearlessly juxtaposing corporatecommodity structures with thesocial milieu he wished to enter: the predominantly white art world.
In May 1978, Basquiat and Diaz began spray paintinggraffiti on buildings inLower Manhattan.[30][32] Working under the pseudonym SAMO, they inscribed poetic and satirical advertising slogans such as "SAMO© AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO GOD."[30] In June 1978, Basquiat was expelled from City-As-School forpieing the principal.[33] At 17, his father kicked him out of the house when he decided to drop out of school.[34] He worked for the Unique Clothing Warehouse inNoHo while continuing to create graffiti at night.[35][36] On December 11, 1978,The Village Voice published an article about the SAMO graffiti.[30]
In 1979, Basquiat appeared on the livepublic-access television showTV Party hosted byGlenn O'Brien.[37] Basquiat and O'Brien formed a friendship and he made regular appearances on the show over the next few years.[37] Eventually, he began spending time writing graffiti around theSchool of Visual Arts, where he befriended studentsJohn Sex,Kenny Scharf, andKeith Haring.[38]
In April 1979, Basquiat metMichael Holman at the Canal Zone Party and they founded thenoise rock band Test Pattern, which was later renamedGray.[39] Other members of Gray included Shannon Dawson, Nick Taylor, Wayne Clifford andVincent Gallo. They performed at nightclubs such asMax's Kansas City,CBGB,Hurrah and theMudd Club.[39]
Around this time, Basquiat lived in theEast Village with his girlfriend Alexis Adler, aBarnard biology graduate.[40] He often copied diagrams ofchemical compounds borrowed from Adler's science textbooks. She documented Basquiat's creative explorations as he transformed the floors, walls, doors and furniture into his artworks.[41] He also made postcards with his friend Jennifer Stein.[42] While selling postcards in SoHo, Basquiat spottedAndy Warhol at W.P.A. restaurant with art criticHenry Geldzahler.[17] He sold Warhol a postcard titledStupid Games, Bad Ideas.[43]
In October 1979, atArleen Schloss's open space called A's, Basquiat showed his SAMO montages using colorXerox copies of his works.[44] Schloss allowed Basquiat to use the space to create his "MAN MADE" clothing, which were paintedupcycled garments.[45][46] In November 1979, costume designerPatricia Field carried his clothing line in her upscale boutique on8th Street inGreenwich Village.[47] Field also displayed his sculptures in the store window.[48]
When Basquiat and Diaz had a falling out, he inscribed "SAMO IS DEAD" on the walls ofSoHo buildings in 1980.[49] In June 1980, he appeared inHigh Times magazine, his first national publication, as part of an article titled "Graffiti '80: The State of the Outlaw Art" by Glenn O'Brien.[50] Later that year, he began filming O'Brien'sindependent filmDowntown 81 (2000), originally titledNew York Beat, which featured some of Gray's recordings on its soundtrack.[51]
In June 1980, Basquiat participated inThe Times Square Show, a multi-artist exhibition sponsored byCollaborative Projects Incorporated (Colab) andFashion Moda.[52] He was noticed by various critics and curators, includingJeffrey Deitch, who mentioned him in an article titled "Report from Times Square" in the September 1980 issue ofArt in America.[53][54] In February 1981, Basquiat participated in theNew York/New Wave exhibition, curated byDiego Cortez at New York'sP.S.1.[55] Italian artistSandro Chia recommended Basquiat's work to Italian dealer Emilio Mazzoli, who promptly bought 10 paintings for Basquiat to have a show at his gallery inModena, Italy in May 1981.[26][56] In December 1981, art criticRene Ricard published "The Radiant Child" inArtforum magazine, the first extensive article on Basquiat.[57] During this period, Basquiat painted many pieces on objects he found in the streets, such as discarded doors.[58]
Basquiat sold his first painting,Cadillac Moon (1981), toDebbie Harry, lead singer of the punk rock bandBlondie, for $200 after they had filmedDowntown 81 together.[59] He also appeared as a disc jockey in the 1981 Blondie music video "Rapture", a role originally intended forGrandmaster Flash.[60] At the time, Basquiat was living with his girlfriend,Suzanne Mallouk, who financially supported him as a waitress.[23]
In September 1981, art dealerAnnina Nosei invited Basquiat to join her gallery at the suggestion of Sandro Chia.[26] Soon after, he participated in her group showPublic Address.[61] She provided him with materials and a space to work in the basement of her gallery.[33] In 1982, Nosei arranged for him to move into a loft, which also served as a studio at 101 Crosby Street in SoHo.[62][63] He had his first American one-man show at the Annina Nosei Gallery in March 1982.[33] He also painted in Modena for his second Italian exhibition in March 1982.[64] With Basquiat saying he felt exploited, that show was canceled because he was expected to make eight paintings in one week.[26]
By the summer of 1982, Basquiat had left the Annina Nosei Gallery, and galleristBruno Bischofberger became his worldwide art dealer.[65] In June 1982, at 21, Basquiat became the youngest artist to ever take part inDocumenta inKassel, Germany.[34] His works were exhibited alongsideJoseph Beuys,Anselm Kiefer,Gerhard Richter,Cy Twombly, andAndy Warhol.[66] Bischofberger gave Basquiat a one-man show at his Zurich gallery in September 1982, and arranged for him to meet Warhol for lunch on October 4, 1982.[67] Warhol recalled, "I took aPolaroid and he went home and within two hours a painting was back, still wet, of him and me together."[68] The painting,Dos Cabezas (1982), ignited a friendship between them.[69] Basquiat was photographed byJames Van Der Zee for an interview withHenry Geldzahler published in the January 1983 issue of Warhol'sInterview magazine.[70]
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In November 1982, Basquiat's solo exhibition opened at theFun Gallery in the East Village.[71] Among the works exhibited wereA Panel of Experts (1982) andEquals Pi (1982).[72] In early December 1982,[73] Basquiat began working at the Market Street studio space art dealerLarry Gagosian had built below hisVenice Beach, California home.[74] In Los Angeles, he frequented theWhisky a Go Go andTail o' the Pup with his friend artistGeorge Condo.[75] There, he commenced a series of paintings for a March 1983 show, his second at theGagosian Gallery inWest Hollywood.[74] He was accompanied by his girlfriend, then-unknown singerMadonna.[76] Gagosian recalled: "Everything was going along fine. Jean-Michel was making paintings, I was selling them, and we were having a lot of fun. But then one day Jean-Michel said, 'My girlfriend is coming to stay with me.' ... So I said, 'Well, what's she like?' And he said, 'Her name is Madonna and she's going to behuge.' I'll never forget that he said that."[77]
Basquiat took considerable interest in the work that artistRobert Rauschenberg was producing atGemini G.E.L. in West Hollywood.[74] He visited him on several occasions and found inspiration in his accomplishments.[74] While in Los Angeles, Basquiat paintedHollywood Africans (1983), which portrays him with graffiti artistsToxic andRammellzee.[78] He often painted portraits of other graffiti artists—and sometimes collaborators—in works such asPortrait ofA-One A.K.A. King (1982),Toxic (1984), andERO (1984).[79] In 1983, he produced the hip-hop record "Beat Bop" featuring Rammellzee and rapperK-Rob.[80] It was pressed in limited quantities on his Tartown Inc. imprint. He created thecover art for the single, making it highly desirable among both record and art collectors.[81]
In March 1983, at 22 years old, Basquiat became one of the youngest artists to participate in theWhitney Biennial exhibition ofcontemporary art.[82][83]Paige Powell, an associate publisher forInterview magazine, organized a show of his work at her friend's New York apartment in April 1983.[84][85] Shortly after, he began a relationship with Powell, who was instrumental in fostering his friendship with Warhol.[82] In August 1983, Basquiat moved into a loft owned by Warhol at57 Great Jones Street in NoHo, which also served as a studio.[86]
In the summer of 1983, Basquiat invitedLee Jaffe, a former musician inBob Marley's band, to join him on a trip throughout Asia and Europe.[87][88] On his return to New York, he was deeply affected by thedeath of Michael Stewart, an aspiring black artist in the downtown club scene who was killed by transit police in September 1983. He paintedDefacement (The Death of Michael Stewart) (1983) in response to the incident.[89] He also participated in a Christmas benefit with various New York artists for the family of Michael Stewart in 1983.[90]
Having joined theMary Boone's SoHo gallery in 1983, Basquiat had his first show there in May 1984.[91] A large number of photographs depict a collaboration between Warhol and Basquiat in 1984 and 1985.[92] When they collaborated, Warhol would start with something very concrete or a recognizable image and then Basquiat defaced it in his animated style.[93] They made an homage to the1984 Summer Olympics withOlympics (1984). Other collaborations includeTaxi, 45th/Broadway (1984–85) andZenith (1985). Their joint exhibition,Paintings, at theTony Shafrazi Gallery, caused a rift in their friendship after it was panned by critics, and Basquiat was called Warhol's "mascot".[68]
Basquiat often painted in expensiveArmani suits and would appear in public in the same paint-splattered clothes.[94][95] He was a regular at theArea nightclub, where he sometimes worked the turntables as a DJ for fun.[96] He also painted murals for thePalladium nightclub in New York City.[97] His swift rise to fame was covered in the media. He appeared on the cover of the February 10, 1985, issue ofThe New York Times Magazine in a feature titled "New Art, New Money: The Marketing of an American Artist".[26] His work appeared inGQ andEsquire, and he was interviewed forMTV's "Art Break" segment.[98][99] In 1985, he walked the runway for theComme des Garçons Spring fashion show in New York.[100][101]
In the mid-1980s, Basquiat was earning $1.4 million a year and he was receiving lump sums of $40,000 from art dealers.[102] Despite his success, his emotional instability continued to haunt him. "The more money Basquiat made, the more paranoid and deeply involved with drugs he became", wrote journalistMichael Shnayerson.[102] Basquiat's cocaine use became so excessive that he blew a hole in his nasal septum.[33] A friend claimed that Basquiat confessed he was on heroin in late 1980.[33] Many of his peers speculated that his drug use was a means of coping with the demands of his newfound fame, the exploitative nature of the art industry, and the pressures of being a black man in the white-dominated art world.[103]
For what would be his last exhibition on the West Coast, Basquiat returned to Los Angeles for his show at the Gagosian Gallery in January 1986.[104] In February 1986, Basquiat traveled toAtlanta, Georgia for an exhibition of his drawings at Fay Gold Gallery.[105] That month, he participated inLimelight's Art Against Apartheid benefit.[106] In the summer, he had a solo exhibition atGalerie Thaddaeus Ropac in Salzburg.[104] He was also invited to walk the runway forRei Kawakubo again, this time at the Comme des Garçons Homme Plus fashion show in Paris.[107][108] In October 1986, Basquiat flew toIvory Coast for an exhibition of his work organized by Bruno Bischofberger at the French Cultural Institute inAbidjan.[104][109] He was accompanied by his girlfriend Jennifer Goode, who worked at his frequent hangout, Area nightclub.[110][111] In November 1986, at 25 years old, Basquiat became the youngest artist given an exhibition atKestner-Gesellschaft inHanover, Germany.[112]
During their relationship, Goode began snorting heroin with Basquiat, since drugs were at her disposal.[17] She said: "He didn't push it on me, but it was just there and I was so naïve."[17] In late 1986, she successfully got herself and Basquiat into amethadone program in Manhattan, but he quit after three weeks.[113] According to Goode, he did not start injecting heroin until after she ended their relationship.[17] In the last 18 months of his life, Basquiat became something of a recluse.[103] His continued drug use is thought to have been a way of coping after the death of his friend Andy Warhol in February 1987.[17][103]
In 1987, Basquiat had exhibitions at Galerie Daniel Templon in Paris, the Akira Ikeda Gallery in Tokyo, and the Tony Shafrazi Gallery in New York.[114]Allen Ginsberg photographed Basquiat at the Shafrazi gallery attendingWilliam Burroughs' "Shotgun Artshow" on December 17, 1987. He designed a Ferris wheel forAndré Heller'sLuna Luna, an ephemeral amusement park in Hamburg from June to August 1987 with rides designed by renowned contemporary artists.[115]
In January 1988, Basquiat traveled to Paris for his exhibition at theYvon Lambert Gallery and toDüsseldorf for an exhibition at the Hans Mayer Gallery.[116] While in Paris, he befriended Ivorian artistOuattara Watts.[117] They made plans to travel together to Watts' birthplace,Korhogo, that summer.[116] Following his exhibition at the Vrej Baghoomian Gallery in New York in April 1988, Basquiat traveled toMaui in June to withdraw from drug use.[103][116] After returning to New York in July, Basquiat ran intoKeith Haring on Broadway, who stated that this last encounter was the only time Basquiat ever discussed his drug problem with him.[118] Glenn O'Brien also recalled Basquiat calling him and telling him he was "feeling really good."[119]
Despite attempts at sobriety, Basquiatdied at the age of 27 of aheroin overdose at his home on Great Jones Street in Manhattan on August 12, 1988.[33][42] He had been found unresponsive in his bedroom by his girlfriend Kelle Inman and was taken toCabrini Medical Center, where he was pronounceddead on arrival.[17][120]
Basquiat is buried at Brooklyn'sGreen-Wood Cemetery.[121] A private funeral was held atFrank E. Campbell Funeral Chapel on August 17, 1988.[121] The funeral was attended by immediate family and close friends, including Keith Haring, Francesco Clemente, Glenn O'Brien, and Basquiat's former girlfriend Paige Powell.[119][121] Art dealerJeffrey Deitch delivered a eulogy.[53]
A public memorial was held at Saint Peter's Church on November 3, 1988.[122] Among the speakers wasIngrid Sischy, who as the editor ofArtforum got to know Basquiat well and commissioned a number of articles that introduced his work to the wider world.[123] Basquiat's former girlfriend Suzanne Mallouk recited sections ofA. R. Penck's "Poem for Basquiat" and his friendFab 5 Freddy read a poem byLangston Hughes.[124] The 300 guests included musiciansJohn Lurie andArto Lindsay, Keith Haring, poetDavid Shapiro, Glenn O'Brien, and members of Basquiat's former band Gray.[122][125]
In memory of the late artist, Keith Haring created the paintingA Pile of Crowns for Jean-Michel Basquiat.[126] In the obituary Haring wrote forVogue, he stated: "He truly created a lifetime of works in ten years. Greedily, we wonder what else he might have created, what masterpieces we have been cheated out of by his death, but the fact is that he has created enough work to intrigue generations to come. Only now will people begin to understand the magnitude of his contribution."[127][128]
Basquiat's canon revolves around single heroic figures: athletes, prophets, warriors, cops, musicians, kings and the artist himself. In these images the head is often a central focus, topped by crowns, hats, and halos. In this way the intellect is emphasized, lifted up to notice, privileged over the body and the physicality of these figures (i.e. black men) commonly represent in the world.
Art criticFranklin Sirmans analyzed that Basquiatappropriated poetry, drawing, and painting, and married text and image,abstraction,figuration, and historical information mixed with contemporary critique.[31] Hissocial commentary was acutelypolitical and direct in its criticism ofcolonialism and support forclass struggle.[31] He also explored artistic legacies from wide sources, including an interrogation of theclassical tradition.[130] Art historian Fred Hoffman hypothesizes that the underlying of Basquiat's self-identification as an artist was his "innate capacity to function as something like anoracle, distilling his perceptions of the outside world down to their essence and, in turn, projecting them outward through his creative act",[131] and that his art focused on recurrent "suggestive dichotomies" such as wealth versus poverty, integration versus segregation, and inner versus outer experience.[131]
Before his career as a painter began, Basquiat produced punk-inspired postcards for sale on the street, and became known for his political–poetical graffiti under the name of SAMO.[43] He often drew on random objects and surfaces, including other people's clothing.[40] The conjunction of various media is an integral element of his art. His paintings are typically covered with codes of all kinds: words, letters, numerals, pictograms, logos, map symbols, and diagrams.[132]
Basquiat primarily used texts as reference sources.[133] A few of the books he used wereGray's Anatomy,Henry Dreyfuss'Symbol Sourcebook,Leonardo da Vinci published by Reynal & Company, and Burchard Brentjes'African Rock Art,Flash of the Spirit byRobert Farris Thompson.[134][135]
A middle period from late 1982 to 1985 featured multi-panel paintings and individual canvases with exposed stretcher bars, the surface dense with writing, collage and imagery. The years 1984 to 1985 were also the period of the Basquiat–Warhol collaborations.[136]
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In his short but prolific career, Basquiat produced around 1,500 drawings, around 600 paintings, and many sculpture and mixed media works.[137] He drew constantly and often used objects around him as surfaces when paper was not immediately at hand.[138][139] Since childhood, he produced cartoon-inspired drawings when encouraged by his mother's interest in art, and drawing became a part of his expression as an artist.[140] He drew in many different media, most commonly ink, pencil, felt-tip or marker, and oil-stick. He sometimes used Xerox copies of fragments of his drawings to paste onto the canvases of larger paintings.[141]
The first public showing of Basquiat's paintings and drawings was in 1981 at theMoMA PS1New York/New Wave exhibition. Rene Ricard's article "Radiant Child" inArtforum magazine brought Basquiat to the attention of the art world.[142] Basquiat immortalized Ricard in two drawings,Untitled (Axe/Rene) (1984) andRené Ricard (1984).[143]
A poet as well as an artist, words featured heavily in his drawings and paintings, with direct references to racism, slavery, the people and street scene of 1980s New York, black historical figures, famous musicians, and athletes, as his notebooks and many important drawings demonstrate.[144][145] Often Basquiat's drawings were untitled, and as such, to differentiate works, a word written within the drawing is commonly in parentheses afterUntitled. After Basquiat died, his estate was controlled by his father Gérard Basquiat, who also oversaw the committee that authenticated artworks, and operated from 1994 to 2012 to review over 2000 works, the majority of which were drawings.[146]
A prominent theme in Basquiat's work is the portrayal of historically prominent black figures, who were identified as heroes and saints. His early works often featured the iconographic depiction of crowns and halos to distinguish heroes and saints in his specially chosen pantheon.[34] "Jean-Michel's crown has three peaks, for his three royal lineages: the poet, the musician, the great boxing champion. Jean measured his skill against all he deemed strong, without prejudice as to their taste or age", said his friend and artist Francesco Clemente.[147] Reviewing Basquiat's show at theBilbao Guggenheim,Art Daily noted that "Basquiat's crown is a changeable symbol: at times a halo and at others a crown of thorns, emphasizing the martyrdom that often goes hand in hand with sainthood. For Basquiat, these heroes and saints are warriors, occasionally rendered triumphant with arms raised in victory."[148]
Basquiat was particularly a fan ofbebop and cited saxophonistCharlie Parker as a hero.[26] He frequently referenced Parker and other jazz musicians in paintings such asCharles the First (1982) andHorn Players (1983), andKing Zulu (1986).[59] "Basquiat looked to jazz music for inspiration and for instruction, much in the same way that he looked to the modern masters of painting", said art historian Jordana Moore Saggese.[149]
In his exploration of death and marginalization, Basquiat's portrayal of dismembered black bodies serves as a radical commentary on the trauma of displacement and the alienation experienced by African Americans. His depiction of anatomical parts, such as exposed internal organs and skeletal structures, mirrors the violent fragmentation of black identity under systemic racism. Basquiat's repeated use of skulls and corpses underscores the existential anxiety of blackness in a society that dehumanizes and objectifies the black body.[150]
A major reference source used by Basquiat throughout his career was the bookGray's Anatomy, which his mother had given him while he was in the hospital when he was seven.[16] It remained influential in his depictions ofhuman anatomy, and in its mixture of image and text as seen inFlesh and Spirit (1982–83). Art historianOlivier Berggruen situates in Basquiat's anatomical screen printsAnatomy (1982) an assertion of vulnerability, one which "creates an aesthetic of the body as damaged, scarred, fragmented, incomplete, or torn apart, once the organic whole has disappeared. Paradoxically, it is the very act of creating these representations that conjures a positive corporeal valence between the artist and his sense of self or identity."[151]
Heads and skulls are significant focal points of many of Basquiat's most seminal works.[152] Heads in works likeUntitled (Two Heads on Gold) (1982) andPhilistines (1982) are reminiscent ofAfrican masks, suggesting a cultural reclamation.[152] The skulls allude toHaitian Vodou, which is filled with skull symbolism; the paintingsRed Skull (1982) andUntitled (1982) can be seen as primary examples.[153] In reference to the potent image depicted inUntitled (Skull) (1981), art historian Fred Hoffman writes that Basquiat was likely "caught off guard, possibly even frightened, by the power and energy emanating from this unexpected image."[131] Further investigation by Hoffman in his bookThe Art of Jean-Michel Basquiat reveals a deeper interest in the artist's fascination with heads that proves an evolution in the artist's oeuvre from one of raw power to one of more refined cognizance.[154]
Basquiat's diverse cultural heritage was one of his many sources of inspiration. He often incorporated Spanish words into his artworks likeUntitled (Pollo Frito) (1982) andSabado por la Noche (1984). Basquiat'sLa Hara (1981), a menacing portrait of a white police officer, combines theNuyorican slang term for police (la jara) and the Irish surname O'Hara.[155] The black-hatted figure that appears in his paintingsThe Guilt of Gold Teeth (1982) andDespues De Un Pun (1987) is believed to representBaron Samedi, the spirit of death and resurrection in Haitian Vodou.[156]
Basquiat has various works deriving fromAfrican-American history, namelySlave Auction (1982),Undiscovered Genius of the Mississippi Delta (1983),El Gran Espectaculo (The Nile) (1983), andJim Crow (1986).[157] Another painting,Irony of Negro Policeman (1981), illustrates how African-Americans have been controlled by a predominantlywhite society. Basquiat sought to portray that African-Americans have become complicit with the "institutionalized forms of whiteness and corrupt white regimes of power" years after theJim Crow era had ended.[158] This concept has been reiterated in additional Basquiat works, includingCreated Equal (1984).
In the essay "Lost in Translation: Jean-Michel in the (Re)Mix", Kellie Jones posits that Basquiat's "mischievous, complex, andneologistic side, with regard to the fashioning of modernity and the influence and effluence of black culture" are often elided by critics and viewers, and thus "lost in translation."[129]
Basquiat's artwork stands at the intersection of blackness, identity, and aesthetics, grappling with complex questions of representation and self-reflexivity. His work disrupts the boundaries of high art, redefining the aesthetics of black identity through distinctive use of symbols, language, and visual style. Basquiat's engagement with black identity is inseparable from his exploration of a commodified American Africanism. His oeuvre, which includes graffiti under the moniker"SAMO©", critiques mainstream racial representations and constructs a fluid African American identity. Through his "economies of accumulation",[159] Basquiat challenges the simplified constructions of blackness, rejecting the essentialist narratives imposed by the art world. His art incorporates motifs that signify historical and modern racial struggles, rendering the African American experience as both a subject of critique and aesthetic innovation.
Basquiat's artwork serves as a method of identity formation, navigating the ontological and aesthetic challenges posed by blackness. His depictions of the black body resist reductive racial representations, instead offering a vibrant, complex subjectivity that reclaims blackness from its"aesthetic colonization". Basquiat's use of graffiti and street art, often marginalized within the traditional art world, communicates stories of resistance and identity that resonate with the broader African diaspora.[160]
Moreover, Basquiat's artworks evoke a historical and political consciousness, often referencing figures from both the African American cultural pantheon and Western scientific history. His 1983 pieceUntitled (Charles Darwin) juxtaposes the legacy of evolutionary science with broader themes of marginality, connecting the legacies ofDarwin,Huxley, andMendel to the commodification of blackness and the manipulation of scientific discourse for socio-political ends. This interplay between science and art highlights how Basquiat critiques both racial and intellectual histories, revealing their entanglement in narratives of oppression and commodification.[161]
Finally, Basquiat's relationship withhip-hop culture further enriches his aesthetic of blackness. His collaborations with artists from the hip-hop generation, such asFab 5 Freddy andLady Pink, emphasize the fusion ofneo-expressionism with the rhythmic, improvisational qualities of hip-hop. This synthesis of art and music positions Basquiat as a figure who not only represented blackness but actively participated in shaping its cultural expression during the 1980s. His works, much like the art of graffiti, blur the lines between high art and street culture, reinforcing the legitimacy of non-traditional forms of black expression.[162]
Like a DJ, Basquiat adeptly reworkedNeo-expressionism's clichéd language of gesture, freedom, and angst and redirectedPop art's strategy of appropriation to produce a body of work that at times celebratedblack culture andhistory but also revealed its complexity and contradictions.
Shortly after his death,The New York Times indicated that Basquiat was "the most famous of only a small number of young black artists who have achieved national recognition."[103] Art critic Bonnie Rosenberg wrote that Basquiat experienced a good taste of fame in his last years when he was a "critically embraced and popularly celebrated artistic phenomenon"; and that some people focused on the "superficial exoticism of his work", missing the fact that it "held important connections to expressive precursors."[163]
Traditionally, the interpretation of Basquiat's works at the visual level comes from the subdued emotional tone of what they represent compared to what is actually depicted. For example, the figures in his paintings, as stated by writerStephen Metcalf, "are shown frontally, with little or no depth of field, and nerves and organs are exposed, as in an anatomy textbook. Are these creatures dead and being clinically dissected, one wonders, or alive and in immense pain?"[63] WriterOlivia Laing noted that "words jumped out at him, from the back of cereal boxes or subway ads, and he stayed alert to their subversive properties, their double and hidden meaning."[164]
A second recurrent reference to Basquiat's aesthetics comes from the artist's intention to share, in the words of gallerist Niru Ratnam, a "highly individualistic, expressive view of the world".[165] Art historian Luis Alberto Mejia Clavijo believes Basquiat's work inspires people to "paint like a child, don't paint what is in the surface but what you are re-creating inside.[166] MusicianDavid Bowie, whowas a collector of Basquiat's works, stated that "he seemed to digest the frenetic flow of passing image and experience, put them through some kind of internal reorganization and dress the canvas with this resultant network of chance."[59]
Art critics have also compared Basquiat's work to the emergence of hip-hop during the same era. "Basquiat's art—like the best hip-hop—takes apart and reassembles the work that came before it", said art critic Franklin Sirmans in a 2005 essay, "In the Cipher: Basquiat and the Hip-Hop Culture".[167]
Art criticRene Ricard wrote in his 1981 article "The Radiant Child":
I'm always amazed at how people come up with things. Like Jean-Michel. How did he come up with the words he puts all over everything, his way of making a point without overstating the case, using one or two words he reveals a political acuity, gets the viewer going in the direction he wants, the illusion of the bombed-over wall. One or two words containing a full body. One or two words on a Jean-Michel contain the entire history of graffiti. What he incorporates into his pictures, whether found or made, is specific and selective. He has a perfect idea of what he's getting across, using everything that collates to his vision.[57]
CuratorMarc Mayer wrote in the 2005 essay "Basquiat in History":
Basquiat speaks articulately while dodging the full impact of clarity like amatador. We can read his pictures without strenuous effort—the words, the images, the colors and the construction—but we cannot quite fathom the point they belabor. Keeping us in this state of half-knowing, of mystery-within-familiarity, had been the core technique of his brand of communication since his adolescent days as the graffiti poet SAMO. To enjoy them, we are not meant to analyze the pictures too carefully. Quantifying the encyclopedic breadth of his research certainly results in an interesting inventory, but the sum cannot adequately explain his pictures, which requires an effort outside the purview oficonography ... he painted a calculated incoherence, calibrating the mystery of what such apparently meaning-laden pictures might ultimately mean.[168]
In the 1980s, art criticRobert Hughes dismissed Basquiat's work as absurd.[169] He attributed the Basquiat phenomenon to be a mixture of hype, overproduction, and a greedy art market.[170]
In a 1997 review forThe Daily Telegraph, art criticHilton Kramer begins by stating that Basquiat had no idea what the word "quality" meant. He relentlessly criticized Basquiat as a "talentless hustler" and "street-smart but otherwise invincibly ignorant", arguing that he "used his youth, his looks, his skin colour and his abundant sex appeal to win an overnight fame that proved to be his undoing" and that art dealers of the time were "as ignorant about art as Basquiat himself." In saying that Basquiat's work never rose above "that lowly artistic station" of graffiti "even when his paintings were fetching enormous prices", Kramer argued that graffiti art "acquired a cult status in certain New York art circles." He further opined, "As a result of the campaign waged by these art-world entrepreneurs on Basquiat's behalf—and their own, of course—there was never any doubt that the museums, the collectors and the media would fall into line" when talking about the marketing of Basquiat's name.[171]
Basquiat's first public exhibition was atThe Times Square Show in New York in June 1980.[52] In May 1981, he had his firstsolo exhibition at Galleria d'Arte Emilio Mazzoli in Modena.[56] In late 1981, he joined the Annina Nosei Gallery in New York, where he had his first American one-man show from March 6 to April 1, 1982.[172] In 1982, he also had shows at theGagosian Gallery in West Hollywood, Galerie Bruno Bischofberger in Zurich, and theFun Gallery in the East Village.[173] Major exhibitions of his work have includedJean-Michel Basquiat: Paintings 1981–1984 at theFruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh in 1984, which traveled to theInstitute of Contemporary Arts in London;Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam in 1985. In 1985, theUniversity Art Museum, Berkeley hosted Basquiat's first solo American museum exhibition.[174] His work was showcased atKestner-Gesellschaft, Hannover in 1987 and 1989.[175]
The first retrospective of his work was held by the Baghoomian Gallery in New York from October to November 1989.[176] His first museum retrospective,Jean-Michel Basquiat, was at theWhitney Museum of American Art in New York from October 1992 to February 1993.[177][178] The show was sponsored byAT&T,MTV and Basquiat's former girlfriend Madonna.[179] It subsequently traveled to theMenil Collection in Texas; theDes Moines Art Center in Iowa; and theMontgomery Museum of Fine Arts in Alabama, from 1993 to 1994.[180] The exhibition's catalog was edited by Richard Marshall and included several essays from different perspectives.[181] In 1996, Madonna sponsored an exhibition of his work at theSerpentine Gallery in London.[182][183][184]
In March 2005, the retrospectiveBasquiat was mounted by theBrooklyn Museum in New York.[185] It traveled to theMuseum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and theMuseum of Fine Arts, Houston.[186] From October 2006 to January 2007, the first Basquiat exhibition inPuerto Rico was held at theMuseo de Arte de Puerto Rico, produced byArtPremium, Corinne Timsit and Eric Bonici.[187] In 2016, theBrooklyn Museum organized and presentedBasquiat: The Unknown Notebooks, the first major viewing of Basquiat's sketches, poetry, notetaking, and overall artist's book practice. The show traveled to thePérez Art Museum Miami later on. A monograph featuring essays by Pérez Art Museum Miami executive director, the art historianFranklin Sirmans andHenry Louis Gates, was published in the occasion of this exhibition[188][189]
Basquiat remains an important source of inspiration for a younger generation of contemporary artists all over the world, such asRita Ackermann and Kader Attia—as shown, for example, at the exhibitionStreet and Studio: From Basquiat to Séripop co-curated byCathérine Hug and Thomas Mießgang and previously exhibited atKunsthalle Wien, Austria, in 2010.[190]Basquiat and the Bayou, a 2014 show presented by theOgden Museum of Southern Art in New Orleans, focused on the artist's works with themes of the American South.[191] The Brooklyn Museum exhibitedBasquiat: The Unknown Notebooks in 2015.[192] In 2017,Basquiat Before Basquiat: East 12th Street, 1979–1980 exhibited asMuseum of Contemporary Art Denver, which displayed works created during the year Basquiat lived with his friend Alexis Adler.[41] Later that year, theBarbican Centre in London exhibitedBasquiat: Boom for Real.[193]
In 2019, theBrant Foundation in New York, hosted an extensive exhibition of Basquiat's works with free admission.[194] All 50,000 tickets were claimed before the exhibition opened, so additional tickets were released.[195] In June 2019, theSolomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York presentedBasquiat's "Defacement": The Untold Story.[196] Later that year, theNational Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne opened the exhibitionKeith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat: Crossing Lines.[197] In 2020, the Lotte Museum of Art mounted the first major exhibition of Jean-Michel Basquiat in Seoul.[198] TheMuseum of Fine Arts, Boston exhibitedWriting the Future: Basquiat and the Hip-Hop Generation from October 2020 to July 2021.[199]
Basquiat's family curatedJean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure, an immersive exhibition with over 200 never-before-seen and rarely shown works.[200] King Pleasure debuted at theStarrett-Lehigh Building inChelsea, New York in April 2022.[201] In March 2023, the exhibition traveled to the Grand LA in Los Angeles.[202]
In 2022, theAlbertina presented the first museum retrospective of Basquiat's work in Austria.[203] The exhibitionSeeing Loud: Basquiat and Music was mounted at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts in 2022.[204] In 2023, the show traveled to Paris asBasquiat Soundtracks at thePhilharmonie de Paris.[205] Later that year, the Brant Foundation held the exhibitionBasquiat X Warhol at their East Village location.[206]
In 2024, the galleryHauser & Wirth presented "Jean-Michel Basquiat. Engadin", Jean-Michel Basquiat's first solo exhibition dedicated to the paintings he created in and inspired by his visits to Switzerland at Hauser & Wirth's St. Moritz gallery.[207]
Basquiat sold his first painting to singerDebbie Harry for $200 in 1981.[59] Advised by Italian artistSandro Chia, gallerist Emilio Mazzoli purchased ten of Basquiat's works for $10,000 and held an exhibition at his gallery in Modena in May 1981.[26] Spurred by theNeo-expressionism art boom, his work was in great demand by 1982, which is considered his most valuable year.[173] A majority of his highest-selling paintings at auction date to 1982. Recalling that year, Basquiat said, "I had some money; I made the best paintings ever."[26] His paintings were priced at $5,000 to $10,000 in 1983—lowered from the range of $10,000 to $15,000 when he joined Mary Boone's gallery to reflect what she felt was consistent with those of other artists in her gallery.[208] In 1984, it was reported that in two years his work appreciated in value by 500%.[209] In the mid-1980s, Basquiat was earning $1.4 million a year as an artist.[102] By 1985, his paintings were selling for $10,000 to $25,000 each.[26] Basquiat's rise to fame in the international art market landed him on the cover ofThe New York Times Magazine in 1985, which was unprecedented for a young black artist.[210]
Since Basquiat's death in 1988, the market for his work has developed steadily—in line with overall art market trends—with a dramatic peak in 2007 when, at the height of the art market boom, the global auction volume for his work was over $115 million. Brett Gorvy, deputy chairman ofChristie's, described Basquiat's market as "two-tiered ... The most coveted material is rare, generally dating from the best period, 1981–83."[211] Until 2002, the highest amount paid for an original work of Basquiat's was $3.3 million forSelf-Portrait (1982), which was sold at Christie's in 1998.[212] In 2002,Profit I (1982) was sold at Christie's by drummerLars Ulrich of theheavy metal bandMetallica for $5.5 million.[213] The proceedings of the auction were documented in the 2004 filmMetallica: Some Kind of Monster.[214]
Between 2007 and 2012, the price of Basquiat's work continued to steadily increase up to $16.3 million.[215][216][217] The sale ofUntitled (1981) for $20.1 million in 2012 elevated his market to a new stratosphere and soon other works in his oeuvre outpaced that record.[218] His painting,Untitled (1981), depicting a fisherman, sold for $26.4 million in 2012.[219] In 2013,Dustheads (1982) sold for $48.8 million at Christie's.[220] In 2016,Air Power, part ofDavid Bowie's art collection, was sold at auction for nearly $9 million.[221]
Japanese billionaireYusaku Maezawa purchasedUntitled (1982), depicting a devil-like figure, for $57.3 million at Christie's in 2017.[222] He later sold the painting for $85 million at Phillips in 2022.[223] Maezawa also purchased Basquiat'sUntitled (1982), a powerful depiction of a black skull with red and yellow rivulets, for a record-setting $110.5 million in May 2017.[224] It is the second-highest price ever paid at an auction for artwork by an American artist.[225][226]
In 2018,Flexible (1984) sold for $45.3 million, becoming Basquiat's first post-1983 painting to surpass the $20 million mark.[227] In June 2020,Untitled (Head) (1982), sold for $15.2 million; a record for a Sotheby's online sale and a record for a Basquiat work on paper.[228] In July 2020, Loïc Gouzer's Fair Warning app announced that an untitled drawing on paper sold for $10.8 million, which is a record high for an in-app purchase.[229] Earlier that year, American businessmanKen Griffin purchasedBoy and Dog in a Johnnypump (1982) for upwards of $100 million from art collector Peter Brant.[230][231] In March 2021,Warrior (1982) sold for $41.8 million at Christie's in Hong Kong, which is the most expensive Western work of art sold at auction in Asia.[232][233] In May 2021,In This Case (1983) sold for $93.1 million at Christie's in New York.[234] Later that year,Donut Revenge (1982) sold for $20.9 million at Christie's in Hong Kong.[235]
After reaching a record high of $439.6 million in 2021, Basquiat's annual auction sales fell 50% in 2022.[236] Nevertheless, his art is still in high demand. In 2022,Sugar Ray Robinson (1982) sold for $32.6 million at Christie's.[237] In 2023,El Gran Espectaculo (The Nile) (1983) sold for $67.1 million at Christie's, andSelf-Portrait as a Heel (Part Two) (1982) sold for $42 million at Sotheby's.[238][239] In 2024,Untitled (ELMAR) sold for $46.5 million at Phillips.[240]
The authentication committee of the estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat was formed by the Robert Miller Gallery, the gallery that was assigned to handle Basquiat's estate after his death, in part to wage battle against the growing number of fakes and forgeries in the Basquiat market.[241] The cost of the committee's opinion was $100.[241] The committee was headed by Basquiat's father Gérard Basquiat. Members varied depending on who was available at the time when a piece was being authenticated, but they have included the curators and galleristsDiego Cortez,Jeffrey Deitch, Annina Nosei, John Cheim, Richard Marshall, Fred Hoffman, and publisher Larry Warsh.[242][243]
In 2008, the authentication committee was sued by collector Gerard De Geer, who claimed the committee breached its contract by refusing to offer an opinion on the authenticity of the paintingFuego Flores (1983).[244] After the lawsuit was dismissed, the committee ruled the work genuine.[245] In January 2012, the committee announced that after eighteen years it would dissolve in September of that year and no longer consider applications.[243]
In 1994, three paintings displayed as Basquiats at the FIAC were revealed to be fakes.[246]
In June 2002, New York artist Alfredo Martinez was charged by theFederal Bureau of Investigation with attempting to deceive two art dealers by selling them $185,000 worth of fake Basquiat drawings.[247] The charges against Martinez, which landed him in prison for 21 months, involved a scheme to sell drawings he copied from authentic artworks, accompanied by forged certificates of authenticity.[248] Martinez claimed he had been selling fake Basquiat drawings for 18 years.[249][250]
In 2007, Christie's was sued by art collector Guido Orsi and art dealer Tony Shafrazi, for allegedly selling Shafrazi a fake Basquiat, which Orsi later purchased.[251][252] Christie's rejected the charge, and the case was dismissed in November 2011.[253][254]
In 2007, Basquiat's paintingHannibal (1982) was seized by federal authorities as part of anembezzlement scheme by convicted Brazilianmoney launderer and former bankerEdemar Cid Ferreira.[255] Ferreira had purchased the painting with illegally acquired funds while he controlled Banco Santos in Brazil.[255] It was shipped to a Manhattan warehouse, via the Netherlands, with a false shipping invoice stating it was worth $100.[256] The painting was later sold atSotheby's for $13.1 million in 2016.[257]
In March 2014, Basquiat's sisters filed a $1 million lawsuit against Christie's, claiming the auction house tried to sell fake Basquiat artworks and falsely suggested they were approved by the artist's estate.[258]
In 2020, a Los Angeles man, Philip Bennet Righter, pled guilty to art fraud after trying to sell forged paintings by Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat.[259] Also in 2020, in France, an exhibition of drawings attributed to Basquiat at the Volcano gallery in Nuits-Saint-Georges was disputed.[246][260]
In February 2022, theOrlando Museum of Art mounted the controversial exhibitionHeroes & Monsters, which consisted of 25 cardboard works that were claimed to have been sold by Basquiat directly to screenwriterThad Mumford in 1982, and then placed in storage, where they remained until being rediscovered in 2012.[261][262][263] The paintings were seized in a raid by theFederal Bureau of Investigation in June 2022.[264]The New York Times obtained an affidavit that revealed Mumford signed a declaration in the presence of federal agents stating that "at no time in the 1980s or any other time did I meet with Jean-Michel Basquiat, and at no time did I acquire or purchase any paintings from him."[265] Los Angeles auctioneer Michael Barzman confessed to creating a suite of 25 Basquiat forgeries that wound up at the Orlando Museum of Art and was sentenced to community service and probation.[266][267][268]
In 2023, Florida art dealer Daniel Elie Bouaziz was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison for a money laundering scheme to sell counterfeit contemporary artworks, including pieces purportedly by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, and Banksy.[269]
Basquiat had romantic relationships with many women, including singerMadonna.[270][271] Although he never publicly identified asbisexual, a few of his friends have stated that he had sexual relationships with men.[272][273]Joey Arias said he saw Basquiat naked withKlaus Nomi in Nomi's New York City apartment.[274] Basquiat's former girlfriend Suzanne Mallouk described hissexual interest as "not monochromatic. It did not rely on visual stimulation, such as a pretty girl. It was a very rich multichromatic sexuality. He was attracted to people for all different reasons. They could be boys, girls, thin, fat, pretty, ugly ... He was attracted to intelligence more than anything and to pain."[275]
Biographer Phoebe Hoban wrote on Basquiat's first sexual experiences, which were with men.[276] When Basquiat was aminor in Puerto Rico he wasorally raped by a barber dressed indrag, then he got involved with a deejay.[22] Art critic Rene Ricard, who helped launch Basquiat's career, said that Basquiat was into everything and had "turned tricks" inCondado when he lived in Puerto Rico. As a teenager, Basquiat told a friend that he worked as a prostitute on42nd Street in Manhattan when he ran away from home.[28] Andy Warhol said Basquiat had refused to go with him and Keith Haring to Rounds, agay hustler bar,[277] because it brought back bad memories of when he was hustling.[278]
Basquiat's estate was administered by his father, Gerard Basquiat, until his passing in 2013.[146] It is now run by his sisters, Jeanine Heriveaux and Lisane Basquiat.[279] His work had a significant impact on the street art and hip hop scene,[280] and has been noted as an influence on a range of contemporary artists includingBanksy,Shepard Fairey, andHalim Flowers.[281][282]
In 2015, Basquiat was featured on the cover ofVanity Fair's Art and Artists Special Edition.[283]
In 2016, theGreenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation placed a plaque commemorating Basquiat's life outside his former residence at 57Great Jones Street in Manhattan.[284] On October 21, 2025, the block of 57 Great Jones Street (between Bowery and Lafayette) was named "Jean-Michel Basquiat Way."[285]
In 2017, Basquiat was posthumously awarded the key to the city of Brooklyn by Borough PresidentEric Adams and honored on the Celebrity Path at theBrooklyn Botanic Garden.[286]
Before the exhibitionBasquiat: Boom for Real at London's Barbican Centre in 2017, graffiti artistBanksy created two murals inspired by Basquiat on the walls of the Barbican.[287] The first mural depicts Basquiat's paintingBoy and Dog in a Johnnypump (1982) being searched by two police officers.[288][289] The second mural depicts a carousel with the carriages replaced with Basquiat's signature crown motif.[290]In 2018, a public square in the13th arrondissement of Paris was namedPlace Jean-Michel Basquiat in his memory.[291] For the2020–21 NBA season, theBrooklyn Nets honored Basquiat with their City Edition uniform and a court design inspired by his art.[292][293] In 2021, the Joe andClara Tsai Foundation funded a Basquiat educational arts program developed in partnership between the Brooklyn Nets, theNew York City Department of Education and the Fund for Public Schools.[294] The Nets used a white version of the Basquiat City Edition uniform for the2022–23 NBA season.[295]
In 2007, Basquiat was listed amongGQ's 50 Most Stylish Men of the Past 50 Years.[296] Basquiat often painted in expensiveArmani suits and he did a photo shoot forIssey Miyake.[297][298]Comme des Garçons was one of his favorite brands; he was a model for the Spring 1986 fashion show in New York and the Homme Plus Spring/Summer 1987 fashion show in Paris.[101][299][300] To commemorate Basquiat's runway appearances, Comme des Garçons featured his prints in the brand's Fall/Winter 2018 collection.[301] In 2015, Basquiat was featured on the cover ofT: The New York Times Style Magazine Men's Style issue.[302]
Valentino's Fall/Winter 2006 collection paid homage to Basquiat.[303]Sean John created a capsule collection for the 30th anniversary of Basquiat's death in 2018.[304] Apparel and accessories companies that have featured Basquiat's work includeUniqlo,[305]Urban Outfitters,Supreme,[306]Herschel Supply Co.,[307]Alice + Olivia,[308] Olympia Le-Tan,[309] DAEM,[310]Coach New York,[311] andSaint Laurent.[312] Footwear companies such asDr. Martens,[313]Reebok,[292] andVivobarefoot have also collaborated with Basquiat's estate.[314]
In 2021, luxury jewelry companyTiffany & Co. partnered with American singerBeyoncé and rapperJay-Z to promote the company's "About Love" campaign. The campaign incorporated Tiffany's recently acquired painting,Equals Pi (1982), by Basquiat. The painting heavily features a color close to the company's signaturerobin egg blue. The campaign was met with criticism from the artist's friends and colleagues.[315][316]
In 2022, Basquiat's estate partnered with Black Fashion Fair for a limited-run capsule collection, which was on view at the exhibitionJean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure in New York City.[317]
His hair has been imitated by Canadian pop singerThe Weeknd.[318]And American rapper and businessmanJay-Z.
Basquiat starred inDowntown 81, avérité movie written byGlenn O'Brien and shot byEdo Bertoglio in 1980–81, but not released until 2000.[319]
Without Walls: Shooting Star, a British documentary by Geoff Dunlop on Basquiat's life, aired onChannel 4 in 1990.[320] In 1996, painterJulian Schnabel made his filmmaking debut with the biopicBasquiat. It starsJeffrey Wright as Basquiat and David Bowie as Andy Warhol.[321]
Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child, a documentary film directed byTamra Davis, premiered at the 2010Sundance Film Festival and was shown on thePBS seriesIndependent Lens in 2011.[322][323]Sara Driver directed the documentary filmBoom for Real: The Late Teenage Years of Jean-Michel Basquiat, which premiered at the2017 Toronto International Film Festival.[324] In 2018, PBS aired the documentaryBasquiat: Rage to Riches as part of theAmerican Masters series.[325]
In 2022, it was reported that actorKelvin Harrison Jr. will star as Basquiat in an upcoming biopic titledSamo Lives, which will be written, directed and produced byJulius Onah.[326] It was also announced that actorStephan James will star and co-produce a limited series about Basquiat.[327]
In 2022,The Collaboration, a play by Anthony McCarten about Basquiat and Warhol debuted at London'sYoung Vic Theatre withJeremy Pope portraying Basquiat, andPaul Bettany as Warhol.[328] The play then moved toBroadway, for a limited run from December 2022 through March 2023, again starring Bettany and Pope, produced by theManhattan Theatre Club.[329] The pair have also reprised their roles in a film version.[330]
Roger Guenveur Smith wrote, directed, and performed the solo showIn Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat, a tribute toBasquiat, whom he was friends with.[331]
In 1991, poetKevin Young published the bookTo Repel Ghosts, a compendium of 117 poems relating to Basquiat's life, individual paintings, and social themes found in the artist's work. He published a "remix" of the book in 2005.[333] In 1993, a children's book was released titledLife Doesn't Frighten Me, which combines a poem written byMaya Angelou with art made by Basquiat.[334]
In 1998, journalistPhoebe Hoban published theunauthorized biographyBasquiat: A Quick Killing in Art.[4] In 2000, authorJennifer Clement wrote the memoirWidow Basquiat: A Love Story, based on the narratives told to her by Basquiat's former girlfriend Suzanne Mallouk.[335]
In 2005, poetM. K. Asante published the poem "SAMO", dedicated to Basquiat, in his bookBeautiful. And Ugly Too. The children's bookRadiant Child: The Story of Young Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, written and illustrated byJavaka Steptoe, was released in 2016.[336] The picture book won theCaldecott Medal in 2017.[337] In 2019, illustrator Paolo Parisi wrote the graphic novelBasquiat: A Graphic Novel, following Basquiat's journey from street-art legend SAMO to international art-scene darling, up until his death.[338]
GuitaristVernon Reid of thefunk metal bandLiving Colour wrote a song called "Desperate People", released on their albumVivid, which addresses the drug scene of New York during the mid-1980s. Reid was inspired to write the song after receiving a phone call fromGreg Tate informing him that Basquiat had overdosed.[339]
In August 2014, Revelation 13:18 released the single "Old School", featuring Jean-Michel Basquiat, along with the self-titled albumRevelation 13:18 x Basquiat. The release date of "Old School" coincided with the anniversary of Basquiat's death.[340] In 2020, New York rock bandthe Strokes used Basquiat's paintingBird on Money (1981) as the cover art for their albumThe New Abnormal.[341]
Tamra Davis explains why she locked her footage of her friend Basquiat in a drawer for two decades, and what it took to be sure a film about him took the full measure of the man.
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