Basquiat, a rebel genius or a lucky rebel?

Art General

15.02.2021

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Basquiat, a rebel genius or a lucky rebel?

Jean-Michel Basquiat

Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960 – 1988) was an American artist of Haitian and Puerto Rican origins. His life was very short and unstable, but very productive artistically. From an upper middle family, his mother was one of his greatest influences. She was a highly regarded graphic designer. This allowed Basquiat from a very young age, to surround himself with art and have opportunities in the artistic field.

He entered a school for gifted boys, but due to rebellious behavior, he was expelled before graduating. After this and by choice, Basquiat lived on the streets for two years. Sometimes he lived in abandoned buildings, others in his girlfriend’s homes. He started in the drugs and street gangs world.

In 1977, he met the art of graffiti, together with his friend Al Díaz. He painted poetic phrases. He signed them as SAMO, short for “SAMe Old Shit”. He drew these phrases in the Soho neighborhood of NY, near art galleries. Its purpose was to be noticed, to advertise in the artistic world. He also made a brief foray into the musical world, with an experimental music group called Gray.

Andy Warhol

Basquiat used to paint T-shirts and postcards which he later sold. One day he went to a restaurant to sell one of his postcards and offered it to one of the local customers, Andy Warhol. Warhol, who was already famous, became interested in Basquiat.

It is said that Basquiat looked for this type of approach with celebrities since his intention was to jump to fame, and this was his advertising tool. Warhol organized a lunch with Basquiat. After this meeting, Basquiat went and painted a picture, he returned two hours later.

In 1982, the friendship between these two artists started. It was full of controversy. They had very complex personalities, and Basquiat was impulsive and energetic, while Warhol returned to a creative rebirth. Warhol was the catapult for Basquiat to establish himself as a famous artist. They painted about 200 paintings together. One of the closest friends of both Paige Powell describes Basquiat and Warhol’s relationship as symbiotic and far away from romantic. Symbiotic because they fed on each other. But after this artistic fervor, there came a time when Basquiat began to move away from Warhol and stopped answering his calls.

Basquiat’s Art

Basquiat was very stimulated during his childhood. The family environment facilitated education and presence in the artistic world. Basquiat liked music, books, and pop culture. Basquiat began to make poetic phrases that he signed as SAMO, in the Soho neighborhood of NY. He also painted T-shirts and postcards which he later sold to support himself.

This first stage of his artwork took place between 1980 and 1982. However, Basquiat always clarified that he painted, he did not do graffiti. Basquiat’s work is in the Neo-Expressionist style.

Between 1982 and 1985, Basquiat began to develop more complex artworks. With some words, voodoo figures, sports stars, and symbols of pop culture.

This artwork by Basquiat, named Skull, shows a palette of vibrant colors, strong lines, and a lot of energy. While it seems to have some harmony in composition, some people might say that it is nothing more than squiggles.

Jean-Michel Basquiat. Skull. 1981. Neo-expressionism.

The period between 1986 and 1988 was the richest and sophisticated for Basquiat. His paintings were beginning to take better shape. He experimented with forms from some ancient cultures, such as the African, the Aztec, and even the Greco-Roman. By this time, Basquiat had already achieved fame.

Riding with Death. Jean-Michel Basquiat. 1988. Neo-expressionism.

One of the critics made to Basquiat’s art, was his speed in painting since his artworks seemed unfinished. However, he defended himself by saying that each line was where it was supposed to be. That its speed had nothing to do with the quality of the frame.

His death happens suddenly from a heroin overdose. Like any controversial artist, his work has many retractors and others that praise it as magnificent, but a work by Basquiat can never go unnoticed.

Basquiat achieved what many artists never do, outstanding fame. His artworks are sold for millions of dollars. In 2017 one of his artworks reached 110.5 million dollars. We cannot say goodbye without saying that Jean Michel Basquiat is one of the few African-American famous artists.