Page 39 - OCEAN BLUE - SPRING 2018

ART & DESIGN

Basquiat’s work is a commentary on racism and black identity that
could have been taken from today’s headlines. In 2017, his “Untitled”
(1982) skull painting set the highest recorded price for an American
artist at an auction, selling at $110 million U.S. Basquiat’s doomed
genius is reflected in this skull as much as racism.
Basquiat’s raw, untrained, hedonistic style is a mash-up of words
weaving in and out of images. He created on every surface within
reach, including his girlfriend’s dresses. Hip-hop, pop art and African
art influenced his work, as did his lifelong fascination with the medical
textbook, Gray's Anatomy. His rap influence goes all the way back to the
beginning with Rammellzee when he created the cover art on the hip
hop seminal single “Beat Bop.”
Though he started out peddling his postcard art on the street, Basquiat,
like Rammellzee and Keith Haring, got his first taste of fame as a graffiti
artist. By 1980, Haring was already a known artist, and he and Basquiat
became friends. They did a collaborative exhibition in 1981 entitled,
Public Auction.
Basquiat was also part of SAMO©, a poetical-political graffiti duo
who tagged enigmatic epigrams in the Lower East Side of Manhattan.
“SAMO© IS DEAD”, the final tag, marked Basquiat’s shift toward canvas
work. By 1984 Basquiat was collaborating with Andy Warhol and was a
major part of NYC’s artistic explosion. Basquiat loved to paint wearing
oversized Armani suits, and don the paint splattered-suits partying in
Manhattan with celebrities including Debbie Harry, David Bowie and
Madonna.
One of the best-selling artists of the last 50 years, Basquiat’s work is
shown in museums all over the world and collected by many art
enthusiasts including the celebrities Leonardo DiCaprio and Jay-Z.

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