​“Forty Years Later, Jean-Michel Basquiat is Still Fresh”


Jean-Michel Basquiat is in vogue. The late Black American Neo-Expressionist’s art continues to attract attention.  When Basquiat first emerged in the 1980s, his presence in the art world was diverse and divisive.  Today, he is trending on commercial broadcast networks and t-shirts.  Who was Basquiat and why is his cultural significance reemerging?

Basquiat was a renaissance man.  Many art historians categorize him as a Neo-Expressionist; he incorporated history, human images, and pop culture into his paintings.  He sampled earlier artists such as Rauschenberg, Picasso, and African and West Indian art.  He often painted heads and skulls which were influenced by Henry Gray’s Anatomy of the Human Body.  Basquiat used various media like acrylic, crayon, oil, and spray paint.  And, he sometimes layered abstract images, color and text over existing works.  Basquiat also incorporated his cultural interests into his work.  Born in 1960 to a Brooklyn middleclass family of Puerto Rican and Haitian descent, his mother nurtured his artistic ambitions and enrolled him as a junior member of the Brooklyn Museum of Art.  Jean-Michel’s sisters, Jeanine and Lisane, describe him as a self-taught artist and intellectual who was bored by the academic confines of high school.   Although he dropped out, he was an avid reader of history and literature, fluent in English, French, and Spanish, and a life-long student of film and music.[1]  Basquiat’s painting, Bird Over Money (1981) is a tribute to Jazz musician Charlie Parker.

Basquiat pointed out that because he was Black, many Whites depicted him as an uncultured kid, living and painting in a basement; they would not embrace or see past his race.  He thought that if he was white, he would have been appropriately identified as an artist in-residence of a New York gallery.  Some historians have naively portrayed Basquiat as a Graffiti artist because he came of age with the Wildstyle generation.  Initially, he preferred writing text with poetic and political messages on buildings.  However, he did not bomb or cross-out other’s work.  He never tagged in the traditional sense; yet, he was still associated with street artists.  During an interview in 1982, surrounded by White men his age, he told of a recent experience when he was denied entrance to a movie house because of his color and dreadlocks.  Many of the men dismissed the racist relevance of this event.  They spoke over Basquiat and did not allow him to express his frustration and they refused his appeal for a boycott of the theater.[2]   

During the 1980s, Basquiat challenged inherent racism in art world.  In a 1986 interview, he lamented that, “Black people are not really portrayed in modern art.”[3]  In his work, he emphasized African American athletes, historical figures, and musicians whom he believed were overlooked.  His painting Trumpet (1984) shows a black crown floating above a trumpeter’s head.  It has crossed out words and layered bright colors such as gold, green and red.   Art historians believe that the crown was Basquiat’s way of elevating African Americans.  Jean-Michel’s sisters believe that he struggled with his desire to be identified as an artist and not a Black artist.  Lisane thinks the crown was Jean-Michel’s way of stating his value.[4]  

Basquiat’s meteoric rise made him popular among celebrities.  He was a fixture at many cultural events, galleries, and night clubs in the United States and internationally.  Basquiat’s introductory show was in 1980 and his first sale was to singer Debbie Harry the following year for $100.  He dated Madonna and hung out with artist Fab 5 Freddy and director Spike Lee.  The painter first met Andy Warhol when Basquiat was selling postcards of his work in 1980.  The two reconnected in 1982 and became friends.  Some critics disparaged Basquiat by saying that Warhol discovered him.  Those who knew Warhol argue that, he would not have teamed up with Basquiat if the younger artist was not already part of the Avant Garde.[5]  Basquiat was not Warhol’s apprentice but for a time, the two were confidantes sharing conversations, meals, and travels.  The artists had much in common beyond their status and commercial appeal.  They collaborated on two shows; the second exhibit held in September 1985 was panned.  Writing in the New York Times, White art critic Vivien Raynor described Basquiat’s and Warhol’s art as “large, bright, messy, full of private jokes and inconclusive.”  Of Basquiat, she concluded that “the social commentary implicit in his previous work has now become obvious and silly.”  Her most cutting statements described Basquiat as an “accessory” and “mascot” which were taken as demeaning, patronizing, and trivializing his relationship with Warhol.[6]

Jean-Michel’s sisters believe that the negative reaction to the second show drove a wedge between Warhol and their brother.  The two painters stopped socializing.  Five months later, Warhol died unexpectedly following surgery.  Jeanine thinks that Jean-Michel was demoralized and “felt alone” following Warhol’s death and that her brother’s struggle with drugs intensified.[7]  During the 1980s, Basquiat used drugs off and-on and Madonna explained that she ended their relationship due to his habit.[8]  Some, believe that Warhol was influential in convincing the younger painter to cut back.  With his friend gone and his art disparaged, Jean-Michel died of a heroin overdose in August 1988 at the age of 27.

Since the George Floyd murder protests of the summer of 2020, cultural institutions in the United States have re-examined their exclusion of African American History.  Juneteenth, initially held in 1865 recognizing the end of slavery in the United States, was celebrated for the first time as a federal holiday in 2021.  Many journalists, politicians, and local, state, and national groups have increased their coverage of African American historical figures and events.  So too, is the entertainment industry with Basquiat as a prominent figure.  The Equalizer, a CBS reboot of a 1980s television series now staring Queen Latifah and a predominately Black cast, has mentioned Basquiat during the past two seasons.  As one of the leading characters is an African American artist who lived and worked in the New York art scene during the 1980s, references to Basquiat make sense.  A more obvious indication of Basquiat’s revival is the GAP retailer’s release of a t-shirt collection featuring his works.  These were available in stores and on-line during the summer of 2022.  One shirt bears Basquiat’s self-portrait with Warhol. The clothing line has appeared on television in 2023.  One Basquiat GAP t-shirt, showing a T-Rex wearing a gold crown, was worn by a white character on the ABC police show, Will Trent, which has a diverse cast.  Another GAP t-shirt, with a crown over Basquiat’s name, was evident on a child in a promo for an ABC docuseries The Parent Test.  

Until recently, reproductions of Basquiat’s work was available on stationary but many of his paintings remained in private collections and therefore his contributions and importance was unknown to most people.  But that is changing.  Hip Hop extraordinaire Jay Z wrote “Most Kingz” (2010) because he was “inspired by” Basquiat’s Charles the First (1981), another painting honoring Charlie Parker.  In his song, the rapper compared Basquiat’s overdose to that of Kurt Cobain explaining that, “they both wanted to be famous, and were brilliant enough to make it happen.”[9]  Jay-Z also purchased Mecca (1982) in 2013 for $4.5 million.[10]  In 2016, billionaire clothier Yukasu Maezawa paid $57.3 million for Basquiat’s Untitled (1982) painting of a devil.  A year later, Maezawa acquired Basquiat’s Untitled Skull (1982) for $110.5 million, it originally sold for $19,000 in 1984.   And, in 2021, In This Case (1983) sold for $93.1 million.[11]  These purchases attracted enormous attention due to the sums paid.  With growing interest in Basquiat’s work, his family organized an exhibit entitled “Jean-Michel Basquiat:  A King’s Pleasure” of over 200 of their brother’s works, some viewed publicly for the first time.  The show opened in Chelsea, New York in 2022 and will visit Los Angeles in 2023.  This exhibit coupled with his growing presence in pop culture will hopefully, make Basquiat more accessible and sustain his importance in American culture.[12]      
​                                                                            
Amy Carreiro
Dr. Amy E. Carreiro taught African American History at the University of Tulsa and American History, American Studies, and Hip Hop at Oklahoma State University.  She is a member of the Bristol Art Museum.  Photos are of art work on stationary purchased from teNeues Publishing Company, Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat and belong to the author, as does the t-shirt bought from the GAP Store.


Endnotes
[1] “Growing Up with Jean-Michel Basquiat:  Behind the Crown.”  Vice Video, uploaded by Carreiro, 13 January 2023, https://video.vice.com/en_uk/video/growing-up-with-jean-michel-basquiat-or-behind-the-crown/6230b05aceaab75770833.

[2] “Jean-Michel Basquiat Dealing with Racism (1982).” Luci Verdad, uploaded by Carreiro, 13 January 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9kXBbv_s0A. 

[3] “Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Untitled (Skull).”  Great Art Explained, uploaded by Carreiro, 20 January 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHePKNTRmdI&t=0s.

[4] “Growing Up with Jean-Michel Basquiat.”

[5] “Jean-Michel Basquiat Untitled.”

[6] Raynor, Vivien. “ART: Basquiat, Warhol.” The New York Times Archives. 20 September 1985, https://www.nytimes.com/1985/09/20/arts/art-basquiat-warhol.html.

[7] “Growing Up with Jean-Michel Basquiat.”

[8] “Madonna on Dating Jean-Michel Basquiat.” Luci Verdad, uploaded by Carreiro, 13 January 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLHdvYnG5-E.

[9] Jay-Z. Decoded. New YorK: Spiegel & Grau, 2011; 98-101.

[10] Villa, Angelica.  “Beyoncé and Jay-Z pose with Long-Unseen Basquiat.” ARTnews.  23 August 2021, https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/beyonce-jay-z-tiffany-basquiat-1234602125/.

[11] Silverstope, Pontus. “The Basquiat Boom:  His Five Most Expensive Paintings.” Bbys Magazine. 22 May 2022, https://www.barnebys.com/blog/the-basquiat-boom-his-5-most-expensive-paintings.

[12] For more information about Basquiat’s tour see, https://kingpleasure.basquiat.com/.