Untitled IV (from The Figure portfolio), 2023

Jean-Michel Basquiat   Master Artists

Marked by a lightning ascent but also its brevity, Jean-Michel Basquiat's career is more sporty rather than that of a traditional artist. Son of a Haitian father and Puertorican mother, he was born in 1960 in Brooklyn, Basquiat died at the age of 28 in 1988 in New York.

Quickly, he was considered as a gifted child, he could read and write at the age of four and was already speaking three languages at the age of eight. Entirely self-taught, Basquiat came across art thanks to his mother, who made him discover the MoMA. He dropped out of school at an early age. Instead of going to school, Basquiat took over the walls of Manhattan 1976 onwards with two of his friends who were graffiti artisits, Al Diaz and Shannon Dawson. Together, they signed under the name (Same old shit) and accompanied this with a crown and a copyright symbol.

He acquired knowledge through all sorts of popular references, Hitchcock movies to automobiles, not to mention comic books. He was a quick learner and absorbed the context easily, he was influenced by the news especially the one covering the war, exposing arms and media and placed Nixon in the limelight. The messages triggered by Basquiat and his graffiti artist friends were anti-system, anti-religion and anti-political.

It was only in 1979 that Basquiat created his first work, at the Li Kignodesse studio. His life was shaken up a year later. He met Andy Warhol and they created many works together. Basquiat participated at the collective exhibition at Times Square show and became famous. He received one offer after the other and exhibited with Keith Haring, Andy Warhol and Robert Mapplethorpe during the New-York/New Wave event.

In 1982, he had six solo exhibitions throughout the world and was the youngest artist who participated in the Documenta de Kassel. He was also present for the Biennial of Whitney Museum of American Art in 1983 at the age of 23. This is when Jean-Michel Basquiat created and established his emblematic pattern, a black figure which was heroic through with a three pointed crown.

At the age of 28, Basquiat had created 800 paintings and 1500 drawings and died due to an overdose, as he wasn't able to get rid of his addiction.