Jean-Michel Basquiat

Born 1960 in Brooklyn, New York, Jean-Michel Basquiat was an artist who blended social commentary, expressive graffiti designs, oil and acrylic paintings, memorable poetry, and much more, and would go on to become one of the most influential contemporary artists of all time. 

Basquiat grew up with his sisters and mother, who was an advocate for his interest in art from a young age. However, his childhood presented many challenges, and so he ended up dropping out of high school and leaving home by the age of 17. His Haitian and Puerto Rican heritage would impact the content and styles of his art later on. 

With the loss of a home, Basquiat turned to streets and abandoned buildings as places of living. Teaming up with graffiti artists Shannon Dawson and Al Diaz, he started a graffiti campaign to paint messages around the subways and walls.  

After graffiti began to gain more attention from the art community, Basquiat received recognition for his work, and ended up producing a public exhibition in “The Times Square Show.” His work frequently featured Black historical figures, musicians, athletes, and writers, as he blended motifs from different cultures with references to pop culture. 

A common and well-known motif of Basquiat’s is a crown, which he used in his works to celebrate Black people as royalty, kings, and saints. Many of his works also criticize the systems of racism, colonialism, and capitalism. 

In 1981, Basquiat began collaborating with celebrity Andy Warhol, and the two became representatives of the contemporary art movement. In 1985, Basquiat appeared on the cover of the New York Times Magazine as a figurehead of the movement. 

Basquiat passed away at the age of 27 in 1988 due to a drug overdose. Despite his short career, he made over 1500 drawings and about 600 paintings, as well as many sculptures and mixed media pieces, and has been accredited for expressing his experience as an Afro-Latino through his art.