Jean-Michel Basquiat was an American neo-expressionist artist who rose to prominence in the late 1970s and became a world-renowned artist in the 80s. Basquiat’s art expressed the heroic status of black musicians and sports, graffiti, comic books and racial prejudice (Gallery, 2013). Born in 1960, at a period where racial discrimination against black people in America was rife, Basquiat art was influenced by his childhood and as well as his adult life. His mother was largely influential to the development of Basquiat as an artist. From an early age, she developed his love for art by taking him to art museums and art exhibitions. However, a traffic accident at the age of seven is mostly cited as the most significant event in Basquiat’s childhood. While recuperating from injuries suffered during the accident, his mother bought him an anatomy book. The book significantly affected Basquiat’s style which had elements of primitive art, comic and human anatomy (The Biography.com, 2018).
Basquiat had a troubled youth which almost prevented his career from taking off. After the separation of his parents, while Basquiat was at a young age, he went to live with father. Considering the effort of his mother in cultivating the artistic talent in him, his interest in art almost stagnated during the period. Although his teacher noticed the ability and his mastery of English, Spanish and French at such a young age, the influence of his mother was still pivotal in his decision to pursue art. In early teenagehood, Basquiat was exposed to social evils and bad influence from friends, resulting in him leaving home for the streets. He returned but later dropped out of school and joined an art school, a decision which contributed to his talent development. While at the art school, he started selling sweatshirts and postcards bearing his work (The Biography.com, 2018).
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Initially, under the name SAMO, Basquiat drew the attention of fellow artists and admirers (The Biography.com, 2018). This was a period where hip-hop and fused with street art and graffiti, making Basquiat’s art recognizable. However, it was not until the early 1980’s when he made his breakthrough as an independent artist. His neo-expressionist fused elements of graffiti, black culture heroes, anatomy with themes touching on racism, capitalism and oppression incorporation of text into his work. The trauma he suffered due to an accident at a young age informed his interest in human anatomy and the fusion of this style into his work. In spite of lack of formal training in art, Basquiat was able to express different themes using imagery and words, a technique that was new at the time. Basquiat’s style was unique, bringing him recognition not only in the US but also Europe.
Importantly, through social commentary, he was able to win fans from different parts of the world. He works touched on issues such as power structures and black oppression. The paintings inspired both artists and admirers since he directly attacked America’s social classes and use of power to do evil. He used the crown motif style which was a celebration of black people at a time of oppression (The Biography.com, 2018). The style depicted black power through three main pillars of black music, poetry, and a black boxer. Through his art, he was able to criticize black oppression and also empower black people to think of themselves as royals and saints. Basquiat’s collaboration with Andy Warhol, a pop musician, brought him, even more, fame and recognition. He continued to showcase his work in art museums around the country and worldwide. He traveled as far as Ivory Coast to showcase his work. He was invited to the famed Kestner-Gesellschaft Gallery in 1986, achieving a fete as the youngest ever artists to have his work showcased in the gallery (The Biography.com, 2018). As Basquiat’s star continued to rise, so did it usher in the new neo-expressionism movement which involved younger artist who was not afraid to experiment.
However, Basquiat’s career success brought with it unprecedented struggles through drug addiction and other personal problems. His drug use caused concerns among those around him who noticed his paranoid behavior and seclusion. Heroin addiction was taking a toll on his life and it's adversely affected his career. His addiction problems adversely affected his social life in his last years, leading to months of disappearance which he claimed were strategies for fighting the addition. A drug overdose caused his untimely death August of 1988. Basquiat’s short career was immensely influential due to his creativity and ability to fuse different styles to come up with original pieces.
Basquiat’s work was of great significance not only during his period but also today. As a pioneer of the neo-expressionism movement, he fought for the right of self-expression through art (Guerrero, 2017). Authorities saw graffiti art in New York as a nuisance and a contributory factor to the cost of maintaining the subway. Authorities pushed for passage of laws that declared graffiti a form of visual and artists were branded criminals. This was despite the support of a significant percentage of the public and various mass media houses. Basquiat continued to influence other young artists through his graffiti in New York, even after the ban. The artists and admirers viewed graffiti as a form of expression and positive pastime hence their continued defiance of the authorities. The problem was further heightened by the association of the form of art with black and Latino youth, hence the misconception that graffiti bred violence. There was an increased police presence in locations notorious for graffiti in the city, leading to clashes between police and youth. Through the continued defiance of Basquiat and other graffiti artists maintained the right of self-expression through graffiti and also helped to keep the art alive.
Interestingly, Basquiat’s style did not conform to previous works of formal artists, thus acting as an influence on other artists to explore the art world from a different perspective. Basquiat has been compared to artists such as Picasso and Robert Rauschenberg, supporting the claim for the influential role played by the artist in inspiring others (Gallery, 2013). His influence is attributed to his ability to fuse different styles such as graffiti, primitive art, and anatomy in his imagery and incorporate words in the different language to bring out the message in his work. Such was the level of creativity in his work that he's considered among the pioneers of neo-expressionism (The Biography.com, 2018), a type of art with an emphasis on the ability of the artists to express themselves through their paintings.
Additionally, Basquiat spent adequate time creating his work, with some taking almost a year to complete. His works were beautiful, fetching thousands of dollars in auctions due to their quality. Because his work was with a new style, Basquiat’s success influenced other artists into believing in creativity and their abilities. Basquiat was also the youngest artist to showcase his work in the famed Kestner-Gesellschaft Gallery, in Germany. Without formal knowledge of the art, he embodied the new dawn in the art world where creativity became more valuable and appreciated. To other artists of his time, he was an inspiration and a lesson in the approach of art.
Notably, Basquiat’s works maintain relevance until today through the black lives matter movement. Despite the increased knowledge on racial equality and sanctity of life, the struggled that Basquiat went through in the late 20th Century still exist today (Guerrero, 2017). Basquiat art condemned discrimination and oppression of black people. Just like harassment of black youth and men was rife in the 70s and 80s, the same issues remain resolved today. Recent shootings of unarmed black men by police signify that racial equality is far from being achieved in the US. The “Black Lives Matter” movements share the same sentiments as those expressed in Basquiat’s work in fighting against discrimination and oppression of black people. Racial profiling was a problem that Basquiat fought against before his rise to prominence as an artist and later through his painting. The “Black Lives Matter” movement is led by the masses and artists today have a role to play by emulating Basquiat. Just like Basquiat’s defiance against oppressive laws and discrimination led to the preservation of graffiti culture in New York, so will today's artist uses their work in preventing oppression. The misconception that black people are a threat to society needs to be eliminated through the contribution of art.
Importantly, Basquiat eliminated the barriers that existed against minorities in the US creating belief and opportunities for today’s artists to excel. Basquiat came from a minority a minority group, born of a Haitian father and Puerto Rican mother (Guerrero, 2017). Despite the obvious artistic talent identified in him from a young age, his potential almost remained unfulfilled due to the circumstances of his upbringing combined with an oppressive society. Lack of formal art education was also a problem. However, through ambition and belief, he fought the odds to become a world-renowned artist. His rise as a black artist in America provides hope for artists from minority groups. By showcasing his work in museums and art galleries, he opened opportunities for another artist to excel (Guerrero, 2017). His work fought the problem of cultural misappropriation thus enabling artist from minority groups to benefit from the originality of their work. Basquiat’s work also opened a new window of opportunity in using art as a form of fighting injustice and oppression. Today’s artists learn from his work and use art as a tool for pointing out social evil and leading revolutions. Using art as a tool for fighting oppression also creates awareness on the importance of art to society. Thus, as Basquiat’s influence continues being felt in today’s art world, it becomes apparent that his role in art traversed generations.
In conclusion, Jean-Michel Basquiat is among the most influential artists of the 20th Century. Born to black parents in a period of oppression and racial injustice, his chances of succeeding as black artists in America were minimal. Poverty coupled with the authorities’ ban on graffiti in the New York streets, Basquiat’s rise at the period was unprecedented. Beginning his career under the group SAMO, his career took off as a solo artist in the 1980s. His unique style together with poetic ability in different languages drew critical acclaim from different quarters. His abilities and talent were put to good use through criticism for black oppression and racial inequality in America. Basquiat inspired artists during his time and also today. His fight against the ban on graffiti in the 70s helped to preserve the art. Today, his work provides opportunities for artists to excel since he eliminated the barriers that existed during his time. Indeed, Basquiat short career was greatly influential in the art world.
References
Gallery, K. (2013). Jean-Michel Basquiat. Retrieved on 30 April 2018, from https://www.kukjegallery.com/db_img/press/d_Jean_Michel_Basquiat_en.pdf.
Guerrero, M. A. (2017). The Racial Disparities and Influences on Art and Social Culture Through the Work of Jean-Michel Basquiat. Metamorphosis . Retrieved on 30 April 2018, from https://metamorphosis.coplac.org/index.php/metamorphosis/article/view/48.
The Biography.com. (2018). Jean-Michel Basquiat Biography . The Biography.com website. Retrieved on 30 April 2018, from
https://www.biography.com/people/jean-michel-basquiat-185851.
