From My Archives: Jean -Michel Basquiat. Rise to Fame, Keith Haring , Madonna, and Warhol.

 

“I was trying to communicate an idea; I was trying to paint a very urban landscape. I was trying to make paintings different from the paintings that I saw a lot of at the time, which were mostly minimal, and they were highbrow and alienating, and I wanted to make very direct paintings that most people would feel the emotion behind when they saw them.”- Jean-Michel Basquiat

Basquiat showed an inclination for drawing & painting at a very early age, presumably, owing to his mother, who always encouraged him to create art. They visited many New York art exhibitions and by the age of six, Jean Michel had already become a Junior Member of the Brooklyn Museum. After his parents’ divorce, he lived briefly with his father (his mother suffered from mental disorder and was unable to care for him). Eventually, Jean Michel ran away from home, was adopted by his friend's family, spray-painted buildings in Lower Manhattan under the nom de plume SAMO, tried attending various schools in New York and Puerto Rico, but, at the age of 18, decided to drop out of high school. He supported himself by panhandling, selling drugs, hand painting postcards and making T-shirts, while being homeless and sleeping on benches in parks. 

In June of 1980, his works were included into a historical, punk-art Time Square Show, after which he was given a chance of having his very first solo exhibition at the Annina Nosei Gallery, in SoHo, in 1982. Basquiat’s start of recognition coincided with the arrival to New York art scene of German Neo-Expressionist movement, which provided a perfect backdrop for his own street-smart, curbside expressionism. He began exhibiting regularly, enjoying the re-emergence of human figure in contemporary art. Rene Ricard's article, “The Radiant Child," of December 1981 (Artforum), completely solidified the artist’s position as a “rising star” in the local art world. In 1982 Basquiat became the youngest artist ever to be included in Documenta, the international contemporary art extravaganza held in Kassel, Germany. During that time, he created over 200 artworks and developed his own style and motif: a heroic, crowned black oracle figures (inspired by Dizzy Gillespie, Sugar Ray Robinson, and Muhammad Ali), roughly outlined and Neo-Expressionist, meant to capture the essence, not the physical likeness of the subjects. The crudeness of Jean Michel’s technique, the slashes of paint and dashes of line, are told to give away his subjects' real feelings and deepest desires.

Not unlike Basquiat, Keith Haring emerged in the New York art scene of the early 1980s with his unique style. Influenced by the street art of NY, he began creating chalk drawings in subway stations, while Basquiat, originally a graffiti artist, transitioned from the streets to galleries. They crossed paths through a mutual friend, forming foundation for future collaborations which would prove to be truly groundbreaking: Basquiat's raw intensity coupled with Haring's pop-inspired imagery, creating visually striking art, addressing social issues, reflecting the spirit of the time. They produced work that resonated with the art lovers and art critics alike, iconic pieces like "Aoyama Flowers" and "The Mechanical Animal.", fused street art with high culture, challenging the status quo of the art world. Exhibited in many well known galleries and museums, still captivating the eye of their their viewer, Haring and Basquiat’s contributions to contemporary art is still celebrated all over the world.  The two artists left an indelible mark on not just the art, but the public world, solidifying their repute as iconic artists.

Jean-Michel and Madonna met and began dating in 1982, exploring Manhattan together, attending art events, mingling with other creatives. At that time Basquiat already knew that she was extraordinary. He invited Madonna to move in with him, and introduced her to the art dealer, he was sharing his house with. “Her name is Madonna and she's going to be huge.” The couple and their friends had a happy lifestyle together. Madonna took to driving Basquiat and Gagosian around when Gagosian lost his drivers license. “There was lots of time spent creating art, of course.”- Madonna commented. She recalled how, as they were in bed together at night, Basquiat would get up, and hurry out of the room to start painting and would be in a trance-like state as he painted. She admired his ability to work anytime creativity struck. Basquiat created a few paintings just for Madonna. 

His ex-partners regretted to reveal that he "always did drugs and never stopped." They said his drugs of choice were often cocaine and marijuana. It was the artist’s nonstop drug use that made Madonna end their relationship. At some point, Jean-Michel Basquiat began using heroin, and Madonna could not stand that. He refused to stop, so she had to initiate a breakup. Basquiat was too furious and told Madonna to return all the paintings he had created for her. He completely covered up the artworks with black paint.

By the early 1980s, Basquiat had befriended Andy Warhol. On October 4, 1982, Warhol had a lunch meeting with his dealer, Bruno Bischofberger, who decided to bring along Jean Michel. The Pop Art icon recognized the young artist from the NY downtown art scene. “He’s the kid who used the name ‘Samo’ when he used to sit on the sidewalk in Greenwich Village and paint T-shirts, and I’d give him $10 here and there,” Warhol wrote in his diary. “He was just one of those kids who drove me crazy.”

Bischofberger used to bring young artists for Warhol to do portraits of, then be paid with the artist’s works. Once Warhol took Polaroids of Basquiat to get ready for a quick silkscreen portrait, but Basquiat “one-upped him instantly,” he raced off with a Polaroid of himself and “within two hours a painting was back, still wet, of him and me together.”- Warhol wrote in his diary. He was impressed, even jealous, admitting that the kid was faster than him, astounded by Basquiat’s highly original works—the symbols, the words and the vibrant color - all brushed with an almost ferocious intensity, gaining art-world traction. 

“Jean-Michel got me into painting differently,” Warhol wrote. The two artists collaborated on a series of works from 1984 to 1986, such as Ten Punching Bags (Last Supper) (1985-86). Warhol would often paint first, then Basquiat would layer over his work. The two became friends. “It was like some crazy art-world marriage, and they were the odd couple,” said artist and Warhol assistant Ronnie Cutrone. “Jean-Michel thought he needed Andy's fame, and Andy thought he needed Jean-Michel's new blood. Jean-Michel gave Andy a rebellious image again.” 

In February 1987, Warhol passed away suddenly after a complicated surgery. Struggling with addiction over again, Basquiat died of an overdose only 18 months later. Since then, both artists’ reputations have continued to climb, each has been the subject of books, films and museum exhibitions, each continuing to exert an enduring influence on art and pop culture.