Untitled
View Similar Items
Jean-Michel BasquiatUntitled1988
1988
About the Item
- Creator:Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960 - 1988, American)
- Creation Year:1988
- Dimensions:Height: 29.25 in (74.3 cm)Width: 20.5 in (52.07 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Gallery Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU5542402093
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Emerging from the New York City street-art scene, Jean-Michel Basquiat would become one of the most significant artists of the 20th century as he mixed hand-scrawled text, vibrant color, gestural brushwork and themes of social commentary in a prolific output of Neo-Expressionist paintings. Although his pieces always retained the improvisational energy of graffiti, Basquiat used deceptively uncomplicated motifs such as crowns and professional boxers to honor the majesty and power of Black men and place himself in that lineage. Today, Basquiat’s art is among the most expensive in the world, with his paintings regularly fetching tens of millions of dollars at auction.
Born in Brooklyn to a Haitian-American father and Puerto Rican mother, Basquiat’s parents treated him to regular visits to New York City museums and nurtured his early talent for drawing cartoons. When he was hit by a car while playing in the street, Basquiat’s mother gave him a copy of the lushly illustrated medical reference book Gray’s Anatomy. Later, human bones and body parts such as skulls and rib cages would prove potent as subject matter for his provocative and spirited visual explorations of social issues as well as his own vulnerability and the struggles he faced as a Black artist.
As a teenager, Basquiat spray-painted city bridges with friend Al Diaz, and their “SAMO” tag caught the eyes of local artists. He left home before he was 20, selling hand-painted sweatshirts and postcards in Lower Manhattan. Because Basquiat was homeless — sleeping in parks and girlfriends’ apartments — he couldn’t afford proper canvases, and instead transformed found materials, such as old doors and windows, with paint and layered paper. The works vividly juxtaposed a street-art style with forms inspired by Abstract Expressionism.
Basquiat’s first public exhibition was “The Times Square Show” in 1980, a landmark event for artists experimenting with the boundaries between the galleries and the streets, with pieces by Keith Haring, Jenny Holzer, Kenny Scharf and Kiki Smith. His art soon garnered critical acclaim as well as the attention of collectors. Basquiat’s first solo show was at Soho’s Annina Nosei Gallery, in 1982, with another that year at Larry Gagosian Gallery in Los Angeles. His star continued to rise with multiple exhibitions in Europe, a 1983 feature in the Whitney Biennial and inclusion in a 1984 exhibition of painting at New York’s Museum of Modern Art. But he found that racist stereotypes persisted in press coverage of him, even as his profile expanded, and friends contend that he was exploited by collectors and art dealers. He battled a heroin addiction for years, and at the age of 27, Basquiat died from an accidental drug overdose on August 12, 1988.
Although it mainly spanned from 1980 to 1988, Basquiat’s career in visual art involved hundreds of paintings, drawings, sculptures, prints and other works. This included collaborations with Andy Warhol, with whom he created a series of paintings between 1983 and 1985. Basquiat’s art has been exhibited in almost every major art museum in the world, and in 2017 his 1982 Untitled painting was sold for $110.5 million at a Sotheby’s auction.
Find a collection of original Jean-Michel Basquiat art on 1stDibs.
- Brooklyn BridgeBy Richard BosmanLocated in New York, NYAn exquisitely printed image created by Richard Bosman in 1996, the artist’s iconic Brooklyn Bridge is a woodcut on Mulberry paper. Measuring 18 ¼ 24 ¼ in. (46.4 x 61.6 cm), unframed...Category
20th Century Neo-Expressionist Landscape Prints
MaterialsWoodcut
- Palo AltoBy Robert MotherwellLocated in New York, NYCreated by Robert Motherwell in 1978, Palo Alto is an original lithograph in colors on Arches 88 wove paper measuring 36 x 24 in. (91.4 x 61 cm), unframed. Hand-signed in pencil, th...Category
20th Century Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints
MaterialsLithograph
Price Upon Request - Ma de Proverbis, Joan MiróBy Joan MiróLocated in New York, NYThis lithograph in colors on Arches paper (with watermark) was created by the artist in 1970. Signed in the stone, (lower right) from the edition of 1000. Available for local pick u...Category
20th Century Surrealist Abstract Prints
MaterialsLithograph
Price Upon Request - Red Curve (For Joel)By Ellsworth KellyLocated in New York, NYA stunning example of the artist’s best work, Red Curve (For Joel) was created by Ellsworth Kelly in 1993 and is an original color lithograph on Arches paper. Measuring 22 x 16 in. ...Category
20th Century Abstract Prints
MaterialsLithograph
Price Upon Request - Study of HandsBy Roy LichtensteinLocated in New York, NYCreated in 1981 as an original lithograph with screen-printing, Roy Lichtenstein’s, Study of Hands is hand-signed in pencil, dated and numbered, measuring 31 ¼ x 32 ¾ in. (79.5 x 83....Category
20th Century Pop Art Figurative Prints
MaterialsLithograph, Screen
Price Upon Request - Korin: The Land Beyond Death, Bathed in LightBy Takashi MurakamiLocated in New York, NYCreated by Takashi Murakami in 2015, Korin: The Land Beyond Death, Bathed in Light, is an offset color lithograph with foil and high gloss varnish. The artwork is hand-signed and num...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Pop Art Prints and Multiples
MaterialsLithograph
Price Upon Request
- Whirlwind 1979, paper, lithography, 59x46 cmLocated in Riga, LVWhirlwind 1979, paper, lithography, 59x46 cm Ivars Poikans 1952. Riga Ivars Poikāns works in painting, graphics, book illustration, cinema art. Born on O...Category
1980s Neo-Expressionist Figurative Prints
MaterialsPaper, Lithograph
- Different Places, Hardback monograph (Hand signed and inscribed by Sean Scully)By Sean ScullyLocated in New York, NYSean Scully Different Places (hand signed and inscribed by Sean Scully), 2015 Limited Edition hardback monograph (hand signed and inscribed to Nadine in felt tip pen on the title pag...Category
2010s Neo-Expressionist Abstract Prints
MaterialsPaper, Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset
- Walls of Aran book Hand signed and inscribed by BOTH Sean Scully and Colm ToibinBy Sean ScullyLocated in New York, NYSean Scully Walls of Aran (Hand signed and inscribed by BOTH Sean Scully and Colm Toibin), 2007 Hardback monograph with book jacket Hand signed and personally inscribed to Kevin by ...Category
Early 2000s Neo-Expressionist Mixed Media
MaterialsPaper, Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset, Board
- Jean-Michel Basquiat, Mecca, 1982By Jean-Michel BasquiatLocated in Manchester, GBJean-Michel Basquiat, Mecca, 1982 Monte Carlo 300gsm watercolour paper. This premium paper made on a traditional cylinder mould machine by St Cuthbert's Mill in Somerset where they have been making fine papers on the same site since the 1700's. They are the only commercial paper mill in England to still use this paper-making process Image size: 79 x 80cm Paper size: 99 x 100cm During the 1980s, New York was a central hub for underground artists, hence Jean-Michel Basquiat's depiction of the empire state building in his version of 'Mecca'. Basquiat also situated his personal motif, the three point crown, directly above the word 'Empire', representing his sudden rise to fame as his artwork was propelled from the streets of downtown New York to high end art...Category
1980s Neo-Expressionist Interior Prints
MaterialsLithograph
- Jean-Michel Basquiat, Mecca, 1982 (Framed)By Jean-Michel BasquiatLocated in Manchester, GBJean-Michel Basquiat, Mecca, 1982 (Framed) Monte Carlo 300gsm watercolour paper. This premium paper is made on a traditional cylinder mould machine by St Cuthbert's Mill in Somerset where they have been making fine papers on the same site since the 1700's. They are the only commercial paper mill in England to still use this paper-making process Paper size: 99 x 100cm Framed size: 103 x 104cm During the 1980s, New York was a central hub for underground artists, hence Jean-Michel Basquiat's depiction of the Empire State Building in his version of 'Mecca'. Basquiat also situated his personal motif, the three point crown, directly above the word 'Empire', representing his sudden rise to fame as his artwork was propelled from the streets of downtown New York to high end art...Category
1980s Neo-Expressionist More Prints
MaterialsLithograph
- From Portfolio "Twilight" with Karin SzekessyBy Paul WunderlichLocated in Kansas City, MOPaul Wunderlich From Portfolio "Twilight" with Karin Szekessy Year: 1971 Medium: Color Lithograph Edition: 125 Size: 33 x 25 in. Publisher: A.A.A., New ...Category
1970s Neo-Expressionist Prints and Multiples
MaterialsLithograph
$490 Sale Price30% Off