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New York Beat: Jean-Michel Basquiat Downtown 81 (Inscribed by Glenn O’Brien)

About the Item

New York Beat: Jean-Michel Basquiat in Downtown 81: INSCRIBED by GLENN O’BRIEN: Inscribed by early Basquiat champion & historic downtown art scene critic & curator, Glenn O’Brien, ‘New York Beat’, brilliantly documents the production of Downtown 81, director Edo Bertoglio's seminal take of New York's Downtown scene, featuring a turn, 19 year old Jean-Michel Basquiat as semi-biographical protagonist. Includes text by the film’s co-producer, Glenn O'Brien - who has hand inscribed this example; with photographs by Bertoglio & Maripol. Reverse of interior jacket forms a striking vertical poster featuring Basquiat's portrait. Medium: Hardcover book with dustwrapper. 112 pages; illustrated throughout with brilliant photographs, mostly color. Text: English & Japanese. 6.5 x 10.4 inches. Minor signs of handling. Very good overall vintage condition. Hand inscribed from an edition of unknown. Published Tokyo, 2001. Further background, "Shot as ''New York Beat'' in 1980-1981 but completed for release only last year, ''Downtown 81'' emerges as a nostalgic portrait of pre-Giuliani Manhattan, an unruly place full of garbage, graffiti, rubble-strewn lots, unlicensed after-hours clubs and highly idealistic kids eager to make their mark as avant-garde artists and musicians. The film's central figure is Jean, a young Bohemian engagingly played by a not yet famous Jean-Michel Basquiat. Jean survives mainly by relying on the worldwide network of hip: there will always be another bar to go to, another gig to Crash, another wealthy European to write a check, another gorgeous model in a Cadillac convertible to give him a ride home. The script, by the rock critic Glenn O'Brien, also the film's co-producer, follows the basic day-in-the-life format, beginning with Jean's release from a hospital. Jean returns to his Alphabet City tenement to find an angry landlord demanding his back rent, and departs with a painting he hopes to sell. The day brings many disappointments but also many fortuitous encounters. He meets assorted new-wave musicians (Kid Creole and the Coconuts, Tuxedomoon, James White and the Blacks, DNA, the Plastics, and Walter Steding, most of whom perform); go-go dancers; and street people, among them Deborah Harry, who plays a bag lady with magical powers. It's as a documentary that ''Downtown 81'' is most successful, particularly at those moments when the somewhat unfocused filmmaking allows us to look past the foreground characters and catch glimpses of a vanished cityscape: the pornography shops and grind houses of West 42nd Street, the greasy spoons and outlet stores of East 14th Street, the labyrinthine interior of the Mudd Club in what was then the largely uncharted territory south of Canal Street." (Source: NYT, 7/13/01) _ Glenn O'Brien, an American writer and art/fashion critic, was a close friend, confidante & early champion of Jean-Michel Basquiat. A more detailed look at their relationship and O'Brien's work: * Friendship and Collaboration: Basquiat and O'Brien formed a close friendship, with Basquiat making regular appearances on O'Brien's public access show, "TV Party".  * "New York Beat: Jean-Michel Basquiat in Downtown 81": O'Brien wrote the text for a book documenting the production of the film "Downtown 81," which featured Basquiat as a semi-biographical protagonist.  * Exhibitions and Collections: O'Brien lent his collection of early Basquiat works to various exhibitions, including Deitch Projects.  * "Jean-Michel Basquiat" (Book): O'Brien is a co-author of a major volume on Basquiat's art.  * Art and Culture: O'Brien's writing focuses on art, music, and fashion, and he was known for his work as "The Style Guy" in GQ magazine.  * Basquiat's Legacy: O'Brien has written extensively about Basquiat's life and art, including his early years as a graffiti artist ("Samo"), his friendships with Andy Warhol and Keith Haring, and his tragic death.  * "TV Party": Basquiat appeared on O'Brien's public access TV show. Related categories SAMO. CBGB. Talking heads. Blondie. Punk. Post punk. Keith Haring. Street art. Pop art.
  • Similar to:
    Jean-Michel Basquiat (Artist)
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 10.4 in (26.42 cm)Width: 6.5 in (16.51 cm)Depth: 0.2 in (5.08 mm)
  • Materials and Techniques:
  • Place of Origin:
  • Period:
  • Date of Manufacture:
    2001
  • Condition:
    Wear consistent with age and use.
  • Seller Location:
    Brooklyn, NY
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU2462344175312

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