American Neo-Expressionist Jean-Michel Basquiat never studied art professionally but managed to become one of the most famous and influential artists of his age. He began his short career as a homeless street artist and, just a decade later, opened a series of one-man shows worldwide and collaborated with Andy Warhol. Read on to examine the timeline of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s artistic periods, from SAMO graffiti to his later painted work.
Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Early Art: SAMO and Gray, 1979-81
Jean-Michel Basquiat, the American artist with Haitian and Puerto Rican roots almost single-handedly transformed the 1980s artistic scene in New York, introducing street art to the domain of white cube galleries and museums. Brooklyn-born Basquiat ran away from home as a teenager, escaping his abusive father, living on the streets. At the time of Basquiat’s activity on the New York streets, the downtown was virtually abandoned. The 1975 fiscal crisis turned the city into a ruin, in which crime was rampant, sex workers and drug dealers operated in daylight, and patients of the disbanded mental institutions suddenly became homeless.
Many landlords abandoned their properties, and those who remained could not cover property taxes with rent money. Despite the tragic poverty and danger on the streets, the New York artistic scene managed to develop in a surprising direction. Left unattended by the larger commercial forces, they formed communes in squatted buildings and created art, music, and poetry freely. Jean-Michel Basquiat was one of those who emerged from the poverty and chaos of 1970s New York.
At first, Basquiat made a living by selling hand-painted postcards or selling drugs. He quickly developed an addiction that would eventually lead to his death. He never had any serious art training, but frequently visited museums as a child and was generally interested in art. In 1979, Basquiat and his friend Al Diaz came up with the idea of leaving spray-painted slogans reminiscent of advertisements or religious postulates under the pseudonym SAMO. Without a single clue given to guess the identity or the meaning of SAMO’s slogans, the New York art circles soon noticed and appreciated them.
SAMO’s messages concerned poverty, inequality, consumerism, and the general state of disappointment shared by many. In fact, SAMO was not even a name, but an acronym for same old shit, invented by Basquiat and Al Diaz as a synonym for marijuana. For a while, Basquiat did not reveal his identity as the artist behind SAMO but managed to leave his messages near the most popular party and art spots in Downtown New York. The SAMO project did not last long but provided the foundation for all future work by Basquiat, particularly his preoccupation with text and rhymeless poetry.
At the same time, Basquiat founded an experimental band called Gray. Michael Holman, the co-founder of Gray, remembered meeting Basquiat for the first time during a party in 1979. At the time, Basquiat was famous as the author behind the elusive and strange SAMO texts, and Holman wanted to interview him. However, the interview inquiry soon transformed into a personal conversation and instant friendship.
On the same day, Basquiat proposed he and Holman start a band together, joined by several other members including the scandalous filmmaker Vincent Gallo. The title of the band came from Basquiat’s childhood memory of a human anatomy atlas Gray’s Anatomy, that his mother gave him as a child. Gray’s music was a mix of improvisational jazz and industrial, inspired by the experiments of avant-garde composer John Cage. According to Holman, Gray played their music as if they were aliens who did not know how to use musical instruments, but had a built-in sense of beautiful music. The same manipulation of skill and knowledge and childlike play would later manifest themselves in Basquiat’s painted works.
The separation of Basquiat’s painting practice from street art also began around the late 1970s. Artist John Lurie remembered that he and Basquiat painted on shopping bags together, as they could not afford proper art supplies. Few of his works from that time survived, but most were connected to his studies of anatomy, pop culture, and text. He also painted on abandoned doors, broken windows, and fridge doors.
From Street to Studio: Basquiat’s Early 1980s
In 1981, Basquiat became a full-time studio artist. His works were noticed by a gallery owner Annina Nosei, who offered him a contract and a studio space in the basement of her gallery. The sudden shift in working conditions triggered a transformation of Basquiat’s technique and language. Previously, he created countless small drawings on all surfaces imaginable, covering his girlfriend’s apartment floor with layers of images. Thanks to Nosei’s input, Basquiat finally found a proper space and proper materials.
In late 1981, he began painting on prepared canvases, using oil paint, chalk, spray paint, and other materials. His works became more complex while still retaining their childlike qualities and the sense of game and exploration. Commercial and social success was already underway. He sold his first painting to Debbie Harry, the frontwoman of the famous band Blondie, for $200.
Most art historians see 1982 as the transformative year in Basquiat’s career. After several successful exhibitions, Basquiat rose to fame. At just 21 years old, he became the youngest participating artist in the famous Documenta exhibition in Kassel, Germany. Around the same time, Basquiat finally met his art world hero Andy Warhol, almost immediately launching a longstanding friendship.
A particular segment of Basquiat’s work at the time was dedicated to the famous Black figures of pop culture—mostly sportsmen. In a racially prejudiced society, sports was the only area where Black people were allowed to excel and be praised for it. Basquiat was the only Black person in the community of white artists and gallerists, and many read this choice of subject matter as the artist’s exploration of his racial identity. However, it was simultaneously an ironic exploitation of stereotypes of Blackness often used against Basquiat.
The artist was expected to revere Black athletes simply because of their shared racial identity. Basquiat toyed with these expectations, half following them and half ridiculing them. Such duality was at the core of Basquiat’s work: He mocked the art world but desperately wanted to be a part of it. He adopted expensive clothes as his day-to-day uniform but used the sleeves of designer jackets to wipe off excess paint.
The Short Life of Jean-Michel Basquiat and His Art: 1983-88
The last five years of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s life and art were extremely prolific but were darkened by his worsening mental and physical state. The most famous fragment of Basquiat’s oeuvre was his collaborative work with Andy Warhol. The two artists, radical opposites of each other, in fact, worked together easily. If Warhol represented the signal system of the consumer culture fueled by brands and advertising, Basquiat used the language of contemporary folk art, that was just as relatable to mass audiences as TV and newspaper commercials. However, some believed that Warhol was exploiting Basquiat for his own profit, rather than helping him develop further.
In his personal work, Basquiat expressed a heightened interest in African art, mythology, and symbols. Instead of famous athletes or pop culture figures, he began to incorporate generalized images of Black Africans or Americans or Ancient Egyptian gods like Anubis. Basquiat’s works became increasingly complex, often consisting of several panels, as if imitating Renaissance altarpieces. He blended Italian and Afro-Caribbean visual inspirations and continued to present work of outstanding quality. Basquiat’s narratives matured, becoming more refined and multi-faceted.
However, not everyone was happy with the transformation. Keith Haring, a close friend of Basquiat, noticed that with all this commercial and social success, Basquiat turned into a man he would have hated at the start of his career. More money and opportunities did not bring peace to Basquiat, instead sending him into fits of drug-induced paranoia. Jean-Michel Basquiat’s life was tragically cut short by a heroin overdose in 1988. According to the artist’s friends, he attempted to quit drugs shortly before dying and even planned a trip to the Ivory Coast as a part of his rehabilitation program.
