Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960-1988) - Untitled (Fallen...

Giclée print of Jean-Michel Basquiat (**) High-quality reproduction of the work “Untitled” created by Basquiat in 1981. Luxury edition on Monte Carlo heavyweight watercolor paper (300 g/m2). Print authorized by Artestar New York. Copyright of the Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat. Specifications: - Support dimensions: 50 x 44 cm - Stain dimensions: 44 x 30 cm - Condition: Excellent (this work has never been framed or exhibited, and has always been kept in a professional art folder, therefore offered in perfect condition). The work will be carefully handled and packed in a reinforced flat cardboard package. The shipment will be trackable and certified, operated by leading transport companies (UPS DPD DHL FedEx). The shipment will also include full insurance for the final value of the work with full reimbursement in case of loss or damage, at no additional cost to the buyer. (*) Jean-Michel Basquiat was the first of the three children of Matilde Andrades and Gerard Basquiat. His father was a financially solid Haitian accountant and his mother a Puerto Rican graphic designer of great prestige in her profession. Jean-Michel grew up in a torn family environment; his parents divorced and, because of this, he had to change schools many times. He studied at a private Catholic school, then at a public school and finally, at 16, enrolled in City-As-School, a school for gifted teenagers, from which he was expelled a year before graduating due to rebelliousness. Already in his youth he came into contact with the subculture of the big city, related to drug use and street gangs. In 1977, together with Al Díaz, he entered the world of graffiti, painting on subway cars and around SoHo, a New York neighborhood where art galleries proliferate. The following year he left school a year before graduating from high school and left home to live for two years on the streets, in abandoned buildings or with his friends in Lower Manhattan, surviving by selling postcards and T-shirts that he himself decorated. He continued to devote himself to graffiti; his writings and graffiti carried a lot of poetic and philosophical charge, but above all satirical. The alias of his shared alter ego with Al Díaz was SAMO (short for “Same Old shit,” i.e., “the same old crap,” which they signed their tags and graffiti with cryptic messages. The use of this name was decisive in his life. These murals bore inscriptions such as “SAMO saves idiots” or “SAMO ends religious brainwashing, the politics of nothingness, and false philosophy.” An article about SAMO’s street writing published in The Village Voice was the first sign that the art world was taking an interest in him. The artist had several relationships that influenced his work, one of the most significant was with artist Andy Warhol. Similarly, in romantic matters, he had relationships with several women, one of the most well-known today being Madonna. Lower Manhattan was the area where they lived at that time; in 1982 they began to spend more time together and go to gallery parties. One topic that united them: she mentions in an interview, “I was a big fan of Miles Davis and Charlie Parker.” In 1988 they mounted exhibitions in Paris and New York, and in April of the same year he tried to overcome his addictions and retreated to his home in Hawaii. He returned to New York in June, declaring that he had freed himself from addictions, but on August 12, 1988, at the age of 27, he died of a heroin overdose, becoming the most successful visual artist in the history of Afro-descendant art. He is buried in Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn. Throughout his brief but intense artistic career he would hold more than 40 solo exhibitions and participate in around 100 group shows. Self-promotion and advertising demand were priorities for Basquiat, as they had previously been for Andy Warhol or Julian Schnabel. Neo-Expressionism came to dominate over appropriationism, partly thanks to the economic strength that raised art prices to high levels, and especially painting, and partly thanks to the support of gallerists and collectors. Critics, however, were not uniformly favorable in their assessment; it was common to denounce the lack of theoretical basis in neo-Expressionist discourse. It was claimed that the art practiced by neo-Expressionists lacked any political or social meaning, it was merely merchandise and, therefore, subject to the fluctuations of the market. Neo-Expressionist painting was reduced to a consumer product and, as such, a creatively disqualified and vulgar fact. (***) Basquiat created this piece, now known as Fallen Angel, in 1981. It was one of his early works, where he bridged street art with canvas painting. Still full of his pure energy and emotion, Basquiat used acrylics, oils, and aerosols to create this work. The colors he used have been described by the writer Prat as “the colors of the street,” an apt description of the bright star who developed his skills as part of the SAMO graffiti duo. This Untitled Fallen Angel is a fascinating image, though slightly unsettling. A human-like figure falls or floats against a bright blue background, but its wings are spread wide. Its eyes, open and fixed, are splattered with red and its red mouth is open. It has a halo around its head. The halo, made up of red, white, and black circles, is crossed by brushstrokes. This gives it an irregular and possibly thorny appearance. Some have described the figure’s torso as if seen through an X-ray, with internal organs and genitals visible. Other Basquiat works also feature skeletal figures, which some scholars suggest refer to Basquiat’s reflections on his own physicality and mortality. Above the right wing sits a faint crown, a frequent symbol in Basquiat’s work, though this one is quite small and not as sharp as others. It has been suggested that this image of the angel and the crown could symbolize Basquiat’s sense of destiny or personal mission. Undoubtedly, he had a sense of destiny, which suggested to his friends that he knew he would become a famous artist and die young. Although the image appears primitive, the frenetic paintings with overlapping colors give it an explosive impact. This work sold for 11.2 million dollars in 2008.

Stima:€150

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