Jean-Michel Basquiat was a painter who broke through the art world from his previous passion of being a graffiti artist. His very unique, graphic canvases grew in fame through Basquiat’s signature aesthetic. His past of graffiti is clear in his work through the bold colours and graphic, abstract imagery. Being so famous at a young age, his work became more known through collaborations with artists such as Andy Warhol where he took his aesthetic of graphic graffiti like designs and mixed them with Warhol’s similarly bright, pop art. His work is incredibly ambiguous and viewed very differently depending on who is viewing his work. The Guardian has described this complexity when talking of how they interpreted Basquiat’s work. “it feels contemporary, with a chaotic, musical sensibility. It’s beautiful and hectic, young and old, graphic, arresting, packed with ambiguous codes;”(1) This hectic ambiguity perfectly feeds into Basquiat’s aesthetic. Basquiat is an example of how aesthetic and personal style affects how the audience can see your work. His work now is much more celebrated than while he was alive as many had previously just viewed him as a graffiti artist and nothing more. However, as societies views and trends change, Basquiat’s work and aesthetic is much more appreciated and loved than before his death in 1988.
Reference list
1. Sawyer, M. (2018). The Jean-Michel Basquiat I knew…. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2017/sep/03/jean-michel-basquiat-retrospective-barbican.
www.haberarts.com. (n.d.). Haber’s Art Reviews: Jean-Michel Basquiat. [online] Available at: https://www.haberarts.com/basquiat.htm [Accessed 11 Apr. 2021].