JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT
“Basquiat. Boom For Real”
Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt
What the Institution Says: Jean-Michel Basquiat’s myth still overrides his artistic oeuvre, “and frequently the historic and cultural context in which his unusual works were created is neglected as well,” writes Philipp Demandt, the director of the Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt and co-curator of “Basquiat: Boom for Real.“ Because Basquiat’s art is closely linked with life itself: social, political and art-historical subjects flow together in his work. “It is a mixture which dissolves the boundaries of the disciplines and those of his own identity,”
Why It’s Worth a Look: It’s been more than 30 years since the artist, who in 1982 became the youngest artist to show at documenta, had a major show in a public collection in Germany. With over 100 works on view, the expansive exhibition travels from London’s Barbican Centre. As in London, the show includes the context of the young artist’s work, focusing on the relationship Basquiat had with music, text, film, and television as well as the streets of New York where he first made his mark.
What It Looks Like:
Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Self-Portrait (1983). Collection Thaddaeus Ropac, © VG Bild-Kunst Bonn, 2018 & The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat. Licensed by Artestar, New York. Courtesy Collection Thaddaeus Ropac, London.
Exhibition view of BASQUIAT. BOOM FOR REAL © Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt (2018). Photo: Norbert Miguletz, Artworks: © VG Bild-Kunst Bonn, 2018 & The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Licensed by Artestar, New York.
Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Untitled (1982). Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam, © VG Bild-Kunst Bonn, 2018 & The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Licensed by Artestar, New York, Courtesy Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Photo by Studio Tromp, Rotterdam.
Beth Phillips, Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Francesco Clemente (1984) © Beth Phillips. Courtesy Galerie Bruno Bischofberger, Switzerland.
Jean-Michel Basquiat’s A Panel of Experts (1982). The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Gift of Ira Young, © VG Bild-Kunst Bonn, 2018 & The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Licensed by Artestar, New York, Courtesy The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Foto: MFA, Douglas M. Parker.
Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Dos Cabezas (1982). Private collection, © VG Bild-Kunst Bonn, 2018 & The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat. Licensed by Artestar, New York.
Jean-Michel Basquiat and Andy Warhol’s Arm and Hammer II (1984). Guarded by Bischofberger, Männedorf-Zurich, Switzerland, © VG Bild-Kunst Bonn, 2018 & The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Licensed by Artestar, New York, Courtesy Galerie Bruno Bischofberger, Männedorf-Zurich, Switzerland.
Edo Bertoglio, Jean-Michel Basquiat on the set of Downtown 81, 1980–81, © New York Beat Film LLC, By permission of The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Licensed by Artestar, New York, Photo: Edo Bertoglio.
Exhibition view of BASQUIAT. BOOM FOR REAL © Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt (2018). Photo: Norbert Miguletz, Artworks: © VG Bild-Kunst Bonn, 2018 & The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Licensed by Artestar, New York.
Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Untitled (Pablo Picasso) (1984). Private collection, Italy, © VG Bild-Kunst Bonn, 2018 & The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat. Licensed by Artestar, New York.
Exhibition view of BASQUIAT. BOOM FOR REAL © Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt (2018). Photo: Norbert Miguletz, Artworks: © VG Bild-Kunst Bonn, 2018 & The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Licensed by Artestar, New York.
Edo Bertoglio, Jean-Michel Basquiat wearing an American football helmet, (1981). Photo: © Edo Bertoglio, courtesy of Maripol, Artwork: © VG Bild-Kunst Bonn, 2018 & The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Licensed by Artestar, New York.
George Hirose, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring at the opening of Julian Schnabel, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 1987, © George Hirose, 1987.
“Basquiat. Boom For Real” is on view through May 27, 2018 at Römerberg, 60311, Frankfurt, Germany.