Jean-Michel Basquiat

Quick Facts

Full Name	Jean-Michel Basquiat
Occupation	Painter
Date Of Birth	Dec 22, 1960(1960-12-22)
Age	64
Date Of Death	August 12, 1988, Great Jones Street, New York, NY
Birthplace	Brooklyn
Country	United States
Birth City	New York State
Horoscope	Capricorn

Jean-Michel Basquiat Biography

Jean-Michel Basquiat is one of the most popular and richest Painter who was born on December 22, 1960 in Brooklyn, New York State, United States. Neo-Expressionist and Primitivist painter who investigated social and political dichotomies in his work.

He fell into a depression following the 1987 death of his friend and artistic mentor Andy Warhol. Sadly, twenty-seven-year-old Basquiat died of a heroin overdose the following year.

Jean-Michel Basquiat (French: [ʒɑ̃ miʃɛl baskija] ; December 22, 1960 – August 12, 1988) was an American artist of Haitian and Puerto Rican descent. Basquiat first achieved fame as part of SAMO, an informal graffiti duo who wrote enigmatic epigrams in the cultural hotbed of the Lower East Side of Manhattan during the late 1970s, where rap, punk, and street art coalesced into early hip-hop music culture. By the 1980s, his neo-expressionist paintings were being exhibited in galleries and museums internationally. The Whitney Museum of American Art held a retrospective of his art in 1992.

His father, Gérard Basquiat, was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and his mother, Matilde Basquiat, who was of Puerto Rican descent, was born in Brooklyn, New York. Matilde instilled a love for art in her young son by taking him to art museums in Manhattan and enrolling him as a junior member of the Brooklyn Museum of Art. Basquiat was a precocious child who learned how to read and write by the age of four and was a gifted artist. His teachers, including artist José Machado, noticed his artistic abilities, and his mother encouraged her son’s artistic talent. By the age of 11, Basquiat was fully fluent in French, Spanish and English. In 1967, Basquiat started attending Saint Ann’s School, an arts-oriented exclusive private school. There he met his friend Marc Prozzo; together they created a children’s book, written by Basquiat and illustrated by Prozzo. Basquiat became an avid reader of Spanish, French, and English texts and a good athlete, competing in track events.

He was born in Brooklyn, New York, to a Haitian father and an American-born, Afro-Puerto Rican mother. He was raised mostly by his father. His mother suffered from mental illness and was institutionalized when Basquiat was eleven years old.

Jean-Michel Basquiat Net Worth

Jean-Michel Basquiat is one of the richest Painter from United States. According to our analysis, Wikipedia, Forbes & Business Insider, Jean-Michel Basquiat 's net worth $10 Million. (Last Update: December 11, 2023)

He was a precocious child who could read and write by the time he was four years old and was fluent in three languages by the time he was eleven. He began work as a painter through graffiti.

He dropped out of high school and became a graffiti artist. Later, he began to paint, and his work was first exhibited at the Annina Nosei gallery in SoHo.

Jean-Michel Basquiat was born in Brooklyn, New York, on December 22, 1960, shortly after the death of his older brother, Max. He was the second of four children of Matilde Basquiat (née Andrades) (July 28, 1934 – November 17, 2008) and Gérard Basquiat (1930 – July 7, 2013). He had two younger sisters: Lisane, born in 1964, and Jeanine, born in 1967.

Height, Weight & Body Measurements

Jean-Michel Basquiat height Not available right now. Jean-Michel weight Not Known & body measurements will update soon.

Who is Jean-Michel Basquiat Dating?

According to our records, Jean-Michel Basquiat is possibily single & has not been previously engaged. As of December 1, 2023, Jean-Michel Basquiat’s is not dating anyone.

Relationships Record : We have no records of past relationships for Jean-Michel Basquiat. You may help us to build the dating records for Jean- Michel Basquiat!

A poet as well as an artist, words featured heavily in his drawings and paintings, with direct references to racism, slavery, the people and street scene of 1980s New York including other artists, and black historical figures, musicians and sports stars, as his notebooks and many important drawings demonstrate. Often Basquiat’s drawings were untitled, and as such to differentiate works a word written within the drawing is commonly in parentheses after Untitled, such as with Untitled (Axe/Rene). After Basquiat died of an overdose at the age of 27, his estate was controlled by his father Gérard Basquiat, who also oversaw the committee which authenticated artworks, and operated from 1993 to 2012 to review over 1000 works, the majority of which were drawings.

Facts & Trivia

Jean-Michel Ranked on the list of most popular Painter. Also ranked in the elit list of famous people born in United States. Jean-Michel Basquiat celebrates birthday on December 22 of every year.

Basquiat starred in Downtown 81, a vérité movie written by Glenn O’Brien and shot by Edo Bertoglio in 1981, but not released until 1998. In 1996, eight years after the artist’s death, a biographical film titled Basquiat was released, directed by Julian Schnabel, with actor Jeffrey Wright playing Basquiat. David Bowie played the part of Andy Warhol. Schnabel was interviewed during the film’s script development as a personal acquaintance of Basquiat. Schnabel then purchased the rights to the project, believing that he could make a better film.

Top Facts about Jean-Michel Basquiat

1. Basquiat was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1960.
2. He began as a graffiti artist under the name SAMO.
3. Basquiat’s work often featured social commentary and racial themes.
4. His paintings have sold for over $100 million at auction.
5. Basquiat died of a drug overdose at age 27.
6. He collaborated with Andy Warhol on several pieces.
7. Basquiat’s art has been exhibited worldwide, including at the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Guggenheim Museum in New York City.
8. He was included in Forbes’ list of highest-earning deceased celebrities in 2020.
9. Basquiat’s work has influenced contemporary artists such as Banksy and Shepard Fairey.
10. The documentary film “Basquiat” (1996) chronicles his life and career.

What did Basquiat died from?

Basquiat, who was of Haitian and Puerto Rican descent, died of an accidental drug overdose in 1988 at just 27 years old, but not before creating a collection of some 600 paintings and 1,500 drawings that still excite and inspire the public imagination and young artists to this day.

Why was Jean-Michel Basquiat so famous?

Jean-Michel Basquiat gained celebrity due to both his striking art and his electrifying personality. He was fearless, creative and driven, quickly becoming a cultural icon embodying the New York City art scene of the 1980s and beyond.

What did Andy Warhol do to Jean-Michel Basquiat?

To create Jean-Michel Basquiat and other oxidation works, Warhol coated canvases with copper or gold paint and either peed on them himself or invited friends and assistants to urinate directly onto the canvas.

How much was Basquiat worth when he died?

At the time of his death, including the present value of his works, Jean- Michel Basquiat had a net worth of $10 million.

Who inherited Basquiat's money?

Now, his family, led by his sisters Lisane Basquiat and Jeanine Heriveaux , who run Basquiat’s estate, along with their stepmother, Nora Fitzpatrick, have curated more than 200 of his paintings, drawings, multimedia presentations, ephemera, and artifacts for this special exhibition.