Sold at Auction: Jean Michel Basquiat

Jean Michel Basquait's paintings represent a confluence of artistic movements from New York City's punk graffiti scene of the 1970s to the French Symbolist poets of the 1860s. His work grapples with the dichotomy of his lived experience as an impoverished, black artist wildly popular in a predominantly wealthy, white art scene. Jean Michel Basquait's prints are visually cacophonous, boldly overlapping colorful images and graffiti-like text. Like many contemporary paintings for sale online, Basquait's works benefit from the artistic movements of the past while breaking old rules. 

Born in 1960 in Brooklyn, Basquait drew influence from his multicultural heritage and New York's preeminent art museums. Despite a tumultuous childhood, Basquait enjoyed huge success as a graffiti artist and painter. Sadly, his meteoric rise precipitated an equally swift fall when he died of a drug overdose at the young age of 27. Jean Michel Basquait's artwork is in great demand.