Jean-Michel Basquiat was an American Painter from Brooklyn, New York, of Haitian-Puerto Rican background. He was born on December 22nd, 1960, and passed away in August 1988 from an overdose at 27. His painting style was neo-expressionism. This style attracted me when I was younger because I was heavily involved in art programs such as Artful Adventures. I am forever grateful to visit the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, which helped expand my creativity and imagination. Here are three reasons why I plan on going to the Basquiat exhibit “Writing the Future: Basquiat and the Hip-Hop Generation” at the MFA. 

The first reason why I plan on going to the Basquiat exhibit is that I love art. Ever since I was younger, art has been a therapeutic activity because I never need a phone to get an idea. I am so glad for the paint nights and plant nights because I have been able to take a break from school and take care of my inner child. So, I hope to see the art museums again because I missed going to the MFA. I haven’t been there since the start of college. I hope to get out there, and I love visiting art galleries when I can because it gets my mind at peace. 

The second reason: I hope to see how his lifestyle came to be in this exhibit is because I have always been a fan of JMB’s work. I also respect how he was not just a painter, but also a graffiti artist and a musician, who was a part of the group “Gray.” It inspires me because, yes, you can get an education, or follow your path in a creative field, still making something of yourself. I also hope to see the evolution of SAMO and how his connection to Fab Five Freddy influenced him until he had met Andy Warhol, a Pittsburgh-based artist. I hope to have good energy, going to see the exhibit in the summer. I wished people appreciated his art while he was alive like I do now.  

The final reason is that I hope to go is to rent Basquiat’s movie. Basquiat is the movie’s title, originally released in 1996; I have only watched the trailer, and I hope to own a copy of the film as a DVD or at least rent it on Amazon over the summer. The movie is about the life of the late Jean-Michel Basquiat and how he started in his neighborhood in New York City. The movie stars Jeffery Wright and David Bowie, among others. He was able to influence generations of Black and Brown Artists, which is something that I admire about this painter; he had helped me to pick up an old hobby again. Thank you, Jean-Michel Basquiat, for being my favorite painter… I am so grateful to have painting in my toolset along with poetry. 

Link to the Gray Band EP: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQJQ9OnB3wk

Link to Basquiat movie trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSuY-TWAXwo 

Link to the Basquiat Exbhit trailer : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiCtn42Z8p8

About the Basquiat Exhibit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFKkKJFM7cU 

TedTalk about Basquiat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JX02QQXfb_o