After watching the documentary on Jean-Michel Basquiat last night on channel 7 I believe I have a clear understanding of the artist and how he lived his life. Basquiat art is something I have never been familiar with, but I have grown up seeing pictures of Basquiat with his crazy dread locks and I have always wondered who the individual was. I believe the documentary did an amazing job telling the story of Jean-Michel’s life, fame, and what other people thought of him. Throughout the documentary Jean-Michel was compared to Picasso and other great artists like Warhol (who he later worked with) and it is crazy to think that I have never heard this amazing artist’s name! He was considered one of the best artists because he mixed graffiti with classical works and also used strong cultural influences in his work. He introduced a new style to the artistic world. I learned that most art critics did not like his work because it was so new age and different from what they were use to. I also learned that he first struggled with becoming a famous artist because he was black. Many critics showed racism toward him and his work because he was a different kind of artist and he was black. I enjoyed learning that before he was famous he sold post cards and to make money. I learned that he was influenced by culture aspects of life and it played a role in his work. He made paintings called “the irony of negro policeman” and “The history of Black People”. I learned that he used his art to help society realize social issues and how it could be changed. Jean-Michel Basquiat was also known for creating new, up to date art, with his own style, from art that was created by famous artists like Picasso. He basically copied a famous picture and put his own ideas into it. I really enjoyed the documentary and I learned some amazing things about Jean-Michel Basquiat that I did not know before.
I forgot to add how sad it was to learn that he died of drug overdose, I wonder how he would be influencing art nowadays if he was still alive.
ReplyDeleteAnd I connect CRT number 1 which says Racism is ordinary and the study involves white over color ascendancy to his life because I believe that before Jean-Michel a majority of the Art scene and the art critics were white and white works were considered better and the critics showed racism by using negative remarks towards his work. And I relate his life to Urrea's story about Mr. Mendoza's Paintbrush, because 1 he was an artist like Jean-Michel and 2 he was also affected by society and culture like Jean-Michel.
ReplyDeleteCody,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the later postings. I was waiting for the CRT connection. I think your parallel to Urrea is right on the mark.