#storybehindtheart

In May 1984 Jean Michel Basquiat has his first solo exhibition with Mary Boone Gallery. In this Post he shares a detail of one of his rare paintings of flowers. Basquiat said “I want to make paintings that look as if they were made by a child” and “believe it or not I can actually draw”.

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The show had with positive reviews though not without critical undertones such as the review written by Vivien Raynor in the New York Times of May 11, 1984 “The young artist uses color well (…) Basquiat is a promising painter, who has a chance of becoming a very good one, as long as he can withstand the forces that make of him an art-world mascot”.

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His friend Andy Warhol’s comment is based on his quote “I always notice flowers”. In his diaries, Warhol mentions that Basquiat is “nervous about the show opening” but that “the show was great”.

Sources: Jean-Michel Basquiat: 1960-1988 By Leonhard Emmerling

The Andy Warhol Diaries by Andy Warhol, Pat Hackett

Basquiat paints like a child, 2020, Acrylic on canvas, 14" x 11" (36 x 28 cm)