I've shown Basquiat's work to my fifth graders for several years. They love it but they don't know why...I'm kinda with the fifth graders. I could attribute my love for his work to the graphic elements, numbers and letterforms, funny faces (some scarier than others), the powerful voice with which he addresses politics and injustices, his simple, architectural forms and bright colors, the repetition of skeletal and tribal motifs. Add to these the tragedy of untimely death for a young ingenue who had so much more to offer. There's a lively spirit to his work that is inexplicable. We could say this about hundreds of artists. Some folks just got it. It.
For more work by the radiant child: here.
