Major Jean-Michel Basquiat Exhibition Announced For London's Barbican.
Opening in the Barbican Gallery next year, Basquiat: “Boom for Real” will be the first large-scale UK exhibition of iconic painter and New York downtown scene prodigy Jean-Michel Basquiat.
The exhibition will dig deeper into Basquiat’s complex work, focusing on the artist’s relationship to music, text, film and television, placing it within the wider cultural context of the time; the 1980s New York art scene where he was a key figure along with his friend Andy Warhol.
Featuring over 100 works, many never seen before in the UK, Basquiat: Boom for Real will showcase some of the artist’s most acclaimed paintings and drawings, alongside rare film, photography and music to capture the breadth and dynamism of his practice, while also tracing his artistic evolution.
One highlight of the show will be a reconstruction of Basquiat’s first show, part of a group show at the PS1, New York, revealing how he quickly won artists’ and critics’ admiration. Extensive new research into Basquiat’s fascinating scope of source material, conducted for the exhibition with the support of the Basquiat family, also shines new light on his work.
"Basquiat: Boom for Real" will be on display at The Barbican, London, from 21 September 2017 to 28 January 2018.
