Basquiat x Warhol

Kate and I attended an interesting exhibit over the weekend at the Fondation Louis Vuitton focusing on the joint works of Jean-Michel Basquiat and Andy Warhol. I am not an expert on either of them, but before the exhibit I did know that they were both New York-based American artists from very different generations and artistic milieus. I did not know until I went to the exhibit that they were great friends and collaborators, joining forces on at least 160 pieces over a several year period.

I very much enjoyed the interplay between the slicker, commercial-logo-driven art of Warhol (think Campbell's Soup cans) and the more raw, street-art-and-graffiti-based sensibilities of Basquiat. I like both of their individual art, but I might say that I appreciated their joint work even more. Here are a few details from some of the pieces that exhibit this interplay well.

Note that, in addition to the middle piece above, there is a lot of food-related imagery. That may be more Warhol's influence, but I don't know. The exhibit notes talked a bit about their process, one where Warhol chose an image--often a commercial logo or similar icon--and Basquiat would deface it somehow. And they would work back and forth like that.

Here are two more of my favorites, both with more Basquiat and less Warhol, to my eye. (And, by the way, I did not record who painted what, so it is possible that both of these are pure Basquiat.)

And, finally, one more of my favorites and a photo Kate taking it all in.