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| Jean-Michel Basquiat was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1960 to a Haitian father and Puerto
Rican mother. He began as a graffiti artist (a term he later despised) under the name SAMO© (for SAMe Old S---), and painted cryptic anti-materialistic
messages around New York. He used this springboard to launch his career by combining graffiti and African themes in
his work. Basquiat's quick rise led to his adopting of a "rock-and-roll lifestyle," where he developed a taste for expensive clothes and fine restaurants. To pay for his lifestyle, as well as for a growing drug habit, Basquiat often worked for long periods, using some drugs to stay awake and others to allow him to fall asleep. He often appeared at his exhibitions wearing paint-splattered Armani suits. Toward the end of his life, he developed a friendship with Andy Warhol. Basquiat died of a heroin overdose at age 27. | 
Photo by Michael Halsband | |
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