Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure(c) - (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Published on the occasion of the exhibition Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure: Starrett-Lehigh Building, New York, NY: April 9 December 2022"--Colophon.

Book Synopsis

This landmark volume tells the story of Jean-Michel Basquiat from the intimate perspective of his family, intertwining his artistic endeavors with his personal life, influences, and the times in which he lived, and features for the first time work from the Estate's largely unseen and significant collection of paintings, drawings, sketches, and ephemera.

Organized by the family of Basquiat, the exhibition and accompanying catalogue feature over 200 never before and rarely seen paintings, drawings, ephemera, and artifacts. The artist's contributions to the history of art and his exploration into our multi-faceted culture--incorporating music, the Black experience, pop culture, African American sports figures, literature, and other sources--are showcased alongside personal reminiscences and firsthand accounts providing unique insight into Basquiat's creative life and his singular voice that propelled the social and cultural narrative that continues to this day.

Structured around key periods in his life, from his childhood and formative years, his meteoric rise in the art world and beyond, to his untimely death, the book features in-depth interviews with his surviving family members.

Review Quotes

Best Black Art Books 2022: "This volume stands out because it is not authored or edited by curators, scholars, or even Basquiat's contemporaries, rather it was conceived by his family. His two younger sisters (Lisane Basquiat and Jeanine Herveaux) and stepmother (Nora Fitzpatrick) produced it to accompany the expansive exhibition the sisters organized: "Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure" at the Starrett-Lehigh Building in New York. Reflecting the show, the catalog illustrates previously unseen art from The Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat, with the family providing detailed captions and insights about the works. The final contents of the artist's Great Jones Street studio are also pictured--handwritten notes; paintings by Sam Doyle; wood masks, cloth dolls, toys and vintage cameras; and his expansive book, magazine, and videotape collections. The volume is also rife with family photographs, succinct memories of the artist through the years, and related ephemera." --CULTURE TYPE

"Providing perhaps the most detailed personal portrait to date of Basquiat's development, the show comes at a time when the artist's market value continues to soar and his themes of race and self-identity have become especially resonant." --THE NEW YORK TIMES

"Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure(c) [is] finally telling his true story--through the words and vision of his living sisters, Lisane Basquiat and Jeanine Heriveaux." --CULTURED MAG

"Basquiat's family revealed that the upcoming exhibition Jean Michel-Basquiat: King Pleasure(c) opens on April 9, 2022, at the Starrett-Lehigh Building in Manhattan and will show rare and never before work from the iconic artist. . .Sir David Adjaye OBE, the highly acclaimed architect, will be the Exhibition Designer for the show that will include 200 pieces of Basquiat's work, in celebration of the painter's life and story, HypeArt reports. A book of the same name will also be released by Rizzoli Electa in conjunction with the show's opening." --THE ROOT

"The exhibition opens on April 9, 2022 at NYC landmark, the Starrett-Lehigh Building and will feature over 200 never before and rarely seen paintings, drawings, ephemera and artifacts to give an intimate and multidimensional portrait of Jean-Michel that can only be told by his family. This exhibition will create a space where the family can celebrate Jean-Michel and share his work and story. Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure(c) is curated and executive produced solely by the estate. Rizzoli Electa will release the accompanying book, also titled Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure(c), to coincide with the exhibition. The family has also shared the themes and environments that will make up the exhibition, each of which will have works, artifacts, and a dedicated soundtrack." --ARTFIXDAILY

'The family has also announced that award-winning architect David Adjaye OBE is the exhibition's designer. He is the founder of Adjaye Associates, which operates internationally, and designed The National Museum of African American History & Culture in Washington, DC. Additionally, the exhibition's motif has been created by Abbott Miller of visionary design firm Pentagram. Miller previously collaborated with cultural clients, including the Guggenheim Museum, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Metropolitan Museum. In conjunction with the exhibition, Rizzoli Electa will release the accompanying book, also titled Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure." --MODERN LUXURY

"In tandem with an upcoming NYC exhibition of the same name, this book offers exclusive art, as well as anecdotes from the late artist's family, reliving the influences of his early life with this intimate volume." --ROLLING STONE

About the Author

Lisane Basquiat and Jeanine Heriveaux are the sisters of Jean-Michel Basquiat, and along with Nora Fitzpatrick, the artist's stepmother, they run the Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat. Ileen Gallagher is a curator and producer. Formerly a curator at De Young Museum in San Francisco and the Queens Museum of Art, New York, she also served as Director of Exhibitions for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum in Cleveland.