Talk:Jean-Michel Basquiat

Basquiat Museum

Is there any current proposal to create a Basquiat Museum from the large amount of works that constitute the Jean-Michel Basquiat Estate ? Just curious to know.213.13.242.8 (talk) 22:47, 12 December 2008 (UTC)

No. —Preceding unsigned comment added by AaronF2 (talk • contribs) 21:11, 3 February 2009 (UTC)

It wouldn´t be a bad idea.213.13.241.8 (talk) 23:55, 27 October 2010 (UTC)

Ethnicity in lead and see also section

Are ther other sources for the claim that he was the first internation African American "art star" (whatever that is :) )? Also, I removed the over bloated see also section. Maybe work into the article or spell out what the relation is to this article. Thanks, --Tom (talk) 21:51, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

ps, I also removed the quote farm. --Tom (talk) 21:54, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Other sources for Basquiat as first black American art star (whatever that is): "the only black artist to achieve the Olympian pinnacle of international painter stars [in the 1980s]" [1], "one of the most significant black artists of his generation" [2].--Ethicoaestheticist (talk) 22:01, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

American painters Jacob Lawrence and Romare Bearden were also black.213.13.245.166 (talk) 02:15, 6 November 2009 (UTC)

copyright image in need of context / commentary

File:Untitled painting by --Jean-Michel Basquiat--.jpg has been removed from the article per WP:FAIR, without properly sourced commentary / contextual content, it will likely be deleted from wikipedia. Active Banana (talk) 20:51, 17 February 2010 (UTC)

I would also recommend that rather than this image, we find one of the Graffiti works or one that shows his use of incorporating text into his work. This and the other works in the article appear to be very similar in style and do not give the reader a very good overview of the span of his work. Active Banana (talk) 22:55, 17 February 2010 (UTC)

Small Issue But Disrespectful Nonetheless

The last sentence in the opening paragraph of Jean-Michel Basquiat's biography should not end with “Basquiat died of a heroin overdose on August 12, 1988.” If other biography opening paragraphs dealing with this time period ended similarly this would not be an issue, but they are not. He should be given the same consideration as his contemporaries with the last sentence removed and edited to read as follows:

Jean-Michel Basquiat (December 22, 1960 – August 12, 1988) was an American artist and is cited by Graham Thompson as the first painter of African descent to become an international art star.[1] He started as a graffiti writer in New York City, and in the 1980s produced Neo-expressionist painting.

Consider the opening paragraphs of Johnny Thunders and Sid Vicious:

Johnny Thunders, born John Anthony Genzale, Jr. (July 15, 1952 - April 23, 1991), was an American Glam-Punk guitarist, singer and songwriter. He came to prominence in the early '70s as a member of the New York Dolls. He later played with The Heartbreakers and as a solo artist.

Sid Vicious (born John Simon Ritchie[1] 10 May 1957 – 2 February 1979) was an English musician best known as the bassist of the influential punk rock group Sex Pistols. In 2006 he was inducted posthumously into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Sex Pistols.

Or are the openings for Nancy Spungen and Rockets Redglare – two controversial and/or some would say scandalous people of the same time period:

Nancy Laura Spungen (February 27, 1958 – October 12, 1978) was the American girlfriend of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious. Spungen has been the subject of controversy among music historians and fans of the Sex Pistols.

Rockets Redglare (May 8, 1949 – May 28, 2001) was an American character actor and stand-up comedian. He appeared in over 30 films in the 1980s and 1990s, including a number of independent films, and mainstream films such as After Hours (1984) and Desperately Seeking Susan (1985).

Even they were shown respect– why wasn’t Basquiat?

First WP:OTHERSTUFFEXISTS. In other words, using other articles as an example of what should be done on every article is not a solid argument. However, since I really couldn't care less about this issue, I haven't reverted. Second, had you explained why you were removing the content to begin with, I doubt anyone else would give a toss either and you wouldn't have been reverted twice. Editors doing vandalism patrols cannot read your mind nor do they know why you have a problem with what appears to be very valid and very sourced content. Pinkadelica^♣ 02:00, 24 April 2010 (UTC)

I agree that removing the specifics of his death from the opening paragraph is the right thing to do. The Sid Vicious argument is best, as both Vicious and Basquiat were talented young artists and already famous; thus making their untimely deaths all the more tragic. On the flip-side, musician Kurt Cobain's fairly robust article DOES mention his death in the opening section.--Knulclunk (talk) 02:10, 24 April 2010 (UTC)

WP:LEAD says that the introduction should cover all important aspects of the topic of the article. The death of a human is a pretty important aspect in the life of a human. We are not here "to show respect" - the facts are the facts and we report them. From WP:LEAD "When an article subject dies, the lead does not need to be radically reworked. Unless the cause of death is itself a reason for notability, a single sentence describing it is usually sufficient." suggesting that the single sentence about the death is in fact appropriate.Active Banana (talk) 17:35, 26 April 2010 (UTC)

The issue at hand is whether it is important enough in the life and relevance of Basquiat to be one of the three sentences in the introductory paragraph to his page. And yes, facts are facts, but again, is he famous for dying of a heroin overdose, or is he famous for being an artist and cultural blah-blah-blah? I don't think his death has very much at all to do with why he has a page on Wikipedia, why he is remembered, or how he is remembered. And you'll note that other people who died with similar opportunities for journalistic sensationalism, as mentioned by others, were not treated the same way in the opening paragraph. Chris Farley is a person whose death (and I know this is anecdotal/subjective) is a well-known part of his life and is connected to the image of Farley 'we' have, but there's no mention of that in his intro paragraph. This isn't about allowing the truth out, but about whether there's really any reason the heroin overdose should be one of essentially two facts about his life initially presented, along with being an American artist famous for his certain brand of art. It didn't affect his art, and I just don't see any way it is connected to who he was.

I'm removing it for now. If somebody fill the paragraph in again, I would recommend giving equal consideration to his heroin overdose, his beginning selling T-shirts, and Haitian/Puerto Rican background for what might be placed there. ~ magbatz 17:42, 10 November 2011 (UTC)