Basquiat Painting: The Reason Behind A Family Dispute?

Jean-Michel Basquiat is an American neoexpressionist, who was born in Brooklyn on December 22^nd 1960. His paintings are sold for millions of Euros in high-class exhibitions.

He was born to a Puerto Rican mother and a Haitian father, and grew up in New York. His varied cultural background was one of the reasons behind his success and muse. He became passionate about drawing very early in his life and used to draw on paper which his father brought home from work. The deeper he explored his artistic side, the more flair he discovered inside himself, because of which; his mother supported him to practice art as a profession.

Basquiat is an exceptional painter who had an association with pop artist Andy Warhol, the American avant-grade artist. He used to draw artwork on postcards and sweatshirts and sell them on the streets of New York after dropping out of high school in 1977, only a year before graduation. The initial step in his career was as a graffiti artist with the name of ‘SAMO’ in New York City; however, after meeting Warhol in the mid of 1980s, his luck turned around and he became a renowned artist. In 2013, one of his paintings named ‘’, on which he painted in 1982, was auctioned for 43 million Euros at Christie’s. In 1988, at the age of 27, he died from a drug overdose.

Lately, one of the paintings by this street artist was stolen from the owner’s posh apartment, which is located near the interior ministry and presidential palace of Elysee, in Paris. There was not a single sign of breaking and entering at the residence, as the police reported, which seemed dubious. However, after the robbery was traced back to a family member, the police informed the public that the painting had been returned to the lawful owner in only a matter of few hours.

The painting made by the famous contemporary artist was reported missing when the owner got back late to their apartment on Friday, after being away for three days. The further details of this discovery were kept confidential. The French police were fast to suspect that the incident was initiated because of a dispute within the family. They believe that stealing the painting was the main purpose behind the theft, because all the other things in the apartment remained intact.

After hours of initial investigation, the police released another report, about the recovery of the painting. Nevertheless, the police did not mention the details on which Basquiat’s painting had been stolen, in the report. What is known is that the recovered painting cost around 10 million Euros or $11.3 million dollars.

It is sad that such a brilliant artist passed away at such a young age, but his artwork remain highly valued and in great demand. The news of his painting being stolen is making the headlines and although there may or may not be a link between his painting and the family dispute; artwork of such artists should be respected and conserved for future generations to seek inspiration from.