Jean-Michel Basquiat: Tuxedo and Return of the Central Figure
Stellan Holm Gallery is pleased to present the exhibition Jean-Michel Basquiat: Tuxedo and Return of the Central Figure. The exhibition will be open to the public on Friday, May 4th, 2012.
The two works on view, 'Tuxedo', 1983 and 'Return of the Central Figure', 1983 are examples of the largest silkscreen works produced by Jean-Michel Basquiat throughout his career as well as the only ones executed on canvas. Many of these editions had been painted over by Basquiat and only a few still survive in their original state. They were made in the early years of Basquiat's career and exemplify the outset of his fascination with iconography and usage of signs and symbols. This union of text and imagery became a constant theme in his work and was considered a unique and ground breaking form of expression for the time. Within these works he explores such subjects as religion, geography, alchemy, anatomy, cartography and language.
