Surrealism and Dada

Boy and Dog

Boy and Dog in Johnnypump: 
5/3/2020

Boy and Dog in Johnnypump was painted by Jean Michel Basquiat in 1982. This is based on a boy and a dog playing in a park, however, it is not done in the traditional manner as it is painted with bright colors of reds, oranges, and greens showing high levels of rapid energy. The boy and the dog were painted in black standing out in the painting as the main characters with white lines to bring them to life. This painting was done in a neo-expressionist manner using tour de force transforming the pleasant scenery of a part into a blur of colors that become the background of the painting contrasting with the figures. Although this piece of art is simple it reminds me of the paintings that can be found on cave walls telling a story of what someone one saw. 

Obnoxious Liberals - Jean-Michel Basquiat (1982)

I decided to pick this piece from Jean-Michel Basquiat due to the strong message towards racial oppression that he portrayed. From the color choice of mostly red, white, and blues, to the overall depiction of what he had seen in his life up until that point, I feel he hit the nail right on the head. I also see the title being a sarcastic, almost snide comment due to that being the way they were viewed as just being some obnoxious liberals, instead of being people that are fighting against social inequality.

Exu (1988) by Jean-Michel Basquiat

I choose this work of art because it is one of the last Basquiat made before his death in 1988 from a Drug overdose. and also he named it Exú which is the name of a type of spirit or "dark" God in afro-Brazilian religions. Exu is associated with Trickery, Crossroads, Misfortune, Chaos, Death, Travelers, Messenger. I feel there is a connection where Basquiat probably thought of Heroin as a type of dark God like the Exu. 

Skull- Jean-Michel Basquiat

This painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat stood out to me because I liked all the different colors involved in it. His painting are cool and unique, they give off a graffiti feel to them. He painted this in 1981 it was a sum of incongruent parts.

Dustheads

This artwork caught my eye instantly. The clashing colors and harsh lines make it look simple yet intense. There is so much going on within the artwork. The art works seems like a child did it, which is surprising since he is a well known artist. The red guy really catches my eye mostly do to the white face it's more intensifying. His artwork also sort of reminds me of Picasso, just the way the faces are draw. But in all i really enjoy his artwork. 

Basquiat: God- Law

Basquiat made this painting called 'God-Law' in 1981. This is apart of his street artwork. I like this painting because it shows a scale that's even, one end of the scale represents Religion, and the other end represents Law. The dollar sign in-between the God and Law shows that Basquiat depicts the Religion world and Law world are influenced by money. The law is constantly asking for money. They tax everything and anything to make that dollar. Religion also constantly asks for money. At mass, they go around with a basket where everybody puts their money donations in. I like how raw this artwork is. He didn't try to make it neat, or look pretty. He just drew what was on his mind, without thinking.