''Hannibal'' is a painting created by American artist
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat (; December 22, 1960 – August 12, 1988) was an American artist who rose to success during the 1980s as part of the Neo-expressionism movement.
Basquiat first achieved fame as part of the graffiti duo SAMO, alongside Al ...
in 1982. The artwork, which features his signature skull and crown motifs, was sold at
Sotheby's for $13.1 million in October 2016.
History
Jean-Michel Basquiat executed ''Hannibal'' in 1982, a breakout year in his meteoric career. He had his first American one-man show at the
Annina Nosei Gallery and he became the youngest artist to have ever participate in ''
documenta
''documenta'' is an exhibition of contemporary art which takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany.
The ''documenta'' was founded by artist, teacher and curator Arnold Bode in 1955 as part of the Bundesgartenschau (Federal Horticultura ...
'' in
Kassel
Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2020 ...
. During this period, Basquiat began using roughly hewn canvas supports as seen with ''Hannibal''. These stretchers were built by Basquiat's studio assistant,
Stephen Torton. Basquiat had initially hired Torton to be a bouncer at his loft party, but by the end of the night he offered him the job of building stretchers. Basquiat's instructions could not have been simpler: "Just use whatever materials are here." Therefore, Torton constructed stretchers and frames out of found materials such as carpet tacks, rope, canvas, and wooden moldings.
In May 1993, ''Hannibal'' was sold at
Christie's
Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is ...
New York for $79,500.
It was purchased for $1 million in 2004 by a Panamanian company called Broadening-Info Enterprises.
In 2007, ''Hannibal'' was smuggled into the U.S. from Brazil by Brazilian financier
Edemar Cid Ferreira
Edemar Cid Ferreira (31 May 1943 – 13 January 2024) was a Brazilian economist, banker, and art collector. He was the founder and head of Banco Santos, which went bankrupt in September 2005. Ferreira was convicted in Brazil of bank fraud, tax e ...
.
Ferreira, founder and former president of Banco Santos, owned the painting. He was convicted of
bank fraud
Bank fraud is the use of potentially illegal means to obtain money, assets, or other property owned or held by a financial institution, or to obtain money from depositors by fraudulently posing as a bank or other financial institution. In many ins ...
,
tax evasion, and
money laundering
Money laundering is the process of concealing the origin of money, obtained from illicit activities such as drug trafficking, corruption, embezzlement or gambling, by converting it into a legitimate source. It is a crime in many jurisdictions ...
in 2006.
As part of the case, a
São Paulo judge ordered a search, seizure, and confiscation of assets that were acquired with illegally obtained funds from Banco Santos.
In 2007, the painting was shipped from the Netherlands to storage facility in the
Upper East Side neighborhood of Manhattan. Invoices failed to comply with U.S. customs laws—the item was not identified and it was labeled to be worth $100.
After extensive litigation, the painting was returned to Brazil in 2015.
''Hannibal'' drew zero bids when it was up for auction at Sotheby's New York in November 2015, however, it sold for $13.1 million when it appeared for sale at Sotheby's London in October 2016.
Exhibitions
The painting has been exhibited at the following art institutions:
* ''Jean-Michel Basquiat: 1980-1988'' at Quintana Gallery in Coral Gables, Florida, December 1996–February 1997.
* ''Jean-Michel Basquiat: Gemälde und Arbeiten auf Papier'' at
KunstHausWien in
Vienna, February–May 1999; Museum Würth in
Künzelsau
Künzelsau (; East Franconian: ''Kinzelse'') is a town in Baden-Württemberg, in south central Germany. It is the capital of the Hohenlohe district. It is located on the river Kocher, 19 km (12 mi) north of Schwäbisch Hall, and 37& ...
, September 2001–January 2002.
See also
*
List of paintings by Jean-Michel Basquiat
The following is a list of significant artworks by the American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960–1988), who played a historic role in the rise of street art and neo-expressionism.
During his short yet productive career, Basquiat created more t ...
References
{{Jean-Michel Basquiat
Paintings by Jean-Michel Basquiat
1982 paintings
Skulls in art