''Red Skull'' 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. It was sold for $21.6 million 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 ...
in October 2017.
History
''Red Skull'' was executed in 1982, which is considered Basquiat's most valuable year. His top three most expensive paintings sold at auction all date to 1982. The success of his first American solo exhibit at the
Annina Nosei Gallery in March 1982 led to a string of major solo exhibitions internationally.
Like many of his seminal pieces, the focal point of ''Red Skull'' is a potent skull. Basquiat's fascination with the human anatomy began as a child. While recuperating in hospital after being hit by a car, his mother gave him a copy of ''
Gray's Anatomy
''Gray's Anatomy'' is a reference book of human anatomy written by Henry Gray, illustrated by Henry Vandyke Carter, and first published in London in 1858. It has gone through multiple revised editions and the current edition, the 42nd (Octob ...
'', which left a lasting impression on him.
Heads and skulls became recurring images in Basquiat's oeuvre. They are vividly evocative of African masks, which cultural reclamation. They also allude to Basquiat's Haitian heritage—specifically
Haitian Vodou
Haitian Vodou is an African diasporic religion that developed in Haiti between the 16th and 19th centuries. It arose through a process of syncretism between several traditional religions of West and Central Africa and Roman Catholicism. There is ...
, which has plenty of skull symbolism.
In October 2017, ''Red Skull'' sold for $21.6 million at Christie's Post-War and Contemporary Art Evening Auction in London.
A week after the auction, the anonymous consignor of the painting announced that he or she would donate all the proceeds after taxes to the New Jersey chapter of the
Knowledge Is Power Program
The Knowledge is Power Program, commonly known as KIPP, is a network of free open-enrollment college-preparatory schools in low income communities throughout the United States. KIPP is America's largest network of charter schools. The head of ...
, a nonprofit that helps open new public
charter schools
A charter school is a school that receives government funding but operates independently of the established state school system in which it is located. It is independent in the sense that it operates according to the basic principle of autono ...
.
Exhibitions
The painting has been exhibited at the following art institutions:
* ''Jean-Michel Basquiat: Une Rétrospective'' at
Musée Cantini
The Musée Cantini is a museum in Marseilles that has been open to the public since 1936. The museum specializes in modern art, especially paintings from the first half of the twentieth century.
The building
The musée Cantini building was bui ...
in Marseille, July–September 1992.
* ''Jean-Michel Basquiat'' at FAE Musée d'Art Contemporain in
Pully
Pully () is a municipality in Switzerland in the canton of Vaud, located in the district of Lavaux-Oron. It is one of the eastern suburbs of the city of Lausanne, located on the shores of Lake Geneva (''Lac Léman'') and at the foot of the vin ...
-
Lausanne
, neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...
, July–November 1993.
* ''Jean-Michel Basquiat: Témoignage 1977–1988'' at Galerie Jérôme de Noirmont in Paris, October–November 1998.
* ''Pittura 1964–2003: Da Rauschenberg a Murakami'' at
La Biennale di Venezia
The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...
at
Museo Correr
The Museo Correr () is a museum in Venice, northern Italy. Located in St. Mark's Square, Venice, it is one of the 11 civic museums run by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia. The museum extends along the southside of the square on the upper ...
in Venice, June–November 2003.
* ''The Jean-Michel Basquiat Show: 2006-2007'' at Fondazione la
Triennale di Milano
The Triennale di Milano is a design and art museum in the Parco Sempione in Milan, in Lombardy in northern Italy. It is housed in the Palazzo dell'Arte, which was designed by Giovanni Muzio and built between 1931 and 1933; construction was fina ...
in Milan, September 2006–January 2007.
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