Jean-Michel Basquiat King Pleasure Exhibition Opens April 9

Tickets for the Jean-Michel Basquiat King Pleasure show are on sale now. The exhibition features unseen work by the artist including drawings, paintings and artifacts. A recreation of his studio on Great Jones street and the Michael Todd VIP room at the Palladium nightclub is also part of the exhibition. The show will open April 9th at RXR’s Starrett-Lehigh building. The book Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure written by his sisters Lisane Basquiat, Jeanine Heriveaux and his stepmother Nora Fitzpatrick will be released in tandem with the exhibition. 

                                            The show is divided into seven themes: 

1960 – INTRODUCTION– This section of the exhibition introduces audiences to Jean-Michel, his family and his heritage with several self-portraits on display.
 
KINGS COUNTY– This section provides an overview of Jean-Michel’s childhood in Brooklyn and Puerto Rico. It will include an environmental evocation of Jean-Michel’s childhood home, ephemera and works by Jean-Michel including newsletters from City-as-School, sketchbooks, personal notes and effects, home movies, interviews with family members, early drawings and sculptures.
 
WORLD FAMOUS– This section details Jean-Michel’s meteoric early success and includes paintings and other ephemera. 
 
IDEAL– 57 Great Jones Street Studio (August 1983) Studio Recreation– Jean-Michel’s Great Jones Street studio will be recreated and include paintings, drawings, sketches, personal effects, his furniture, bicycle (his main method of transportation since he had trouble catching a cab), and his videotape and book collections. 
 
ART GALLERY– This section will consist of several thematically arranged galleries with approximately 100 paintings and drawings. All works are owned by the Estate and most of them have never been seen before.
 
PALLADIUM– In 1985, Jean-Michel created two paintings, Nu-Nile and Untitled, for iconic NYC nightclub Palladium’s VIP area, the Michael Todd Room. The exhibition will recreate this space including video and soundtrack. 
 
PLACE JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT– This gallery will contain oral histories from members of Jean-Michel’s family and a close circle of friends as well as posthumous awards and exhibitions. 

Tickets can be purchased at the official website.