Jean-Michel Basquiat – Untitled 1982 (orange skull)

Exhibition poster featuring the work Untitled, 1982, by Jean-Michel Basquiat, published in connection with the exhibition 'Basquiat - Headstrong'. This is the first major exhibition focusing on Basquiat's depictions of the human head – a central theme in his work.

Jean-Michel Basquiat managed to break through and out of the narrow confines of art history already during his lifetime. After his death, at the age of only 27, Basquiat has become a global phenomenon, and the mythology surrounding his life and work has only grown and today lives its own life in popular culture.

Amidst Basquiat's expressive, almost explosive production, there is a group of works – oil crayon drawings on paper, mainly from the period 1981-1983 – that revolve around the head as a motif. The works range from skulls and anatomical studies to highly stylized faces. The artist kept these works to himself, and they therefore remained largely unknown to the public during his lifetime. The fact that these works stayed with the artist and only emerged after his death strongly indicates that they held a special significance for him. Therefore, they can rightly be regarded as traces that offer an intimate insight into his artistic process.