The picture is painted on wood slats, which Basquiat asked his assistants to take away from a fence that protected the boundary of his Los Angeles studio. By eradicating this barrier, Basquiat made the property open, and able to be traversed throughout freely, perhaps reflecting his empathy and personal expertise of the boundaries of public house as a homeless person in New York. Basquiat’s work is emblematic of the art world recognition of punk, graffiti, and counter-cultural practice that took place within the early 1980s. Understanding this context, and the interrelation of types, movements, and scenes within the readjustment of…
