Jean-Michel Basquiat

A hand-drafted flyer by Basquiat for a performance by his close friend, John Lurie and the Lounge Lizards at Squat Theater in New York, December 1, 1979.

• Jean Michel Basquiat (American, 1960-1988).
• Ink on paper.
• Unsigned.
• Accompanied by a letter of provenance.
• This work is presented unframed.

John Lurie was considered one of Basquiat’s closest friends; and has been a significant and prolific member of the New York downtown art and cultural scene since the 1970s.

Lurie had a role in the Basquiat film Downtown 81 and starred in Jim Jarmusch’s pioneering independent films Stranger Than Paradise and Down by Law. His jazz-punk band The Lounge Lizards were at the forefront of the late-1970s New York ‘No-wave’ music scene. At its founding, the band consisted of John Lurie and Evan Lurie, guitarist Arto Lindsay, bassist Steve Piccolo, and percussionist Anton Fier. Though partly inspired by jazz, John Lurie said he used guitarists in the band "to foil the music when it gets too jazzlike.”

Maripol, a key historic figure in the downtown New York art, fashion and music scenes of the late 1970s and beyond, and producer of the seminal Basquiat film, Downtown 81, was gifted this piece directly by Basquiat.