Basquiat next big sale on the Asian Market

Surely you have heard about Basquiat – who hasn't?

Basquiat is one of those figures that demonstrated colossal potential during his career but unfortunately passed away very early. His childhood and teenage years were troubled, but that might be the biggest reason why he became so powerful in his visual poetics. Driven to pursue art by his mum, he left home at 17, and that was when his creativity bloomed in the streets. Basquiat started by exploring graffiti art through spreading political messages around New York City that eventually got people's eyes. Then, influenced by a resurgence of Expressionism, he was soon to skyrocket his career at only 20!

Basquiat was a blue-chip artist during his 8-year peak career before he died at 28. This is something rare to achieve in the art world, especially nowadays. But as we see today, his legacy is still being protected and admired with the same intensity – or even more! His pieces demonstrate his insight into broader socio-political issues with an expressive craft that he learnt independently.

The interest in his works is also expanding to different cultures, starting to get a grip of fans in Asia. Being one of the most expensive artists, Basquiat's works have been hitting sale records continuously. This time his painting "Warrior" is going for sale at Christie's Hong Kong on the 23rd of March, and it is expected to sell for over $31 million. If this estimated starting price is met, it will place "Warrior" at the top 10 most expensive Basquiat artworks ever sold in an auction. "Warrior" was previously purchased for $8.7 million, and as we can see, Basquiat is indeed becoming pricier.

If this sale is successful, Basquiat will become one of the most expensive Western artists ever acquired in an Asian auction. There has been a boom in Asian collectors in the past couple of years, and it might be crucial to set the stage for further artists in Asia.

Recapping on Basquiat history, Artscapy thinks that the most talented artists always have troubled backgrounds- which is a shame that they never got to see their recognition (as Van Gogh, for example). But Basquiat is an exception- he saw his boom, and still, he continued to live his troubled life.

What do you think about troubled artists?

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