What’s the most underrated movie you’ve ever watched?
I have seen the Basquiat biopic over and over again. I show it to every new worker at my group home. I plan to watch it the night before every gallery show. I did that with my group show this part September. I had excellent results. It really got me in the headspace for such an event.
Meet Basquiat. This is a true story.
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Lessons from the movie:
1) Don’t ditch your true friends when you find success.
In the movie, Jean Michel Basquiat ditches his old friends for famous art people, like Andy Warhol. He gets increasingly unhappy and unstable. His friends weren’t perfect, but they liked him for him. There’s a movie called Almost Famous, which comes to mind. One of the characters says, “”The only true currency in this bankrupt world is what you share with someone else when you’re uncool.”
People have told me since high school that there is something “famous” about me. That I’m destined to make it big some day. I know I’m good at what I do. I want people to notice my gifts. At the height of my schizophrenia, I talked in my head to all the celebrities. I wanted fame above all else. My mentor, Kathie Giorgio, talked sense into me. It’s not about the money or fame. It’s about getting better at your craft. I have a handful of friends I talk to daily, and I love these people. If this art thing ever takes off, I’m keeping my support system. They care, even as I am now.
2) Paint hard and fast.
When Basquiat gets his first basement art studio, he dives in. He attacks the canvases. My dad once told me to slow down, to take my time. One of my teachers at Donna Lexa Art Centers told my dad that my art is not possible unless I work very fast, especially the flowers, like this one:
Acrylic painting from September of 2025. Cutesy Macabre, the teacher from before, said “Goosies don’t lie.”
Portraits take a little more time, but you can’t be afraid of the blank canvas.
3) Don’t be afraid to start small.
When I was getting back into art in 2018, I did a series of postcards. Like this:
The response on my Instagram was amazing.
Basquiat also made postcards. One sold to Warhol before Basquiat made it big.
4) Think outside the canvas.
Basquiat painted on EVERYTHING. Refrigerator doors and windows, for example. It’s like Blackbean CMS painting on old Little Caesars boxes. Basquiat was homeless, and he still made it work. This is a guitar I painted.
Just to jump in front of it. My sister took a picture of this for Arts for All WI. I think she used AI to get the background decluttered. Sorry to my AI haters.
I look forward to getting scrappy and crafty with my practice. My high school art teacher took us to the art museum, and I remember him pointing out a painting on cardboard. It was beautiful. All you need is cardboard. There is no excuse.
5) Every painter needs poetry.
Basquiat started his career with graffiti poetry under the tag SAMO, a collaboration with a friend.
When he made it in art, he quit graffiti art.
We are so lucky that in this day and age it is almost encouraged to have so many different creative outlets. Can you imagine a Basquiat poetry book?
I think he had too much pressure on him to stay in his lane. He had some side projects, but for the most part, he was expected to paint. He would have been happier if they let him go free.
Another reason every artist needs to be a poet is that it leads to better titles. Amy Sherald once called a painting
listen, you a wonder. you a city of a woman. you got a geography of your own
It goes with this:
My favorite title creator is my high school friend, Emily Taylor Tripp. This is one of her paintings.
It’s called
The Fox that Captured Two Lovers {2}
Check out her website when you’re done with this post: https://www.emilyttripp.com/
I have a hard time titling works because the writer in me wants to expand. However, Matthew Sanborn, the exhibition manager at Arts for All WI, says I have a gift for them.
6) Surround yourself with bohemian, creative friends.
From my research, what I know about Basquiat is that he was completely bohemian in the early days. All of his friends were artsy types. His first painting sold to Debbie Harry. That’s why I like doing community theatre. The actors and crew members are all so artsy and keep me inspired. I love drawing my theatre friends, as they are very expressive. I have found in my own life that I have the right friends. I don’t have all the followers, but every now and then I’ll have a sale come from having a friend who just got it. Bohemian or not, they just have to get it.
Like this painting my friend’s mom bought.
She really saw the vision.
7) Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there until people listen.
Basquiat went straight up to Warhol and got him to buy a postcard. My life would have been completely different had I chickened out and never entered Arts for All’s annual competition. On this blog, I talked about my bad experience with Scholastic’s art competition. I didn’t let it stop me with AFA. I am now selling my work.
8) Don’t be afraid to give things away. Basquiat does this throughout the movie.
I know, I know. Most professionals would say the opposite. For me, it sometimes feels good to be charitable. Especially when I’m in the mental hospital. I say to myself, “Wow, that person is going to have money some day.”
NAMI Friendships gifted me the canvas below. I ended up giving it to them. It felt really good. Gift-giving keeps you authentic. The people of NAMI love it. Pay it forward when you have nothing. Your whole world will change. That doesn’t mean give everything away, though. It’s a science. There’s a time and place.
8) Don’t fuck with drugs.
When I was 15, I ruined a quinceañera because I was drunk. I decided to swear off alcohol and drugs. I had my first mental breakdown at the age of 17, which got in the way of me going to college. If I had, I possibly could have found drugs, so I consider myself blessed. Jean Michel Basquiat died way too young, of heroin. It’s really not fair to anybody. If you’re on drugs now, there is hope for you. We don’t need another sad story.
If you’re going to watch this movie, think of it as an introduction to Basquiat. It is not the most factual rendition. Many characters aren’t even real or they’re a combination. They’re coming out with a new TV series about his life. After you watch the movie, leave a comment telling me what you think.