TOY SHOP + ART STUDIO in Athens, GA | M: 10a-6p, TU-TH: 10a-8p, FR-SA: 10a-9p, SU: 11a-6p| flat rate shipping $10 | FREE shipping $150*
Djeco Inspired By Brooklyn-Jean Michel Basquiat invites children to dive into the amazing world of street art as inspired by New York street artist Jean Michal Basquiat. With 4 bold, chaotic illustrations to complete using high-coverage opaque markers, young artists can layer colours and create their own expressive masterpieces using his renowned style. The quick-drying markers ensure a smooth and mess-free creative experience.
Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960–1988) was an American artist who rose to fame in the late 1970s and 1980s. He started out as a graffiti artist in New York City, working under the pseudonym SAMO with his friend Al Diaz, tagging cryptic phrases and slogans around lower Manhattan. His raw, rebellious style quickly drew attention from the downtown art scene.
Basquiat’s work blended text, imagery, and symbols, often drawing on African, Caribbean, and African-American heritage, as well as contemporary culture, jazz, and social issues. He tackled themes like race, inequality, identity, and power, layering words and figures in bold colours with an expressive, almost frenetic energy.
By the early 1980s, Basquiat transitioned into painting on canvas, gaining international recognition. He collaborated with Andy Warhol, exhibited in major galleries, and became one of the youngest artists to show at the Whitney Biennial. Despite his meteoric success, he struggled with fame and drug addiction, dying tragically of a heroin overdose at just 27.
Today, Basquiat is remembered as one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. His works sell for record-breaking prices, and his legacy continues to shape contemporary art, fashion, and music.
