Basquiat

For your next post, first reflect on the film. What image of the artist did it present and how? Are there any aspects of the "Schematic Structure" that you see playing out?

I really enjoyed the film on Basquiat. I had a couple of emotions and immediate reactions while watching the film involving how the artist was presented and portrayed. Although Basquiat had a drug problem (as clearly demonstrated in the movie), I think Schnabel depicted the drug/smoking problem in a way that influenced Basquiat's art. Whenever he was working on a piece of work or viewing art in a gallery, it seemed that Basquiat was always either high/on other drugs or smoking. By doing this, it appears that Schnabel wanted viewers to see that yes, Basquiat had a drug problem, but either the drugs helped Basquiat's art become developed or the drugs helped Basquiat become a person that could paint beautiful pictures. Schnabel portrays Basquiat as a stereotypical artist at the time: a smoker, somewhat lost in the world and seemingly "alone." The question of whether or not Basquiat has a mental illness is left ambiguous. I personally think Schnabel left this question up for debate because I honestly think he wanted to leave it up to the viewer. If the viewer wants to believe that mental illness causes more artistic creativity then Schnabel leaves that option available. But if the viewer wants to believe that Basquiat has just lived a troubled life and is mentally stable, Schnabel also portrays that view too.

I feel that the movie followed the Schematic Structure pretty lightly, but did follow it. We didn't get much of Basquiat's childhood (hardly any, in fact). However, we did get a possible foreshadowing of Basquiat's life when he and his mother are viewing Picasso's painting and she sees her son wearing a crown. This could be foreshadowing the king of art that Basquiat would become during his time. The movie depicted Basquiat showing Andy Warhol (an artistic authority) his work. Schnabel then continues to show Basquiat's life and his rise to fame and also his demise (his drug addiction and Andy Warhol's death). While the movie doesn't show Basquiat physically dying, it does shows in text that he passed away.


Next, referring to the Jamison reading, do you think that the film links drug use and mental illness with artistic creativity? Don't say what you think, describe what the film "thinks." Refer to the suggestions for film viewing and analysis in Chapter 2 of "Writing about Film."

In the Jamison reading, it discusses how Socrates says "madness is the channel by which we receive the greatest blessings." I think the film uses subtle messages to describe what it "thinks" about drug use and mental illness in connection to artistic and creativity. I liked what Stacey said in the comment below. The more drugs Basquiat used, the more art he appeared to sell. When Basquiat's art was being displayed in the gallery, it appeared that everyone was smoking. While smoking is not a "drug" like marijuana, it was hard for people to view art without a substance in their life. Another instance in the film where the mental illness and artistic creativity link is present is when Baquiat goes to visit his mother in the mental hospital. When he is shown as being the one behind bars, it shows that the film appears to think Basquiat is mentally unstable.