The legend of  Jean-Michel Basquiat  is as strong as ever. Synonymous with 1980s New York, the artist first appeared in the late 1970s under the tag SAMO, spraying caustic comments and fragmented poems on the walls of the city. He appeared as  part of a thriving underground scene of visual arts and graffiti, hip hop, post-punk, and DIY filmmaking, which met in a booming art worl d. As a painter with a strong personal voice, Basquiat soon broke into the established milieu, exhibiting in galleries around the world.

 Basquiat's expressive style was based on  raw figures and integrated words and phrases. His work is inspired by a pantheon of luminaries from jazz, boxing, and basketball, with references to arcane history and the politics of street life—so when asked about his subject matter, Basquiat answered “royalty, heroism and the streets.” In 1983 he started collaborating with the most famous of art stars,  Andy Warhol, and in 1985 was on the cover of  The New York Times Magazine. When Basquiat died at the age of 27, he had become  one of the most successful artists of his time.

 First published in an XXL edition, this unprecedented insight into Basquiat's art is  now available in a compact, accessible volume  in celebration of TASCHEN's 40th anniversary. With pristine reproductions of  his most seminal paintings,  drawing,  and notebook sketches, it offers  vivid proximity  to Basquiat's intricate marks and scribbled words, further illuminated by an introduction to the artist from editor  Hans Werner Holzwarth, as well as an essay on his themes and artistic development from curator and art historian  Eleanor Nairne. Richly illustrated year-by-year chapter breaks follow the artist's life and quote from his own statements and contemporary reviews to provide both personal background and historical context.