Now's the time : a study of the social statements in the art of Basquiat

Ph.D. University of Hawaii at Manoa 2013.Includes bibliographical references."Now's the time : a study of the social statements in the art of Basquiat" explores the social and cultural significance of the visual artwork and performance of Jean-Michel Basquiat. This research analyzes the convergence of aesthetic, literary, theoretical, and ideological dialogics within Basquiat's artwork alongside contemporary cultural politics, social discourse, and history. My research grounds the aesthetic and cultural significance of Basquia's artwork in the context of his time, examining how his social statements reflectied historical contingency of his raced, classed, and genered opsition. Although scholars have addressed many dimensions of Basquiat's artwork in chapter or essay form, this will be amongs the first comprehensive studies of the artistics and social relevance of Basquiat's artowkr using an interdisciplinary framework. I begin by exploring the rich artistic and aesthetic facets of the artwork and then progress into cultural inquiry, paying special attention to the political import of Basquiant's visual allusions and literary references