Untitled (Plaid) - Jean-Michel Basquiat

A powerful example of Basquiat's text-based work, featuring repetitive motifs and sharp social commentary rendered in his signature raw, expressive style.

This work by Jean-Michel Basquiat displays his characteristic approach to combining text, social commentary, and raw mark-making. The composition is dominated by the repetitive word 'PLAID', which is crossed out in several places, creating a visual rhythm that disrupts the legibility of the text. Basquiat uses this repetition to explore themes of consumerism, cultural identity, and historical narratives.

Interspersed among the repeated words are handwritten phrases that offer biting observations on American history and social structures. References to 'Western diet', 'train tracks', and 'men of China' point toward the artist's interest in the exploitation of labour and the construction of national myths. The inclusion of symbols, such as a ladder and a circled price mark, functions as a shorthand for the artist's critique of economic systems. The surface of the work retains a sense of immediacy, with lines that appear spontaneous yet carefully placed to guide the viewer across the canvas.

Basquiat's practice often involved the layering of information, where text acts as both a visual element and a carrier of meaning. By deconstructing language and reassembling it within a chaotic, graffiti-influenced framework, he forces a confrontation with the uncomfortable realities of history. The stark contrast between the black oilstick markings and the off-white ground ensures that the focus remains on the textual content and the aggressive energy of the strokes. This piece captures the urgency of his output during the early 1980s, a period when he was actively engaging with the intersections of art, politics, and urban life.