Jean-Michel-Basquiat, Portrait of A-One A.K.A. King, 1982
A tribute to A-One.
Portrait of A-One A.K.A. King was executed in 1982, during the turning point of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s career. 1982 was a pivotal year for Basquiat, as it marked his transition from the street culture to the fine art world. He also had his first solo show of his career, which earned a lot of accolades from the art community.
As a matter of fact, many of Basquiat’s finest works came from 1982, when he demonstrated full exuberance with no constraints and pressure from galleries.
As you may tell by the title of the painting, it portrays his close friend, frequent collaborator, and fellow New York street graffiti artist A-One (Anthony Clarke), standing beside a chair, in front of a wall covered in graffiti tags. This is one of the two Basquiat paintings of the artist, with the other one being executed in 1985.
Born in Manhatten, A-One became active in the New York graffiti scene in the mid-70s, when modern graffiti emerged rapidly. He later developed a distinct graffiti style he called "aerosol expressionism". Besides, he was part of a group of artists known as the “Tag Master Killers”, which included Rammellzee, Toxic, and Delta 2.
Just a side note, Rammellzee and Toxic were also close friends of Basquiat, with multiple appearances in his paintings. For instance, “Hollywood Africans, 1983” includes a portrait of Toxic (left), Rammellzee (middle), and Basquiat himself (right).
Among the graffiti community, the term “King” is often reserved only for the most highly-regarded graffiti artists, the best of the best in the region.
In this piece, Basquiat acknowledges A-One by giving him the crown, his iconic tag that represents “King”. Basquiat also regarded himself as a king, therefore you will find another small red crown in the top right corner.
Since the painting was executed early in his apex, you will still see heavy raw graffiti influences, with ample tags being shown across the canvas. For instance, a large red “Cool S” tag can be found on the left side of the painting.
At each corner, you will also find the exposed stretcher made from scrapped wood and twine, which eventually becomes another iconic symbol of Basquiat’s work.
Jay Z, on Jean-Michel Basquiat, from his book Decoded.
His technique…feels like hip-hop in the way it combined different traditions and techniques to create something new. He brought together elements of street art and European old masters. He combined painting and writing… He turned boxers and jazz musicians into kings with golden crowns. And on top of all that mixing and matching he added his own genius, which transformed the work into something completely fresh and original. The paintings don’t just sit on my walls, they move like crazy.
While the painting is primarily inspired by Basquiat’s graffiti background, it also demonstrates subtle influences from renowned artists like Cy Twombly and Jean Dubuffet, who are both pioneers in the post-war and contemporary art scene.
This eclectic painting perfectly depicted the state of Basquiat in 1982, when his street graffiti roots and his exposure to contemporary art started to collide. This collision shaped his signature aesthetic and created some of his most famous works.
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