Basquiat is a graphic novel biography of Jean-Michel Basquiat who was an artist, well known for his paintings and graffiti work in New York in the 1980s.

Extensively researched, Basquiat's life story is told through the different perspectives of the people who knew him. The graphic novel is visually striking, with only four colours being used - reflective of the colours Basquiat used in his work the most. I really enjoyed reading this, and learning more about Basquiat's life and work. Not only is it well written but it's beautifully drawn as well.

Short quick biography of the short tragic life of the artist Jean-Michael Basquiat. There is not a any new information but it is a nice over view. The art is good and compliments the story. The writing is good and it is an easy read. Enjoy

I loved how colorful the illustrations are. I leaned a few things about Basquiat that I did not know before, but overall I wanted it to be a bit more comprehensive.

This is not my cup of tea. I did not like the artwork at all, and I got lost in the story, though there is very little of it. It is jumping from here to there. It was really hard to follow... But I think that fans of Basquiat will love it.

'Basquiat: A Graphic Novel' written and illustrated by Paolo Parisi is a graphic novel biography of the famous artist.

Told from a few different perspectives, the story begins with Jean-Michel Baquiat's father finding out about his death, then jumping back and forth to tell the story. Basquiat started as a street-art legend known as SAMO. He was involved in a lot of the underground scene of New York in the early 1980s. He rose to fame, and made money, but had a troubled life.

The color palette for this book is very distinct, and I really loved what was done. The story was divided up in to chapters based on articles or incidents. I really liked the changing narrators in the story. The book ends with a bibliography including music and films that Basquiat created.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Laurence King Publishing Ltd. in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

This is an excellent Graphic novel portrait of an artist who I had heard of but knew little about. Well worth looking at if you're ata all interested in modern art

Those who love Basquiat's art style will want to read this one. For those looking for inspiration or philosophy behind his work... those might come up disappointed. For while there was a desire to be counterculture and question societal values via his art during his early days, the book seems to indicate that Basquiat in his latter career stage was obsessed with fame. This led him down a few crooked roads.

This book also sheds light on those who tried to take advantage of Basquiat, the racism he faced and how the art world works in general.

While I love the historical side of this book, I find the Basquiat's story not to be as unique as I was expecting. He was a talent that got lost in drugs and booze and became taken over with fame and overwork due to the overwhelming influence of people who have no interest in him.

The book is an interesting read, though. Recommended for though in love with anything that has to do with art and similar creative endeavours.

The artwork in this book is lovely and it is an engaging biography of Basquiat's life, some pages have a lot of words which I know some would see as breaking with the format. I enjoyed reading this presentation of his life, finding out more about him. I particularly like the way that his art and way of working was explored which there is clearly more scope for in a graphic novel. You can include that's like asking Miles Davis how does your trumpet sound? The images of him drawing over everything makes it appear fun and quirky but also a little mentally unstable. Could have perhaps gone into more depth but this is an excellent introduction to Basquiat especially good for young people exploring different kind of art. Recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley for a free Arc in exchange for an unbiased review.

Before reading this graphc novel I knew nothing about Jean-Michel Basquiat.

According to Wicki, Basquiat was an American artist of Haitian and Puerto Rican descent who first achieved fame as part of SAMO, an informal graffiti duo who wrote enigmatic epigrams in the cultural hotbed of the Lower East Side of Manhattan during the late 1970s, where rap, punk, and street art coalesced into early hip-hop music culture.

By the 1980s, his paintings were being exhibited in galleries and museums.

Basquiat started off with graffiti and ended up a star, but his star died way before his time at the very young age of 27. His life and talent ended before it had even begun.

And so the graphic novel portraying his life intrigued me!

In this volume Basquiat's early life is told by his father who is grieving his loss. His early art and breakthrough is told by Diego Cortez who was his friend and fellow graffiti artist. As the book progresses other people narrate the story including Basquiat himself.

It is an interesting story about an interesting man but the story just provides a glimpse into Basquiat's life and art. It is a good starter book which leaves the reader wanting to know more.

I wasn't a great fan of the artwork which is colored primarly in bright primary colours.
Apart from that it was an interesting book to read. Copy provided by Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

This is a great overview of Basquiat's life with source material from those close to him. The color and the art were a great way to introduce readers to Basquiat's style and art, would recommend for anyone looking for introductory materials for the artist.

Paolo Parisi has created a modern masterpiece - his art is so energetic and bright (almost alarmingly so) in conjunction with his graphic novel's subject Jean-Michel Basquiat. Though it wasn't a particularly long graphic novel in comparison to the rest, it was punchy and succinct in it's narrative and the artwork lead the way.

I 100% recommend this - for graphic novel fans but also for people who just appreciate well thought out and well put together works

I'm a huge fan of Basquiat and his style and uses of colour, and this is a brilliant introduction to this. A good addition to any art section in a secondary school as an introduction.

Basquiat by Paolo Parisi was a wonderful introduction into the artist by way of graphic novel. The color choices used for the graphics was reminiscent to Basquiat's own works of art. I really enjoyed how his story was told from the eyes of those that knew him best, everyone from his family, his business partners to the man himself. I would recommend this title to anyone looking into Basquiat, art, the 1980s, the NY scene, etc. I thoroughly enjoyed this graphic novel and look forward to more from this author and illustrator.

I liked this! Thought it was easy to follow and interesting. The art is beautiful. My only hesitancy is it being a niche topic/category.

I got this through NetGalley in exchange of an honest review.

I, as an Arts student, really liked it. I loved how the colors worked with the comics and with some of Basquiat art (I know it can be pretty difficult replying it how it was) and the author did a really good job on this.
This comic, although, is a vision about Basquiat of people who've know him or worked with him. Sometimes it jumped to another person and I was a little lost in some pages.
Overall, I really liked it. I think part of an artist's life it's who you were to other people and this comic sums it up a little.

Basquiat's story is told from the perspective of those who knew him. Therein lies the problem with this book, there is no narrative and very little story. The book jarringly jumps from perspective to perspective without telling a linear story. I feel like I don't know much more now about Basquiat's life than I did before. The storytelling is really hard to follow and focused on his art shows more than actually showing his art or even important works of his. I wanted to know more about Basquiat not who hosted his art shows. I did like the art although the bright, garish colors don't seem indicative of what I've seen of Basquiat's art.

In theory, this would be a great graphic novel - a biography of a vivid visual artist via a book full of art! In reality, it left much to be desired. The details of Basquiat's life were really sparse, characters popped in and out of the story with little explanation as to who they were (in general and to Basquiat specifically), and while the graphic novel was colorful, there wasn't really any elucidation on Basquiat's work or style. It needed MORE.

This graphic novel was about the young artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. Though it gives some back story to his early life we mainly explore his rise to fame.

Parisi uses the voices of those who knew Basquiat to narrate the story. This gives the graphic novel a feeling of closeness between the reader and Basquiat. Parisi was not afraid to broach such topics as drug use or Basquiat's relationships.

The use of only a few bold colours manages to give the work a POP art feel yet still convey emotion. Parisi manages to balance this well with the use of text, neither one overriding the other. The drawing style was realistic enough to keep the story grounded yet it left enough blankness for the reader to be able to imprint on it. For instance, the picture of Warhol and Basquiat in their side-by-side boxing glove pose was so recognisable to me that it didn't matter that their faces were absent in the graphic novel, I saw them anyway.

Parisi took a big risk with the opening scene in the book. Personally, I already knew how it would end having just studied Basquiat's work at college. However, I think this was a good hook for the rest of the book and I would probably surprise people that Basquiat was not close to his father.

I was equally taken with the end of the Novel. How Parisi tied Basquiat's childhood accident with his death. How Parisi used the heart from Gray's Anatomy to explain his death, beautiful in a morbid way. The heart felt as though it was real, the most 3D piece of the whole novel.

Having only recently studied Basquiat in college at the age of 32 I can honestly say I would have rathered studied him in secondary school instead of Warhol. Had I had this book in secondary school (high school) I think it would have made a difference to the level of interest I paid art, which was already high, I would have been much more interested in graphic novels at any rate. I'm not sure parents would agree but that is a different matter.

This graphic shows just how much of an artist Basquiat was, and not just as a painter but as a musician, writer and how he used these talents in a political way, even for a time.

I would say that this book and Basquiat's life in general, give us several morals to live by. Be careful your dream doesn't ruin your life, trust a few, take care of yourself.

I would definitely recommend this book to fans of art or those who read books about influential people of the '80s.

Paolo Parisi's graphic biography "Basquiat" explores the life and art of Jean-Michel Basquiat, one of the most iconic figures of American contemporary art. Parisi's vibrant, engaging work helps to set the scene and show you where Basquiat came from, his motivations, the inner workings of his mind, as well as some of his inner turmoils. My only gripe is that I wish it were longer and more in-depth in certain points, particularly when talking about his personal struggles which led to his early demise. Overall, this was an eye-opening, provocative work that tells the story of one of the most groundbreaking and culturally relevant figures of 20th century.

Paolo Parisi's graphic biography celebrates the life of Jean-Michel Basquiat with color, intensity, and joy. Using the colors most associated with Basquiat's art style adds a layer of richness to the thoughtful and well-written narrative. Through color, writing, and lettering, "Basquiat" shows that even though his life was short, Basquiat's influence on art and artists continues today.