THE BASQUIAT CLONE: ARTISTIC AUTHENTICITY IN THE MODERN MEDIA AGE
THE BASQUIAT CLONE: ARTISTIC AUTHENTICITY IN THE MODERN MEDIA AGE
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OPENING EXHIBITION SPACE RAER!
JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT (1960-1988) grew up in Brooklyn, New York, born to Haitian and Puerto Rican parents. Although sadly only living up to the age of 27, he gained worldwide fame through his graffiti and own style of painting. His raw yet sophisticated paintings pose strong critiques against racism, colonialism, capitalism, and class divide. Through them he’s had an immense influence on the arts, especially upon marginalized minority communities. His works are featured across the globe, including in the Netherlands, in the Moco Museum. Yet with the advent of social media and increasing online interconnectedness, his work has also fallen victim to ‘copycats’ and those taking significant ‘inspiration’ from BASQUIAT, whilst often ignoring the original contexts and intended meanings of his work.
This has especially been witnessed on social media platforms like TikTok, where trends have arisen of people showcasing their art. Yet a considerable number of these videos have shown, often young white men, with remarkably similar works to that of BASQUIAT. These are not irrelevant artists either, having significant followings and exhibiting in galleries. One such artist even had his exhibition cancelled due to the similarity of his works with those of BASQUIAT. In these TikTok videos, it’s now instead become common to say “Revealing my art, but I’m not a BASQUIAT clone”.
These artists often defend themselves as either not even knowing BASQUIAT, or simply just being inspired by him. They might argue that total originality is impossible, especially in the modern media age, but that their art is still authentic, as they themselves made it and it possesses their given meaning. Yet this is a superficial representation, as their work does not exist in a vacuum, and follows a lineage of pioneering artists. By copying BASQUIAT in this way, these white men are not just inauthentic, they also ignore BASQUIAT’s original intentions and his contributions to marginalized communities. These artists then reinforce oppression, including in the arts.
There are different forms of authenticity. One of these is expressive authenticity. This is about whether a work of art expresses to the viewer the intended meaning thought of by the artist. In this case, in these copied artworks, the meaning often seems simplistic or non-existent. In many examples these men only post the same catchy format videos of showing their art, so as to get views, and possible sales. Hence what the actual viewer sees are just copies of BASQUIAT and his original critiques on race, class, and colonialism. It’s not the intended meanings of the young white men which viewers see in these artworks, and hence it is also not expressively authentic.
Furthermore, these works are also not culturally authentic. Cultural authenticity is about how true an artwork is to its cultural context. In this case that context is found in New York, with street art, and minority communities. Not with young white men showing videos of their work on TikTok. Even if the claim is made (and believed) that BASQUIAT didn’t consciously influence them, or they didn’t know him, his style of art indirectly influenced them, and the cultural context of that influence is still present.
By adopting this artform, whilst not recognizing BASQUIAT's influence and intent, these white male artists are not just culturally appropriating, but also culturally misappropriating; giving superficial meanings to these works disconnected from any context. It thus distorts BASQUIAT, and takes away a form of (artistic) expression for minority communities, ignoring their struggles. In that way it reinforces marginalization in the art world, and contributes to broader societal oppression.
Words MICHA BRAAKSMA
Images MOCO MUSEUM
Date 13/4/2025
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