Bird on Money explained

Bird On Money
Artist:Jean-Michel Basquiat
Year:1981
Medium:Acrylic and oil on canvas
Movement:Neo-expressionism
Height Imperial:66
Width Imperial:90
Owner:Rubell Family Collection

Bird on Money is a 1981 painting created by American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat in 1981. It is a tribute to jazz musician Charlie Parker, who was nicknamed "Bird." The painting was acquired in 1981 and is housed in the Rubell Family Collection.[1] In 2020, New York rock band the Strokes used the artwork as the cover for their studio album The New Abnormal.[2]

Analysis

Bird on Money was executed in 1981, the year in which he made the transition from a street artist to an established gallery artist. The painting is a tribute to jazz saxophonist Charlie Parker, a leading figure in the development of bebop.[3] In 1985, Basquiat told The New York Times Magazine: "Since I was seventeen I thought I might be a star. I'd think about all my heroes, Charlie Parker, Jimi Hendrix… I had a romantic feeling about how these people became famous."[4] Basquiat, like Parker, struggled with heroin addiction.[5] He also paid homage to Parker in the paintings Charles the First (1982) and CPRKR (1982).[6]

Jazz music was a common theme in Basquiat's art and he often painted to jazz music.[7] Basquiat referenced jazz musicians and recordings in over thirty of his paintings, including Discography I (1983), Horn Players (1983), Arm and Hammer II (1984), and King Zulu (1986).[8] Music journalist Tom Terrell wrote in the liner notes of the compilation album Basquiat Salutes Jazz (2005): "As Parker's bebop transcended jazz to influence musical and nonmusical pop culture worldwide, so did Basquiat's legacy impact on hip-hop and Euro-pop, Indie film and post-electric Miles jazz. Both men were absolute Zen masters of trans-cultural improvisation."[9]

Bird on Money depicts a black and blue yardbird in reference to Parker's nickname. Parker acquired the nickname "Yardbird" early in his career, which was later shortened to "Bird."[10] Awash in repeated symbols and arrows, the painting invokes death with the drawing of Brooklyn's Green-Wood Cemetery, where Basquiat would be laid to rest in 1988.[11] Basquiat, whose mother was Puerto Rican, often incorporated Spanish words into his works such as "PARA MORIR" (in order to die) across from the drawing of Green-Wood Cemetery.

See also

References

  1. Web site: Jean-Michel Basquiat. live. 2021-05-12. Rubell Museum. https://web.archive.org/web/20210302043616/https://rubellmuseum.org/30a-jean-michel-basquiat . 2021-03-02 .
  2. Web site: Campbell. Erica. April 13, 2021. 8 Albums With the Most Amazing Artwork. live. 2021-05-13. Architectural Digest. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20210413121121/https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/albums-with-the-most-amazing-artwork . 2021-04-13 .
  3. Web site: Whitehead. Kevin. August 28, 2020. Charlie Parker, Born 100 Years Ago, Made Jazz Complexities Sound Deceptively Easy. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200830213611/https://www.npr.org/2020/08/28/906215959/charlie-parker-born-100-years-ago-made-jazz-complexities-sound-deceptively-easy . 2020-08-30 . 2021-02-01. NPR.org. en.
  4. News: McGuigan. Cathleen. February 10, 1985. New Art, New Money. en-US. The New York Times. 2021-02-01. 0362-4331.
  5. Web site: Steel. Rebecca. January 19, 2018. The Art of Jean-Michel Basquiat: Legacy of a Cultural Icon. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20140701210040/http://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/new-york/articles/the-art-of-jean-michel-basquiat-legacy-of-a-cultural-icon/ . 2014-07-01 . 2021-02-01. Culture Trip.
  6. Web site: Fu. Eddie. April 10, 2020. Here's The Basquiat Painting That Inspired The Strokes' 'The New Abnormal' Cover Art. live. 2021-05-13. Genius. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20200411101908/https://genius.com/a/basquiat-s-bird-on-money-painting-inspired-the-strokes-the-new-abnormal-cover-art . 2020-04-11 .
  7. News: Eshun. Ekow. September 22, 2017. Bowie, Bach and Bebop: How Music Powered Basquiat. en-US. The New York Times. 2021-02-01. 0362-4331.
  8. Book: Saggese, Jordana Moore. Reading Basquiat: Exploring Ambivalence in American Art. 2014-05-30. Univ of California Press. 978-0-520-27624-6. 55, 85. en.
  9. Web site: McNally. Owen. December 29, 2005. New Disc Reflects Art and Influences of Basquiat. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20210708123109/https://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-xpm-2005-12-29-0512290063-story.html . 2021-07-08 . 2021-02-01. The Hartford Courant. en-US.
  10. Web site: 2020-08-27. How Charlie "YardBird" Parker got his nickname American Masters PBS. 2021-05-13. American Masters. en-US.
  11. Book: Saggese, Jordana Moore. The Jean-Michel Basquiat Reader: Writings, Interviews, and Critical Responses. 2021-03-02. Univ of California Press. 978-0-520-30515-1. 312. en.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Bird on Money".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.