Basquiat Painting

In 1985 the Fruitmarket held an exhibition of the young NY artist and friend of Andy Warhol, Jean Michel Basquiat. The show was all his new paintings on canvases, wooden panels and doors. The show was a coupe for the gallery and the director Mark Francis who always had his finger on the art pulse and regularly pulled off these unique 'time is right' shows. Basquiat came over to Edinburgh for the show, and while he was there he was asked to paint some paintings right there in the gallery. I think four stretchers were bought in each approx 100cm x 60cm. He proceeded to get to work, using some photocopies of his drawings and squeezing full tubes of acrylic over the surfaces. He got it everywhere even up the office wall in his enthusiasm. He then went out to Jenners and got a full tartan suit made for himself as he was in Scotland and had the cash.

I missed the opening, I was meant to meet someone on the corner of Cockburn street but they had already gone in and I missed the whole thing so we just went to the pub and I never ever saw him or met him. At the time my sister was running the Fruitmarket café and all week had been serving him up with various concoctions and choice home made product. He seemed to love the food and the attention, so in thanks he left one of the Fruitmarket-made painting to her. The artist and his entourage moved on but the painting remained.

She didn't really like it, not her thing. So it was left to the gallery to do with whatever.

Time went on the gallery put on lots of shows I was involved in many. The directors changed and moved on, the gallery needed cash, there was yet another crisis. "Where's that Basquiat painting? asked someone, " Isn't that now worth something now that he's dead?, It should be but who would want to buy it?, I'm sure there is a market for it , probably in the USA". So I was asked to package the thing up as it had been in one of the offices all this time. I got it down to the gallery store and started building a strong box and packing for the painting to be shipped over to Chicago, there was someone who knew someonelse who might be interested. So it was crated and labeled to go, but before I did this and never saw it again, Brian wanted to be photographed with the painting, posing in his own imitable way, we had a bit of fun with that painting. Then off it went, labeled as posters, a gift, for customs - to save money . It was eventually sold at auction for something over £10,000.

Art Stories by Iain Irving © 2003