"The Best Art In The World"
By PIERRE FRANCILLION, AUG, 2008
On the 12th of August 25 years ago a great artist and good friend died . His name was Jean Michel Basquiat. My personal nickname for him was “German Shepherd”. He always thought that it would be a great title for a self portrait. When he died I went through a death also, it seems to be a common thread amongst those he was close too. He was a presence with an incredible synchronicity, it surprised those who did not know him how he seemed to get things right at the wrong moments. Personally, it was a thrill to me whenever these events occurred. We shared this in common. Here are a few pics from the get together amongst those were close to him, all were some of his closest friends.
He was a special person and we saw his talent from the
very start...Twenty Years? -Maripol and Patricia Fields
"He was a great artist, but a bad boyfriend." - Jennifer Goode
"I take my hat off to you Jean Michel"
- DJ High Priest/Nick Taylor
"New York and the world of art was never the same...He
wrote on my jacket 'Kick Me'" - Hubert Kretchmer
"I still think of him and miss him, I took a moment earlier
to contemplate it all." - Susanne Mallouk
"He was a close friend..I think of him from time to time."
- Glenn O'Brien
"I think that Jean's generosity is greatly underrated.
Although he could be cruel, aloof but he was also cool. He
was a great teacher and shared aesthetic and made the
unseen beautiful. There is a real generosity with this and not
many artists share the same way."
- Michael Holman and David Herskovitz
Pierre Francillon is a photographer and writer in New York.
nabomoca3@gmail.com