Leonardo da Vinci's Greatest Hits

Leonardo da Vinci's Greatest Hits
Artist	Jean-Michel Basquiat
Year	1982
Medium	Acrylic, oil paintstick and paper collage on canvas
Movement	Neo-expressionism
Dimensions	183.3 cm × 213.2 cm (72.2 in × 83.9 in)
Owner	The Schorr Family Collection

Leonardo da Vinci's Greatest Hits is a painting created by American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat in 1982.

Analysis

Jean-Michel Basquiat primarily used texts as reference sources for his artwork.^[1] He drew inspiration from the medical book Gray's Anatomy, which had been given to him by his mother as a child while he recovered from a car accident in the hospital.^[2] Leonardo da Vinci's Greatest Hits references Renaissance man Leonardo da Vinci's anatomical drawings of body parts and graphic notations. Basquiat brought symbolism into this work with a depiction of African American folk hero John Henry on the lower left.^[3] Among the scattering of words written across a white collage, Basquiat's signature three crown motif appears three times. This painting "is almost a summary or encyclopedia of his work," said curator Kelly Baum.^[4]

Exhibitions

Leonardo da Vinci's Greatest Hits was exhibited at the Fun Gallery in the East Village of Manhattan in 1982.^[1] The painting is owned by Herb and Lenore Schorr. In 2015, it was loaned to the Princeton University Art Museum in Princeton, New Jersey for the exhibition Collecting Contemporary, 1960–2015: Selections from the Schorr Collection.^[3]

See also

• List of paintings by Jean-Michel Basquiat
• 1982 in art

References

1. Saggese, Jordana Moore (2021-03-02). The Jean-Michel Basquiat Reader: Writings, Interviews, and Critical Responses. Univ of California Press. pp. 25, 171. ISBN 978-0-520-30515-1.
2. Hoban, Phoebe (September 26, 1988). "Samo Is Dead". New York Magazine: 39.
3. Purcell, Janet (2015-07-01). "Fine Arts: Princeton U. Art Museum displaying extensive Schorr collection". nj. Retrieved 2022-04-03.
4. Gorce, Tammy La (2015-06-26). "Contemporary Art From a Generous Couple". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-04-13.