This week, in celebration of Black History Month, Drago suggests to have a look at the amazing documentary Boom for Real: The Late Teenage Years of Jean-Michel Basquiat (2017). Sit back and discover the remarcable artist that frever changed art history.
Available on Youtube, Amazon Prime and Google Play, this movie follows Basquiat’s formative years as a struggling teenager before his art brought him fame and international recognition. Directed by Sara Driver, the documentary film captures the gritty vibrancy of New York City in the 1970s, the cultural and socil movements taking hold and the people Basquiat encountered – all which helped to shape Basquiat’s transcendent artistic journey.
The celebrated American artist left a legacy that defined the genre of Street Art and influenced generations of artists after him.

Boom for Real: The Late Teenage Years of Jean-Michel Basquiat follows Basquiat’s life pre-fame and how New York City, the times, the people and the movements surrounding him formed the artist he became. Using never-before-seen works, writings and photographs, director Sara Driver, who was part of the New York arts scene herself, worked closely and collaboratively with friends and other artists who emerged from that period: Jim Jarmusch, James Nares, Fab Five Freddy, Glenn O’Brien, Kenny Scharf, Lee Quinones, Patricia Field, Luc Sante and many others. Drawing upon their memories and anecdotes, the film also uses period film footage, music and images to visually re-recreate the era, drawing a portrait of Jean-Michel and Downtown New York City -pre AIDS, President Reagan, the real estate and art booms – before anyone was motivated by money and ambition. The definition of fame, success and power were very different than today – to be a penniless but published poet was the height of success, until everything changed in the early 1980s. This is New York City’s story before that change.