Anatomy, Head Of The Mandible
Anatomy, Head Of The Mandible
Signed Print
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Screenprint, 1982
Signed Print Edition of 18
H 76cm x W 56cm
Critical Review
In this image Basquiat turns his eye towards the largest bone of the skull: the mandible. The sketch is concentrated near the centre of the image, with a single label indicating the ‘head of the mandible’. The depiction of the joint bears great similarity to the copyright sign, which can be seen throughout Basquiat’s oeuvre. Even in the midst of the sombre and strictly observational character of the Anatomy prints, fragments of the artist’s loud, frenetic canvases can be found. Moreover, the incorporation of the copyright sign into the anatomical sketch taps into the themes of commodification under capitalism and its interaction with oppressed identities.
On the copyright sign in Basquiat’s work, Rene Ricard remarks: “Far more ambiguous than the crown is the copyright sign, which in its direct function touches upon ownership and the valuation thereof. Painted on the walls of other people’s buildings, it not only demonstrated SAMO’s authorship but generally questioned the idea of legality itself, like all sprayed tags turning anonymity into an open profession and claiming a formal legal protection for an activity that in reality remained illegal.”
