On 12 August, 1988, Basquiat died from an accidental drug overdose; he was 27 years old. Basquiat was buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn. Today, visitors continue to frequent the gravesite, often leaving tributes to the artist: a lighter, a crayon, a tube of paint.

On 22 December 1960, Jean-Michel Basquiat was born in Brooklyn, NY to Gérard and Matilde Basquiat. During his childhood, Jean-Michel and his family lived in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn (close to the Brooklyn Museum, of which Jean-Michel maintained a junior membership).

When he was 15, Basquiat ran away from home; for two weeks, he lived in Washington Square Park, nearby to his high school, City-as-School.

Years later, Basquiat sold his graffiti art – including canvases, works on paper, postcards and tee shirts – in the park.

57 Great Jones Street was the space where, from 1983-1988, Basquiat lived, created his art and, ultimately, died.

Andy Warhol purchased the space in 1970 and leased it to Basquiat in 1983 for use as a studio and apartment. In August 1988, Basquiat suffered a heroin overdose in the space.

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Basquiat attended City-As-School, an alternative high school geared towards artistically-minded students, for a year before dropping out at 17. There he met Al Diaz, a graffitist – the pair become close friends and artistic collaborators, most notably on the early project SAMO©.

SAMO©, short for "same old shit," began as a comic character, but soon became the pair's calling card; "SAMO©" graffiti tags began popping up throughout SoHo, lower Manhattan and the D train.

Throughout the mid- and late-1970s, Basquiat and Al Diaz, his friend and collaborator, tagged their calling card – SAMO© – throughout SoHo and other parts of lower Manhattan (along with the D train).

In 1979, Diaz and Basquiat had a falling out, and the collaboration came to an end – infamously, graffiti proclaiming "SAMO© is Dead" began appearing throughout the city.

Following the end of SAMO©, Basquiat began to concentrate on his individual art, and began selling his work – along with tee shirts and postcards – in Washington Square Park.

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Opening on June 1st 1980, The Times Square Show was an exhibition organized by the avant-garde artist collective, Collaborative Projects Inc., in an abandoned massage parlor at the epicenter of New York’s entertainment and pornography district. This show launched the careers of artists such as Keith Haring, Kenny Scharf, Nan Goldin, Jenny Holzer, Kiki Smith – and most significantly, was Jean-Michel Basquiat’s first show as both graffiti artist “SAMO” and a painter.

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In 1980, Annina Nosei opened a new gallery location at 100 Prince Street. She was instrumental in launching Basquiat’s career, working closely with him from 1981-1983. Basquiat also used Nosei’s basement as a studio space.

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The Mudd Club was a nightclub in the TriBeCa area of New York City, USA, that operated from 1978 to 1983 as a venue for underground music and counterculture events.

Basquiat frequented The Mudd Club regularly: it's where he played with his band, Gray; where he meets fellow artist Diego Cortez and musicians including Madonna and Blondie; and it's where Basquiat and other East Village artists host numerous exhibitions of their work.

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Since opening its first New York location in 1979, Mr. Chow's has hosted many of the city's top figures in fashion, the arts and music – including Basquiat.

Excerpt from Andy Warhol’s Diary, Wednesday, November 14, 1984:

"Cabbed to Mr. Chow’s for Jean-Michel’s party ($7). And it was great. I feel like I wasted two years running around with Christopher and Peter, just kids who talk about the Baths and things, when here, now, I’m going around with Jean-Michel and we’re getting so much art work done.

Jean-Michel became the hostest with the mostest last night. He said it cost him $12,000— the Cristal was flowing."

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In 1990, several of Basquiat's pivotal works on paper from his own collection – including the present work – were exhibited together in a celebrated posthumous show at the Robert Miller Gallery; the show cemented the reputation of Basquiat’s works on paper as a pivotal part of his oeuvre.