Basquiat would frequently create figurative portraits by drawing with an oil pen and for many years this was his favourite method of working, though other mediums would be included alongside on the same canvas. We find in Baby Boom several figures drawn in this way, with simple lines to construct form and only their heads filled in solid colour. There are then areas of blue acrylic placed around the blank areas which lie between the rest of the content, probably added at the end once the main content had been finished. Besides the figures themselves, there were also lines underneath with dashed strokes which intersect each one, giving the impression of rail tracks. They also have angel-like halos above each of their heads in a similar style.
The artist was troubled mentally at different times in his life and some of these paintings offer us a direct view into his mind. He developed a consistent style across his career, eventually just varying his content and theme rather than adjusting his style particularly. This makes paintings such as Baby Boom immediately recognisable as one of his own. He would play an important role in bringing Neo-Expressionist art into the mainstream for the first time and also establishing a greater interest in the work of people from his background, who had previously been treated unfairly in many quarters.
This painting is 213.4 cm wide by 124.5 cm tall. It is most likely to now reside within a private collection as we could not find out too much information on it and also many of the artist's paintings were purchased privately. Basquiat has since risen in fame considerably, and even though he became famous during his own lifetime he did nor receive the level of exposure that he does today, meaning all of his art is now much more valuable, to the benefit of all those who snapped up his work several decades ago. There has also been a greater prominence of Afro-Caribbean artists in curated exhibitions within the wester world and this has led to more people discovering the work of artists such as these.
