The Show that never Was Reuniting eight key Basquiat works that mark the graffiti artist's transition to painterly autonomy. Numerous publications and exhibitions have examined Jean-Michel Basquiat's extensive oeuvre that consists of more than 3000 works, this catalogue though focuses on eight paintings only: In the summer of 1982, Basquiat traveled to Modena, Italy, for one of his first solo exhibitions in Europe at the gallery of Emilio Mazzoli. Within just a few days, he painted a group of large-format paintings that surpassed his previous work not only in terms of their scale. Each at least two by four meters in size, they mark the transition from graffiti spraying in the streets of Manhattan to painting on canvas. At the same time, they reflect an artist coming into his own. The paintings - including masterpieces that today are considered pivotal and among the most outstanding of his oeuvre - have never been shown together. This catalogue revisits this crucial moment of Basquiat's career some 40 years ago and reunites them for the first time.

Basquiat first came to prominence when he collaborated with Al Diaz to spray-paint enigmatic statements under the pseudonym SAMO©. From there he went on to work with others on collages, Xerox art, postcards, performances, and music before establishing his reputation as one of the most important painters of his generation. This book places his collaborations in a wider art historical context and looks at his career through the lens of performance. Six thematic chapters offer compelling research, with essays from poet Christian Campbell on SAMO©; curator Carlo McCormick on New York/New Wave; writer Glenn O'Brien on the downtown scene; academic Jordana Moore Saggese on Basquiat's relationship to film and television; and music scholar Francesco Martinelli on Basquiat's obsession with jazz. This insightful survey also features rare archival material and extensive illustrations, demonstrating how Basquiat's legacy remains more powerful and relevant than ever today.