I have been transfixed by an image of graffiti that I found set as a friend's cover photo on Facebook. The pillar reads:
"SAMO© as an end to the 9-to-5, went 2 college, not 2nite honey blues - SAMO© 4 U."
This phrase has stuck in my mind for the past week. My friend found it in a online gallery of some of the duos best work. Perhaps it's because I've so recently gone through my burn out, or maybe I feel that I failed Basquiat - aka SAMO© (a portmanteau of Same ol’ shit) - by submitting to the 9 to 5 grind,
I first discovered Basquiat's work through a rap song:
"Ain't got no Basquiats don't want em" -J. Cole.
In my senior year of college, I watched a series of documentaries on Netflix and Youtube investigating his life. This followed by a few trips to the MOMA and when an Untitled painting of his made it's way to Seattle last year, I immediately went with a friend - she was less impressed than I was.
SAMO© was Basquiat's original graffiti collaboration with his friend Al Diaz. Throughout the late 1970s, they would tag New York City, commenting on what dissatisfied them about the world. All of this came before Basquiat ballooned into the larger-than-life celebrity friend of Andy Warhol and Keith Haring. He knew early on that he would be famous, as Diaz remembers, but these early musings summarized a lot of the thought behind his later work.
I loved how his studio art was so chaotic, intricate and juvenile. The pieces felt grand, with little details on these massive canvas, but also disorganized, with things crossed out and drawn hastily. As I stood in front of them, I spent hours consumed by every little detail, wondering why words were crossed out or lists were added in small of shoots. I understood where Basquiat was coming from - he could technically make better art, but he didn't need to give his art meaning. Instead, the art contained many one off commentaries - ironic quips or distortions of the status quo.
Of course, Basquiat's life is foreign to me as someone who went through "the system." Perhaps the only thing Basquiat and I share is growing up in New York City. However, that image in no more than fifteen words captures the frequent disappointment and frustration of the daily grind. I felt the fatigue expressed by not being able to do the things I wanted with the ones I loved because I had to get up for work the next day.
I tried to explain the quote to my sister, who is still in college, and she asked me a few times what it meant. Maybe because she's an aspiring dancer, she couldn't understand putting your dreams on hold for a career with an undefined metric of success. But I have been wondering, why do so many people take that path and then complain about the very jobs they got.
Of course, Basquiat's story met an untimely end, one of the many great artists in the "27 Club." However, there must be some middle ground between corporate boredom and radical counter culture. Maybe it’s enough to find a routine you enjoy well enough and to surround yourself with people who simply make you happy. But also, maybe it’s ok to demand more and look for something that rushes you out of bed every morning because there is nothing else you would rather be doing.