Pez Dispenser, 1984: One of Basquiat’s most recognizable artworks, Pez Dispenser depicts a dinosaur with the artist’s signature crown. The title connects the work to the influence of pop culture and commodification on the 1980’s art scene.
Jean-Michel Basquiat is one of the best known artists of his generation and is widely considered one of the most important artists of the 20th century. His career in art spanned the late 1970s through the 1980s until his death in 1988, at the age of 27. The conjunction of various media is an integral element of Basquiat's art. His paintings are typically covered with text and codes of all kinds: words, letters, numerals, pictograms, logos, map symbols, diagrams and more.
