1. Neo-Expressionism

2. Samo
Samo was the graffiti tag of soon to be artist Jean Michael Basquiat in the 1970s.
He often made political statements in his graffiti, and expressed controversial thoughts.
These political graffitis made people start to question who Samo was, which jump started Basquiat’s career as an artist.

3. Basquiat
Had a rough childhood which ultimately led him to drop out of school.
After the end of SAMO he lived on the streets peddling drugs and painting postcards for money.
He was soon featured in a group gallery and people loved his work.
Basquiat’s paintings sold for as much as $50k.
Died at 27 from a drug overdose.

6. Graffiti as a Movement
Just decades ago people were quick to judge graffiti as vandalism. Today ideas have changed and it is considered one of the most mainstream art forms.
Art is about making a statement, something that graffiti is based on. Graffiti began as a rebellion to the state or institution that the art was put on. Today it represents attitudes on politics, religion, and culture.
One of the most successful and popular graffiti artists of our generation is called Banksy.

7. Banksy
A graffiti artist, painter, and sculptor, Banksy makes extremely controversial art that has impacted people around the world and created an entire street art subculture.
Banksy’s identity is unknown.
Banksy originally did art in America, but in recent years relocated to London.
He started stenciling a lot of his works in order to create art faster and decrease his chance at getting caught by police.
He organized a recreation of Disneyland called Dismaland in 2015.