Jean‑Michel Basquiat was one of the most important American artists of the 20th century. He first achieved notoriety as part of SAMO, an informal graffiti duo who wrote enigmatic epigrams in the cultural hotbed of the Lower East Side of Manhattan during the late 1970s where the hip-hop, post-punk and street art movements had coalesced. By the 1980s, Basquiat was exhibiting his neo-expressionist paintings in galleries and museums internationally. His art appropriated poetry, drawing and painting. Basquiat was born on December 22, 1960 and died of a heroin overdose at his art studio at age 27, on August 12, 1988.
Jim Morrison – No. 693
Jim Morrison was an American singer-songwriter and poet, best remembered as the lead singer of Los Angeles rock band The Doors. From a young age, “The Lizard King” developed an alcohol dependency that led to his death at the age of 27 in Paris. Morrison is alleged to have died of a heroin overdose, but as no autopsy was performed, the exact cause of his death is still disputed. He was well known for often improvising spoken word poetry passages while the band played live. Due to his wild personality and performances, Morrison is regarded by critics and fans as one of the most iconic, charismatic and pioneering frontmen in rock music history. He was born on December 8, 1943.
In October 2012, my wife Heidi and I visited Morrison’s grave in the Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris during our trip to Europe. At this same cemetery are the bodies of Oscar Wilde, Marcel Proust, Frédéric Chopin and many other famous artists and personalities.