Résonance : Jean-Michel Basquiat Et L'univers Kongo

Exhibition at Gradiva Gallery, Paris, organised in collaboration with Enrico Navarra and Bernard Dulon Galleries, 7 September - 19 November 2022

This exhibition catalogue offers a unique dialogue between the works of Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960-1988) and the Nkisi Nkonde, powerful figures of power in the Kongo cultural sphere.

A rigorous and coherent selection of drawings by Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960-1988), made between 1981 and 1987 and held in private collections, are displayed alongside some twenty remarkable "nail fetishes", anthropomorphic and zoomorphic statues from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo and Angola, chosen from the collections of the Royal Museum for Central Africa in Tervuren and some from private collections.

The project was initiated by Enrico Navarra (1953-2020), a fervent supporter of Jean-Michel Basquiat, before his death. A call for sponsorship has been launched to contribute to the restoration of the fetishes and their preservation in order to ensure their continued exhibition in the future.