Explore the artwork of American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. Basquiat: Figures, Signs, Symbols is a new exhibition at PAMM, which brings together nearly a dozen works by the iconic New York-based artist under one roof for the first time.

Son of a Haitian father and Puerto Rican mother, Basquiat was fluent in French, Spanish, and English. He even spent much of his childhood in Puerto Rico. His Caribbean upbringing deeply influenced his understanding of the world and the cultural variety in a city like New York.

During our tour of the exhibition, learn about abstraction versus figuration, bilingualism, and the use of color and text in painting. Then, create your own Basquiat-inspired paintings on canvas.

For our Storytime session, enjoying a reading of “Life Doesn’t Frighten Me,” a poem of the same name written by the great American writer Maya Angelou, with images and illustrations of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s artwork compiled by Sara Jane Boyers.