Photo: Christie’s Images LTD. 2025
Jean-Michel Basquiat's Sábado por la Noche (Saturday Night), a piece that symbolizes a pivotal moment in the career of the New York born and raised artist, was sold at a Christie's auction in Hong Kong. The painting, a highlight of the 20th/21st Century Evening Sale, sold for 112,625,000 HKD ($14,479,068.54). Having been part of a well-regarded Asian private collection before the sale, Sábado por la Noche (Saturday Night) was expected to raise between $13 and $16 million.
“It is a privilege to present Sabado por la Noche (Saturday Night), an iconic masterpiece that reverberates with Basquiat’s inimitable visual language,” says Ada Tsui, head of evening sale, 20th/21st Century Art, at Christie’s Asia Pacific, via a statement. “Christie's has been cultivating the Asian market for Basquiat for many years. His powerful work transcends borders and speaks to collectors all over the world, and this sale in Hong Kong is a testament to the demand we see in the region for Western masterpieces of this calibre.”
The painting, standing at 77 x 88 inches, was painted in 1984, the same year he had his first solo exhibition in a museum. Held at the Fruitmarket Gallery in Edinburgh, this event would later transfer to the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London and the Museum Boiimans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, bringing his work to new audiences and cementing his fame as a trailblazing visual artist. Despite the artist's renown, Sabado por la Noche (Saturday Night) wasn't exhibited until 1992, at Musée Cantini's Jean-Michel Basquiat, Une Rétrospective exhibit in Marseille.
Christie's calls the non-linear story presented by Sabado por la Noche (Saturday Night) “a visual equivalent to the improvisation and polyrhythmic complexity of bebop jazz, a form of music he loved.” The multi-layered, eye-catching composition presents many examples of his famous techniques—boastful brushwork and dynamic lines—serving as a quick introduction to what made Basquiat's work so compelling. The painting stars two elliptically-eyed figures, which represent griots. These oral storytellers from West Africa, tasked with keeping their culture’s historical, mythical, and religious narratives alive, depict themes close to Basquiat's heart.
“Sabado por la Noche (Saturday Night) is a stunning synthesis of the world as Basquiat knew it, channeling influences from Black history to Pop art, via jazz, the Spanish language, and mathematical sequences,” says Christie's. “A large part of his skill was in ensuring that those influences were kept in perfect visual balance. If Basquiat was a griot, he was a beguiling one, telling a personal tale with universal impact.”
Jean-Michel Basquiat's Sábado Por la Noche (Saturday Night), a piece that symbolizes a pivotal moment in his career, was sold for $14M.
Photo: Christie’s Images LTD. 2025
Sources: Sabado por la Noche (Saturday night), 1984: Basquiat's Visual Odyssey; Sabado por la Noche (Saturday Night) at Christie's
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