ALFREDO MARTINEZ
Alfredo Martinez was a rule breaker. He saw that criminality could be the perfect counterpart to fame and he possessed the powerful talent of storytelling. He thus utilized his time in prison to supercharge his art career. He served time for forging Basquiats, got shot in Guatemala, and was tortured in a secret prison in China. He seemed to live within the controversial art underworld.
His FJMB (Fake Jean-Michel Basquiat) collection is a tribute to both Alfredo’s past and Basquiat’s masterful work. Basquiat often depicted African American sports figures such Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Robinson as they were some of his favorite heroes and champions. Basquiat's energetic style and choices of subjects reflected the very personal struggle the artist felt in his quest to become an established artist, much of the same struggles Alfredo faced.