The North Carolina Museum of Art Announces “Basquiat × Banksy”
Raleigh, N.C. — The North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA), a division of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR), announces “Basquiat × Banksy,” on view Nov. 22, 2026 – May 30, 2027. Featuring two major contemporary paintings, this landmark presentation pairs Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Boy and Dog in a Johnnypump (1982) with Banksy’s response, Banksquiat. Boy and Dog in Stop and Search (2018). Placed in dialogue, the two monumental works reveal connections among street art, contemporary art and popular imagination.
“We are excited to bring these two incredible works together for NCMA audiences,” said Interim Director and CEO, Katherine White. “The show invites visitors to make connections between two artists whose ideas and artwork have shaped contemporary visual culture while exploring questions of identity, power and popular culture.”
“Basquiat × Banksy” marks the first time Banksy’s work has been exhibited at NCMA and only the second time artwork by Basquiat has travelled to the Museum since the 2011 exhibition “30 Americans.” The exhibition originated at the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C. It was organized by the Hirshhorn’s Associate Curator Betsy Johnson.
This exhibition reflects the NCMA’s dedication to providing access to world-class art and artworks to the citizens of North Carolina and aligns with the Museum’s strategic plan goals to highlight dynamic storytelling that sparks dialogue, connection and curiosity.
About Jean-Michel Basquiat
Basquiat is one of the best-known artists of his generation and is widely considered one of the most important artists of the 20th century. His career in art spanned the late 1970s through the 1980s until his death in 1988, at the age of 27. Basquiat works are edgy and raw, and through a bold sense of color and composition, he maintains a fine balance between seemingly contradictory forces such as control and spontaneity, menace and wit, urban imagery and primitivism. The Basquiat brand embodies the values and aspirations of young, international urban culture. Basquiat often incorporated words into his paintings. Before his career as a painter began, he produced punk-inspired postcards for sale on the street, and become known for the political–poetical graffiti under the name of SAMO. The conjunction of various media is an integral element of Basquiat’s art. His artworks are typically covered with text and codes of all kinds—words, letters, numerals, pictograms, logos, map symbols, diagrams and more—and feature multi-panel paintings and individual canvases with exposed stretcher bars, the surface dense with writing, collage and imagery.
About Banksy
Banksy, arguably the most famous street artist working today, has managed to conceal his identity despite widespread speculation. His first identifiable artworks appeared on trains and buildings around Bristol, England, in the early 1990s. Early in his career, he developed his signature style, a mostly monochromatic stencil technique adopted partly for speed of execution and partly in homage to French artist Blek le Rat (a.k.a. Xavier Prou), who pioneered stencil-based graffiti works in Paris in the 1980s. Since Banksy’s first large-scale mural appeared in Bristol in 1999, he has become known for witty pranks and antiauthoritarian political works. In 2018, he famously caused one of his paintings to self-destruct seconds after it was sold at auction (ironically, the half-shredded work was later auctioned for a much higher price). Although his identity is secret, he has left a trail of clues in interviews and the documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010).
Details
“Basquiat × Banksy”
Nov. 22, 2026 – May 30, 2027
East Building, Level A
Free
Support
The national tour of Basquiat x Banksy is organized by the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, with generous support from Kenneth C. Griffin and Griffin Catalyst.
Artwork Attributions
Jean-Michel Basquiat, born. Brooklyn, New York (1960–-1988), Boy and Dog in a Johnnypump, 1982, acrylic, crayon, and spray paint on canvas, 96 × 164 in., Private collection, © Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat. Licensed by Artestar, New York; Image courtesy of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian, Washington, DC.
Banksy, born near Bristol, London, Banksquiat. Boy and Dog in Stop and Search, 2018, acrylic and wax marker on birch wood, 96 x 135 5/8 in., Private collection; Courtesy of Pest Control, Image courtesy of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian, Washington, DC.
Artwork images for press available here (PW: bxb).
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About the North Carolina Museum of Art
The North Carolina Museum of Art’s collection spans more than 5,000 years, from antiquity to the present, making the institution one of the premier art museums in the South. The museum’s collection provides educational, aesthetic, intellectual and cultural experiences for the citizens of North Carolina and beyond. The 164-acre Museum Park showcases the connection between art and nature through site-specific works of environmental art. The museum offers changing special exhibitions, classes, lectures, family activities, films and concerts. The museum is located at 2110 Blue Ridge Rd. in Raleigh and is home to the People’s Collection. It is the art museum of the State of North Carolina, under the auspices of Gov. Josh Stein; an agency of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, guided by the direction of Secretary Pamela B. Cashwell; and led by Interim Director Katherine White. For more information, please visit ncartmuseum.org.
About the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR) manages, promotes and enhances the things that people love about North Carolina—its diverse arts and culture, rich history, and spectacular natural areas. At more than 100 sites across the state, the department enhances education, stimulates economic development, improves public health, expands accessibility and strengthens community resiliency. For more information please visit dncr.nc.gov.