The Studio Museum in Harlem revealed its new building to the press ahead of its public reopening on November 15, showcasing a major new acquisition: Jean-Michel Basquiat's 1984 painting *Bayou*, the first Basquiat painting to enter the museum's collection. The work was gifted in 2023 by financier Joseph Perella and his wife Amy, with Joseph having mentored Raymond J. McGuire, an ARTnews Top 200 Collector and the museum's board chair.
This acquisition is significant because few U.S. institutions own a Basquiat painting—MoMA, for instance, has only shown one on loan, and the Met gained its first Basquiat only in 2021. The gift underscores the Studio Museum's growing prominence and its ability to attract major donations, while also filling a notable gap in institutional holdings of the artist's work, especially given Basquiat's deep ties to New York.