From that moment on, his main body of work has been carried out using pre-stencilled posters for speedier application to walls lessening the likelihood of being caught in the act. The police put two and two together which equalled the arrest of Blek. He describes the rat as an ideal subject, 'because they create fear, they are synonymous with invasion and they are the only wild animals (apart from) pigeons that live in the city.' Blek Le Rat began spreading his message in 1981, painting stencils of rats on the streets of Paris.īlek's identity was revealed to French authorities in 1991 while stencilling a replica of Caravaggio's Madonna and Child. His pseudonym, Blek Le Rat, originates from a childhood cartoon 'Blek le Roc', using 'rat' as an anagram for 'art'.

Tracing the Origins of TraseOne – From Pioneering Singapore Street Artist to Designer of a Cultural Communityġ951 saw the birth of Xavier Prou, the man who would become one of the first graffiti artists in Paris and the originator of stencil graffiti art.

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