Blek The Rat : The father of Stencils

He begins to paint in 1981, at first with a friend under the collective name of Blek. In 1992, he is condemned for a strong fine to the magistrates’ court for ” degradation of possessions belonging to others “. Since then, he does not paint any more directly on walls, but on posters which he sticks on the wall.
His paintings represent generally anonymous or famous profile life-sized.
Today his work influences thousands of urban artists all over the world and it is not surprising to find in London, New York City or Tokyo artists who claim to belong to his school. Among these the English artist Banksy: ” Every time I paint something, I discover that Blek The Rat already painted it 20 years ago.”

Blek The Rat official sites : Bleklerat and Blek The rat