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Blek le Rat
"Yet, if Banksy is indeed the Daddy of politically-conscious graffiti, let me introduce the Godfather, Blek Le Rat. The 59-year-old Frenchman was stencilling city walls while Banksy was getting to grips with crayons." The Independent newspaper, UK (November 2011)
Blek Le Rat is amongst the most celebrated and influential
figures in the world of street art, indeed he is regarded as the
"Godfather" of stencil graffiti. He has
profoundly influenced the careers of many of the most applauded
contemporary street artists. Banksy was famously quoted in his
unofficial biography "Every time I think I've painted
something original I find out that Blek le Rat has done it as well,
only 20 years earlier".
Blek Le Rat has also impacted disciplines outside the art world. The broader advertising, graphics and design world owes much to the artists' aesthetic. He was the first street artist to use life sized stencils. For over thirty years Blek's urban images permeate the social consciousness, bringing art to the people around the world. At times playful, at times political and often provocative, he is an artist of our time on the world stage.
The man who walks through walls is a self-portrait incorporating the body of one of Blek's favourite actors. It portrays a traveller who appears to walk through walls all over the world and thus engages with the broadest possible audience. The original stencil was created in 2004 and has been stencilled on walls in London, Buenos Aires, Leipzig, Prague and New York (see images below), making it Blek's most travelled character.
In 2010, Raj Nanda, CEO of Art Equity met Blek Le Rat at his house and studio in France. This meeting was the beginning of a relationship to create, print and co-publish landmark imagery. This edition is the first time the Australian flag has been used in print-form in the The man who walks through walls imagery, and the only flag other than Blek's national French flag used by the artist.
This screenprint was printed in the UK by renowned Master Printmaker Ian Wilkinson, the printer responsible for printing all Blek Le Rat's print editions. The three colour screenprint has a global edition of 50, and measures an impressive 100 x 74cm.
This is a unique opportunity for Art Equity clients to gain exclusive access to this world-renowned and highly collectable artist, whose editions typically sell out swiftly in Europe and the USA. This exclusive opportunity with an antipodean flavour, points to a growing engagement with world art within Australia.
