Biography
Xavier Prou, better known as Blek le Rat, was born in 1951 in Boulogne-Billancourt. Widely regarded as the pioneer of stencil graffiti, he began painting on Paris walls in 1981 after seeing graffiti in New York. His nickname comes from the rats he stencilled throughout the capital, an animal he described as 'the only free animal in the city'.
His style — life-size stencilled figures, recurring motifs (rats, suited men, cows, soldiers, beggars) — deeply influenced a generation of artists, including Banksy, who openly acknowledges his debt to him. He sometimes signs his pieces by miniaturising his own figures, and regularly places a rat as a marker of his passage.
Now represented by international galleries (Woodbury House in London, Galerie LJ in Paris), he continues to intervene on the streets of Paris, London, New York and Berlin. His War & Peace retrospective in Mayfair (2024) and the eponymous documentary released in 2025 confirm his status as a historic figure of the movement.
His style — life-size stencilled figures, recurring motifs (rats, suited men, cows, soldiers, beggars) — deeply influenced a generation of artists, including Banksy, who openly acknowledges his debt to him. He sometimes signs his pieces by miniaturising his own figures, and regularly places a rat as a marker of his passage.
Now represented by international galleries (Woodbury House in London, Galerie LJ in Paris), he continues to intervene on the streets of Paris, London, New York and Berlin. His War & Peace retrospective in Mayfair (2024) and the eponymous documentary released in 2025 confirm his status as a historic figure of the movement.
The site contains a total of 1 artworks by Blek le Rat in 1 countries.
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