īlek initially disagreed with those who claim Banksy has copied his work: 'People say he copies me, but I don’t think so. Influence on and opinion of Banksy īritish graffiti artist Banksy has acknowledged Blek's influence stating 'every time I think I've painted something slightly original, I find out that Blek Le Rat has done it as well, only twenty years earlier.' The two have expressed mutual desire for collaboration in 2011, Blek was seen adding to a mural begun the previous year by Banksy in the Mission District, San Francisco. He has also been noted for his series of images representing the homeless, begun in 2006, which depict them standing, sitting, or laying on sidewalks, in attempts to bring attention to what he views as a global problem. Many of his pieces are pictorials of solitary individuals in opposition to larger, oppressive groups. He has had a great influence on today's graffiti art and ' guerilla art' movements, the main motivation of his work being social consciousness and the desire to bring art to the people. From that point on, he has worked exclusively with pre-stenciled posters, citing the speedier application of the medium to walls, as well as lessened punishment should he be caught in the act. īlek's identity was revealed to French authorities in 1991 when he was arrested while stencilling a replica of Caravaggio's Madonna and Child, with the connection to Blek and his artwork being made by police. He is credited with being the inventor of the life-sized stencil, as well as the first to transform stencil from basic lettering into pictoral art. He also stated the influence of Canadian artist Richard Hambleton, who painted large-scale human figures in the 1980s. Initially influenced by the early graffiti art of New York City after a visit in 1971, he chose a style which he felt better suited Paris, due to the differing architecture of the two cities. His name originates from a childhood cartoon 'Blek le Roc', using 'rat' as an anagram for 'art'. He began his artwork in 1981, painting stencils of rats on the street walls of Paris, describing the rat as 'the only free animal in the city', and one which 'spreads the plague everywhere, just like street art'.

'Ballerina' by Blek le Rat at the 941 Geary Gallery, San Francisco

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