Will blek le rat survive for decades??

[rob3786]

Do you think blek le rat will become more popular in time and eventually with his prints selling for huge amounts as the creator of stencil street art???

I personally think him and banksy will be the ones in years to come that survive.

cream always rises to the top

no

(well not his prints anyway - obviously he's stood the test of time, he's been around bloody ages already!)

[rudecopper]

nope, ultimately, i think his work is boring.

well he has lasted 5 and a half decades already.

if you mean his art, well that has been around 2 decades and we are still talking about it.

won't last forever as there is nothing beneath the surface. Prints don't work, neither do the canvases and the street stuff relies 100% on placement

in fairness to Blek, of late he is more about pioneering techniques
but then saying that his works at the recent BRP show were amazing

He will be around for a long long time to come

You do not need every single piece to have a great meaning behind it. Blek has already stood the test of time and people have paid big money out on his work.

[romanywg]

Only if he creates a whole new body of work. He no longer pushes the boundaries but is a follower and not a leader anymore.

[eddiedangerous]

Jun 16, 2008 11:06:40 GMT 1 romanywg said:

Only if he creates a whole new body of work. He no longer pushes the boundaries but is a follower and not a leader anymore.

exactly!

who is he following exactly?

[top]

Blek is still doing it..

He did all the hard work already..

[jon11]

how old is blek?

[top]

56? or 57?

[romanywg]

He's not following anyone. It's just a figure of speech. Stencilling as a art form has changed so much in the past few years, just look at Logan Hicks, Kngee, C215, Lex, Broken Crow, Dotmasters, Artiste-Ouvrier. They are all creating totally different works using stencils. IMO Bleks lives in the past and his work to me seems tired and boring. He had the perfect oppotunity to show everyone that he is still creative at the Cans Festival and what does he do.... a sheep and the man who walks through walls. WOW!
I reckon the man who walks through walls was half inched from Ernest Pignon Ernest who did a similar piece, only 20 years earlier.

[dmandpenfold]

55, i think, didn't he start his street work in the 70's or maybe very early 80's

[top]

Born in Paris 1951

[theycallmestephen]

Blek’s work isn't exciting any more. His stencils are old hat and whilst I appreciate he might have been one of the forefathers of the stencil art street scene his contemporaries have left him largely in the shade.

His work was disappointing at cans, a recycled image of a man amongst others. As Romanywg pointed out this really was his chance to show how relevant he is but instead he played it safe and produced an unmemorable wall whilst people like vhils, dotmasters and c215 produced walls that really caught people’s attention and showed how things can be pushed forward.

If it was not for Banksy’s favorable mentioning of Blek as a pioneer of the art form I doubt he’d get half the attention he does.

[freeisthemagic]

Do you mean.....

Will he get me rich.

or

Will his work be remembered?

people like vhils, and the others have more to prove that Blek - he is the 'godfather'
- yes he could do with some new stuff but he has stuck with his successful folmula - albeit very french
- he will last longer that lots of the young upstarts riding Banksy's tail - if only because he was an influence - with his politics and his style - and the rats...

He says himself he owes Banksy a lot - but then so does the entire Street art scene.

[londonliam08]

does anyone knoe when the vhilis will drop at pow???

Jun 16, 2008 13:48:01 GMT 1 londonliam08 said:

does anyone knoe when the vhilis will drop at pow???

its there now

sorry couldnt resist

[moleman]

the thing you forget is as this art scene get more and more comercial bleks stuff will be what the middle classes and upper classes will go for. with word like the god father and his un offensive work he will be in great demand especially in my mind the two dancing prints.
I like bleks work and agree its not new but it is timeless

[GD303uk]

Blek might stand the test of time but , agree with some off the above posts , blek has not progressed or been innovative , kngee and hicks etc have taken stencil art to the next step .
the banksy quote is tired now and blek cant ride it for long,
with his stance on Bethlehem and his reason for creating David shows his politics is at odds with a lot of Graff art / street art and its fans.
nice images to find in situ , but his show and recent prints are disappointing
i have had 6 of Bleks prints 5 framed and after reading the article posted the other week have removed them from my walls, the aesthetic value is lost when i learn his politics and get a peep at what looks like a narcissistic artist.

now you know why he wasnt invited to Bethlehem

[theycallmestephen]

must have missed that article, what are blek's political views then??

i thought everyone knew he was pro-israli

I think he cashed his pension in at the BRP show. Can't see any other reason for the release of so many prints. Also a bit perturbed with the need to put himself in so many of his pieces. Kind of goes against the ethos of urban art.

Jun 16, 2008 14:57:18 GMT 1 @buffin said:

..... Kind of goes against the ethos of urban art.

What is this ethos?

considering all most graf artists did years back was scrawl thier names in fancy (or not so fancy - Eine's roller Tags) ways - how is a self portrait for a graphical artist any different? - Goldie seems to have a down a couple on those pieces S'iteditions have.

[nadir]

Jun 16, 2008 14:03:53 GMT 1 GD303uk said:

i have had 6 of Bleks prints 5 framed and after reading the article posted the other week have removed them from my walls, the aesthetic value is lost when i learn his politics and get a peep at what looks like a narcissistic artist.

Good for you. Blek has now lost all credibility as far as I am concerned. Was keen to get a 'Beggar' but I wont bother now.