Graffiti is writing or drawings made on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple written "monikers" to elaborate wall paintings, and has existed since ancient times, with examples dating back to ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, and the Roman Empire.
Vandalism is the action involving deliberate destruction of or damage to public or private property.
Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based street artist, political activist, and film director whose real name and identity remain unconfirmed and the subject of speculation. Active since the 1990s, his satirical street art and subversive epigrams combine dark humour with graffiti executed in a distinctive stenciling technique. His works of political and social commentary have appeared on streets, walls, and bridges throughout the world. His work grew out of the Bristol underground scene, which involved collaborations between artists and musicians. Banksy says that he was inspired by 3D, a graffiti artist and founding member of the musical group Massive Attack.
Revs is a New York City graffiti artist whose wheat paste stickers, roller pieces, murals, sculptures, and spray-painted diary entries earned him the reputation of an artist-provocateur over the course of two decades. "Revs" is his tag name; his real name is unknown. Before adopting the tag name "Revs" he had used the tag name "Revlon". in a 1993 New York Times interview he said he decided to shorten it to "Revs" following an epiphany he experienced after contemplating suicide on the Manhattan Bridge.
Street art is visual art created in public locations for public visibility. It has been associated with the terms "independent art", "post-graffiti", "neo-graffiti" and guerrilla art.
Benjamin Flynn, known professionally as Eine, is an English artist based in London.
Blek le Rat is a French graffiti artist. He was one of the first graffiti artists in Paris, and has been described as the "Father of stencil graffiti".
Parachuting Rat was a series of artworks in Melbourne, Australia, created by Banksy. On 26 April 2010, one was painted over by council contractors, leading to local and international coverage and debate on the nature of street art and its preservation, and new measures for its protection.
King Robbo was an English underground graffiti artist. His feud with the artist Banksy was the subject of a Channel 4 television documentary called Graffiti Wars, first shown in August 2011.
Darren Cullen is a London-based professional graffiti artist who is commonly known by the tag name SER. Cullen emerged as an artist from the British graffiti art scene in the early 1980s.
Dolk, is the pseudonym of Norway's most recognized stencil artist, Andreas Hamran Færø. His motives are often pop-cultural references put into a humoristic or critical context. Dolk's works can be seen on walls in cities such as Bergen, Berlin, Copenhagen, Barcelona, Oslo, Lisbon, Stockholm, London, Prague and Melbourne. Since 2006, Dolk has stepped into galleries where he has had several exhibitions.
Nick Walker is a British graffiti artist originating from Bristol, England. His paintings often feature a bowler-hatted gentleman 'vandal'.
MFONE is the graffiti moniker of Daniel Montano. He was an American best known for his graffiti who died on June 10, 2017, from a heroin overdose at the age of 31. He had been using Vicodin, Xanax, cocaine, heroin and marijuana for 15 years. He was active in Pittsburgh in the mid and late 2000s. At the peak of his tagging activity, he was considered to be "the most notorious tagger in [Pittsburgh] history." According to police, he is the most prolific graffiti writer in the city's history. He replaced Mook in local graffiti folklore. His graffiti activities are alleged to have caused up to $713,801 in damage.
Better Out Than In was a residency undertaken by the pseudonymous graffiti artist and political activist Banksy in New York City during October 2013. Banksy unveiled at least one work of art daily, documenting it on both a dedicated website and an Instagram account. The majority of the works were stencil graffiti and chiefly political, a distinctive characteristic of Banksy. Other pieces and multimedia exhibits toyed with dark humor and satire.
Steve Lazarides is a British-Greek Cypriot publisher, photographer, collector and curator. He has helped popularise street art and underground art.
Forgive Us Our Trespassing is a piece by graffiti artist Banksy depicting a kneeling boy with a spray-painted halo. The image can be found on a wall in Salt Lake City, Utah. In 2010, the image was distributed in the form of posters to promote the artist's film Exit Through the Gift Shop.
Well Hung Lover, also called Naked Man Hanging From Window and simply Naked Man, is a mural by the anonymous street artist Banksy, on a wall in Frogmore Street, Bristol, England.
Kissing Coppers is a Banksy stencil that pictures two British policemen kissing. It was originally unveiled on the wall of The Prince Albert pub in Brighton in 2004. It gained significant attention due to Banksy's notoriety as a provocative street artist and activist. Kissing Coppers has frequently been regarded as one of Banksy’s most notable works, so much so that it was selected as the most iconic British piece of art at The Other Art Fair in London.
Since the 1980s, the introduction of hip hop and electro music brought street art and graffiti to the UK on a large scale. This was further expanded with the introduction of custom made spray paint which allowed artists to create even more artistic and experimental graffiti. Notably, Banksy is arguably one of the most famous graffiti artists in the UK, but it was the crews such as DryBreadZ who first gained recognition. Examples of UK graffiti artists include: Banksy, Stik, Inkie and My Dog Sighs.
