Status Updates From Blek le Rat (Street Graphic...

"The Château de Bagnac, in Limousin, had been abandoned by its owners after a fire in the 1950s and lay empty. It offered Blek the chance to continue his work in tranquility, and the ancient walls of this magnificent place were as inspiring to him as the walls of the towns had been.

...Blek returns every year to the Château de Bagnac in order to paint new images on the walls."

"So, Blek returned to France and kept the colourful graffiti images he'd seen in the back of his mind while studying etching, lithography, and seriography at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. He then went on to study architecture, which taught him about the impact of space and the creative possibilities of the urban environment."

"...in order to avoid being re-arrested, he began to paste up posters and cutouts of his stencils instead of writing directly onto the walls. If a policeman caught him, he would simply pull the poster down and walk away. With this alternative technique, Blek once again turned the whole concept of street art on its head, inspiring and influencing another strain of street art: poster and sticker art."

"Blek was out and about stenciling Parisian walls while Banksy was still at primary school. Banksy confirmed this when he said: '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.'"

'Musical notes emerged to join The Screaming Man, and they gave the subject a different appearance: suddenly the man was singing rather than screaming. Once again, the initial message was transformed and even though they original concept of the picture had been significantly altered, Blek approuved.'