Stencil graffiti Blek the pioneer. Blek le rat. Robbo art. Blek le Rat. Graffiti Artist Robbo Took the Road. The gloves are off: Graffiti legend King Robbo has resurfaced to settle a score with Banksy - Features - Art. For those who don't know, the Banksy/ Robbo saga went something like this: in 2009 a stencil artist, allegedly Banksy, went over a piece of graffiti called Robbo Incorporated, which had been left otherwise untouched on a Camden canal wall (only accessible by water) since 1985.
The online graffiti community went into uproar, citing Banksy's "disrespect" and calling for retaliation. Robbo dragged himself out of a decade of retirement, donned a wetsuit on Christmas Day ("You try finding a rubber dinghy in London on Christmas Eve! "), waded into the canal and spray painted "King Robbo" in person-high silver letters beside the alleged Banksy work. Just days later the letters "Fuc" appeared in front of Robbo's "King". "I never wanted to take Banksy's stuff out, I just wanted to do something tongue in cheek.
But when he put those three letters "Fuc" up, that changed things," Robbo told The Independent in his first ever interview with a newspaper. "I'd go out every night and do my graffiti. My Graffiti War with Banksy By King Robbo | People. Graffiti spotted last week in Mayfair suggest the King Robbo vs Banksy feud is alive and well. Here Robbo speaks out about his long running feud with Banksy which is transforming the face of London as the two artists compete to ‘improve’ each other’s work. The crisp December morning of 2009, where a graffiti legend came out of retirement, donned a wetsuit, scooted across Regents Canal on a blow-up lilo and calmly reclaimed his territory from Banksy has become legend in itself.
It was the day Robbo became ‘King Robbo’. The UK’s notoriously heavy-handed approach to graffiti, has seen hefty prison terms and obscene amounts of funding poured into re-painting walls and cleaning trains, rather than say, making sure they run on time and don’t smell of crotch. That in mind, Robbo’s enduring presence as one of the pioneers of old school graffiti in London has long established him as one of the greats of both the UK and international scene. Banksy’s not radical he’s just a toy with a PR team People. Banksy art.