King Robbo: Difference between revisions
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[[File:king-robbo-original-e1294836995435.jpg|thumb|right|"Robbo Inc" circa 1985 (Camden)]] |
[[File:king-robbo-original-e1294836995435.jpg|thumb|right|"Robbo Inc" circa 1985 (Camden)]] |
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'''King Robbo''' is an [[England|English]] underground |
'''King Robbo''' is an [[England|English]] underground [[artist]] who rose to prominence first due to his extensive graffiti art in London. Universally recognized as the founding father of London's graffiti scene, Robbo's talent and ingenuity made him the undisputed graffiti king in London in the 1980's and early 1990's and lead to him being a worldwide legend amongst the graffiti community. He was the subject of a Channel 4 documentary called [http://Graffiti%20Wars http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulOiB3xEkzM], first shown in August 2011. |
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url=http://www.sabotagetimes.com/people/king-robbo-exclusive-interview-my-graffiti-war-with-banksy/| |
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title=My Graffiti War with Banksy By King Robbo| |
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author=By Jo Fuertes-Knight| |
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publisher=Sabotage Times |
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}}</ref> a claim Banksy denied. A [[Channel 4]] documentary "Graffiti Wars" about the feud was first shown in August 2011. |
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==Works== |
==Early Works== |
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| ⚫ | Robbo painted his first train in 1985 and the ‘Merry Christmas’ train of 1988, a joint piece created with "Drax WD", receiving national coverage on ITV news and in the Independent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.teamrobbo.org/info/?galleries=robbo|date=3 April 2011|title=Robbo galley|publisher=Team Robbo|accessdate=15 August 2011}}</ref> |
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[[File:King Robbo.jpg|thumb|right|Graffiti in Camden after modification by Banksy and Robbo]] |
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| ⚫ | Robbo painted his first train in 1985 and the ‘Merry Christmas’ train of 1988, a joint piece created with "Drax WD", |
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During the next decade King Robbo's tag "Robbo" would go on to appear all over London trains, buildings and various other locations. His works have also appears on New York trains. |
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The feud with Banksy led to a rise in Robbo's profile and he began entering the commercial art world with a [http://pureevilgallery.virb.com/robbo-0ddb9 solo show] at Pure Evil Gallery in Shoreditch and commissions in 2010/11.<ref>{{cite web| |
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url=http://londonist.com/2010/06/street_artist_robbo_headlines_new_g.php| |
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==Identity== |
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title=Street Artist Robbo Headlines New Graffiti Exhibition| |
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King Robbo has kept his identity a secret for nearly 30 years and is unknown to authorities to this day. However, with increased interest in his works, speculation about his appearance, height (supposedly 6'8") and location have continued to grow over the years. |
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date=29 June 2010| |
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publisher=Londonist| |
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accessdate=15 August 2011 |
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}}</ref> In February 2011 he painted a giant portrait for the opening of the film [[Yelling to the Sky]] on a wall on the [[Kunsthaus Tacheles]], [[Berlin]].<ref>{{cite web| |
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title=Robbo in Berlin for "Yelling to the Sky"| |
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url=http://www.filmmakermagazine.com/news/2011/02/robbo-in-berlin/| |
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author=Scott Macaulay| |
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date=26 February 2011| |
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publisher= Filmmaker magazine| |
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accessdate=15 August 2011}}</ref> |
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==Feud with Banksy== |
==Feud with Banksy== |
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In 1985 King Robbo painted |
In 1985 King Robbo painted one of London's earliest and most iconic pieces under the Transport Police Headquarters on a wall beside [[Regent's Canal]] <ref name=Evans>Evans, Daniel ''Banksy calls for graffiti show inquiry'' [[Western Daily Press]] 7 September 2011</ref> in [[London Borough of Camden|Camden]], [[London]] which was only accessible by water. A large full colour graffiti piece, called "Robbo Incorporated", it had over the years become the oldest and most recognized piece of Graffiti in all of London. Over time, virtually all of his works had been gradually removed from London's trains and walls by authorities, except for this iconic piece. In 2009 however, the english stencil artist Banksy covered most of it with a stencil of a workman pasting wallpaper. This act was deemed to be extremely hostile and shocked the graffiti world. King Robbo has stated that Banksy was introduced to him for the first time in the nineties, commenting: |
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"I was at a place called the Dragon Bar on Old Street. I was introduced to a couple of guys who were like 'whoa it's nice to meet you!'. When I was introduced to Banksy, I went 'Oh yeah I've heard of you mate, how you doing?' and he went 'well I've never heard of you'...he dismissed me as a nobody, as nothing. So with that I slapped him and went 'oh what you ain't heard of me? you won't forget me now will you?' and with that he picked up his glasses and ran off." |
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On Christmas Day 2009 Robbo destroyed Banksy's piece by covering the work so the workman appeared to be painting "King Robbo" in silver letters. Three days later the letters Fuc appeared before the King.<ref>{{cite web| |
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url=http://www.sabotagetimes.com/people/my-graffiti-war-with-banksy-by-king-robbo/| |
url=http://www.sabotagetimes.com/people/my-graffiti-war-with-banksy-by-king-robbo/| |
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title=My Graffiti War with Banksy By King Robbo| |
title=My Graffiti War with Banksy By King Robbo| |
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Revision as of 13:56, 20 November 2013
King Robbo is an English underground artist who rose to prominence first due to his extensive graffiti art in London. Universally recognized as the founding father of London's graffiti scene, Robbo's talent and ingenuity made him the undisputed graffiti king in London in the 1980's and early 1990's and lead to him being a worldwide legend amongst the graffiti community. He was the subject of a Channel 4 documentary called http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulOiB3xEkzM, first shown in August 2011.
Early Works
Robbo painted his first train in 1985 and the ‘Merry Christmas’ train of 1988, a joint piece created with "Drax WD", receiving national coverage on ITV news and in the Independent.[1]
During the next decade King Robbo's tag "Robbo" would go on to appear all over London trains, buildings and various other locations. His works have also appears on New York trains.
Identity
King Robbo has kept his identity a secret for nearly 30 years and is unknown to authorities to this day. However, with increased interest in his works, speculation about his appearance, height (supposedly 6'8") and location have continued to grow over the years.
Feud with Banksy
In 1985 King Robbo painted one of London's earliest and most iconic pieces under the Transport Police Headquarters on a wall beside Regent's Canal [2] in Camden, London which was only accessible by water. A large full colour graffiti piece, called "Robbo Incorporated", it had over the years become the oldest and most recognized piece of Graffiti in all of London. Over time, virtually all of his works had been gradually removed from London's trains and walls by authorities, except for this iconic piece. In 2009 however, the english stencil artist Banksy covered most of it with a stencil of a workman pasting wallpaper. This act was deemed to be extremely hostile and shocked the graffiti world. King Robbo has stated that Banksy was introduced to him for the first time in the nineties, commenting:
"I was at a place called the Dragon Bar on Old Street. I was introduced to a couple of guys who were like 'whoa it's nice to meet you!'. When I was introduced to Banksy, I went 'Oh yeah I've heard of you mate, how you doing?' and he went 'well I've never heard of you'...he dismissed me as a nobody, as nothing. So with that I slapped him and went 'oh what you ain't heard of me? you won't forget me now will you?' and with that he picked up his glasses and ran off."
On Christmas Day 2009 Robbo destroyed Banksy's piece by covering the work so the workman appeared to be painting "King Robbo" in silver letters. Three days later the letters Fuc appeared before the King.[3][4] Tit-for-tat overpainting continued at the site with artwork and insults including a picture of Top Cat leaning on a gravestone with the words "R.I.P. Banksy's career".
This incident led to online outrage against Banksy and a graffiti war with many of Banksy's other works being altered by "Team Robbo" - notable ones including the piece Hitchhiker to Anywhere where the "anywhere" was changed to "going nowhere".[5]
Injury and coma
On 2 April 2011 King Robbo sustained a life threatening head injury 5 days prior to his exhibition at the Signal Gallery, Shoreditch: 'Team Robbo - The Sell Out Tour'. It is believed the injury happened as a result of an accidental fall.[2] His recovery has been slow [6] and as of December 2011 he remained in an induced coma.[2]
In November 2011, the Camden Robbo mural was painted over with a black and white depiction of the original with the additions of a crown and a can of spray paint with a hazard symbol of a flame above it. It was done by Banksy as a tribute to him and as an effort to end the feud in a sense of "lighting a candle" for Robbo who was still in comatose condition.[7][8][9]
The mural was restored to its original form with slight changes by the other members of "Team Robbo" on 24 December 2011, Christmas Eve.[8][10]
The restoration has since peeled away to leave the black and white tribute to Robbo, as of September 2012.[11]
See also
References
- ^ "Robbo galley". Team Robbo. 3 April 2011. Retrieved 15 August 2011.
- ^ a b c Evans, Daniel Banksy calls for graffiti show inquiry Western Daily Press 7 September 2011
- ^ By Jo Fuertes-Knight. "My Graffiti War with Banksy By King Robbo". Sabotage Times.
- ^ Matilda Battersby (21 April 2011). "The gloves are off: Graffiti legend King Robbo has resurfaced to settle a score with Banksy". The Independent. Retrieved 15 August 2011.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
indywas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "King Robbo Update - 26/04/2011". LondonCityGraff. 26 April 2011. Retrieved 15 August 2011.
- ^ "'Robbo inc.' returns courtesy of Banksy?". Street Art London. 11 November 2011. Retrieved 28 January 2012.
- ^ a b "Robbo Piece Reproduced by Team Robbo (Camden)". London Street Art Design Magazine, Issue 8 - Walls of Perception OUT NOW. 11 January 2012. Retrieved 28 January 2012.
- ^ "Banksy - Questions". Banksy Official Site. 12 November 2011. Retrieved 7 February 2012.
- ^ Jon Hammer (29 December 2011). "Winter Warmer- Robbo Ruin Restored!". Jon Hammer - Painting and Graffiti. Retrieved 28 January 2012.
- ^ "Banksy vs Team Robbo - Timeline". LDNGraffiti. 12 July 2012. Retrieved 27 December 2012.