12 Most Influential Graffiti Artists from TAKI 183 to Banksy

TheCollector profiles twelve pioneering graffiti artists who shaped street art globally. TAKI 183, active in late 1960s New York, is credited with popularizing tagging; his real name remains unknown. Jean-Michel Basquiat began as SAMO with Al Diaz, leaving satirical messages before his Neo-Expressionist career. French artist JR pastes large-scale black-and-white photographs, including on the Louvre Pyramid and the West Bank Wall. Philadelphia's Cornbread (Darryl McCray) tagged a zoo elephant in the 1960s. Swoon (Caledonia Curry) uses fine art techniques for activist murals, including a Haiti earthquake shelter. Invader creates tile mosaics inspired by 1970s video games, mapping each 'invasion.' Brazilian twins OSGEMEOS (Otavio and Gustavo Pandolfo) paint yellow-skinned figures blending hip-hop and Brazilian culture. Eduardo Kobra, also Brazilian, produces large-scale portraits like Anne Frank in Amsterdam. Keith Haring drew chalk figures in NYC subways, later addressing AIDS. Lady Pink (Sandra Fabara) was an early female graffiti artist, incorporating Latin American motifs. Shepard Fairey rose with Andre the Giant stickers and the Obama HOPE poster. Banksy, anonymous since the 1990s, uses stencils and left seven murals in Ukraine in 2022.