Feature: Exhibition - Team Robbo: The Sell-out Tour at the Signal Gallery from April 8-May 7
Published: 24 March, 2011
by DAN CARRIER
Graffiti crew Team Robbo and Banksy have history
THEY scaled the roof of Tate Modern and left an artistic calling card for all to see: declaring themselves Team Robbo, which they painted in giant letters – they are one of the oldest and best-known graffiti crews in the world.
Now the Camden-based artist collective, who for more than three decades have been bringing their art to the streets of London, are taking their works from roof tops and walls into the confines of a gallery.
A pioneer of the art form, Robbo – who does not want to reveal his real name – has become a legend on the graffiti scene. He and his crew have recently earned extra infamy for a long public spat with Banksy, who has taken to covering Robbo’s works with his own – and vice versa.
The argument started in Christmas 2009 when Banksy destroyed a piece Robbo had completed back in the 1980s.
“It was a landmark,” he said. “It had been there since 1985. I remember doing it – I went, bold as brass in the middle of the afternoon, and no one said a thing.
“It had lasted pretty well – until Banksy came along and covered it.”
The reasons for Banksy’s apparent disrespect stem from a spat the pair had in the 1990s, which Robbo recounted in a book on street art.
“We had an argument and I gave him a back-hander,” says Robbo.
“Someone introduced us, saying what an honour it was to meet me, as I was known as the number one street artist. I said to Banksy, ‘hey, I have heard of you’ – even though I hadn’t – but he said ‘well, I haven’t heard of you...’”
From this minor falling out came the ongoing art fight.
“I told this story and then the next thing I knew was he had painted over my piece,” says Robbo. “From that, it spread. There are
plenty of walls we could both use. There was no need to do this.”
Yet despite this form of vandalism where both doctor each other’s works, Robbo is complimentary about Banksy’s influence.
“Banksy has helped make street art mainstream,” he says.
“He is world famous and he has helped others along the way.”
Banksy may be well known, but he is the new kid on the block compared to Robbo. His track record dates back to even before New York artists fuelled the British scene. He became interested in graffiti in the late 1970s. Growing up in Holloway, he had no formal art training.
“I was into ska and met punk writers who liked to create slogans,” he recalls. “They were called Bozo, Wilko and Rollo. I took the name Robbo from that.”
He was further influenced by American film and TV, such as the 1979 movie The Warriors.
“I was inspired by watching episodes of the Edward Woodward series The Equaliser,” he says. “There were shots of New York painted subway trains at the start.”
Using canals as a backdrop, he produced a large body of work across London.
“Art like this is democratic. Everyone can access it,” he says.
“It is addictive – it fills you with adrenaline. And it was a form of escape. There was so much that was depressing in the 1980s – strikes, unemployment, poverty. I’d sneak into train depots at night and create pieces for all to see the following morning. My name was everywhere.”
He took a break in the 1990s – “I was growing up and had a young family” – but, now in his 40s, he is back.
It is a sign of how times have changed that he and his original crew are finding galleries want their works. But he still wants his canvases to be the walls of the city.
“I back the idea that has been aired in the New Journal for a street art committee to judge whether pieces should stay or go,” he says.
“It is often just down to street cleaners what stays up. They will get rid of one thing but leave a Banksy in place. We need to consider how these decisions are made – and make it more accountable.”