Legends of Graffiti - Kel139
Randy "KEL1ST" Rodriguez was born and raised in New York City, and quickly emerged as one of the masters of "Wild Style" lettering in the graffiti revolution of the 1970s. As the new art form called "Hip-Hop" was created, KEL1st quickly became recognized as a cultural icon, and a master of graffiti and street art by his peers and art critics alike. He was featured in the cult classic, "STYLE WARS", the first film documenting hip hop cultural innovation, and is highly regarded as a member of one of the most prolific graffiti crews (ROCSTARS).
Over the last 20 years, his work has appeared in museums, galleries and auctions around the world and is a part of the permanent collection at the Brooklyn Museum of Art
Legends of Graffiti
Kel1st, Crash red outline - 1980
Kel1st: "I use 139 because it's the street I grew up on. But I switched to 1st to further set me apart from my peers in the competitive environment of graffiti."
Kel1st: "We are writers first and artists second, the work can be called art. But because what we do is write (tag) we identify ourselves as writers, not artists. An artists work was seen as a gallery or museum hanging piece. A writers tag is used to 'get up' (promote/advertise/market) our brand."
Legends of Graffiti
Kel1st, BS, T-Kid - 1981
An important part of Kel's legacy in graffiti art are the various relationships he developed with writers from the other boroughs. Kel made it a point to collaborate with many well known writers and produce a large body of work that inspired the newer writers that came after him.
Legends of Graffiti
Seen, PJ, Kel - 1981
The signature styles of KEL1ST masterpieces are graphically bold, with an unlikely color palette unseen in the work of his peers. Covering the entire sides of MTA subway cars from 1977-1987, KEL's large scale lettering was enhanced with highly stylized renditions of caricatures, setting him apart from his contemporaries. As a result of Hip-Hop's global impact, KEL1ST has become an Art & Cultural Historian.
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, Bronx wall - 2004
Kel embraced technology early on to create a platform and a level of confidence for others to feel empowered. He now incorporates the development of digital publishing to preserve the history for future generations.
Kel has been able to use the creative vision he developed with graffiti to give a new perspective to his commercial work.
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, gun illustration - 1979, 2 line
An early introduction of illustration work with wildstyle lettering.
Legends of Graffiti
Kel1st, Min 1 - 1983
Graffiti transformed Kel's life as it opened the doors to commercial opportunities and a path out of the economic hardships of the inner city.
Kel's attraction to graffiti was the excitement he felt from riding the subways as a young boy. It was a neighborhood thing which made it easy to get involved. Also it was a way to explore the city and meet other writers from the outer boroughs.
Legends of Graffiti
Dondi, Kel1st Fun City - 1979
Kel's work with DONDI is legendary, their many collaborations elevated their individual contributions to graffiti & inspired a generation of writers.
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, Deli Amor (Philly writer) - 1979
The current art movement has benefited from graffiti as it transformed into what is called street art. This enabled other types of artists to contribute to the global graffiti community.
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, Krash - 1980
Kel1st: "Graffiti is as old as human civilization. Graffiti, meaning drawings or scribblings on a flat surface; 'Tagging' is a modern form of scratching one's name on a surface. It is usually done with spray paint or markers.
Legends of Graffiti
Another collaboration with Krash - 1980
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, Krash 1980s - 1980
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, Nac Art - 1980
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, Shy - 1980
Legends of Graffiti
Dealt, Kel, Henry - 1979
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, Med, Tue - 1981
Legends of Graffiti
A collaboration with Shy, Kos - 1981
Using muted tones to highlight the abstract lettering, Kel was one of the pioneers exploring this style in depth.
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, Shy, Kos - 1981
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, Krash mad bombers - 1980
Here's an early example of bold letter usage, this piece is a signature to a much earlier style introduced by Kel.
Legends of Graffiti
A joint piece with Kel1st & Shy - 1980
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, Shock - Broadway 1 line, 1981
Legends of Graffiti
A collaboration with Shock - Broadway 1 line, 1981
Legends of Graffiti
An initial sketch book illustration displaying the thought process for a wall or train project.
Legends of Graffiti
A sketch book illustration outlining the meticulous steps used when creating a much larger graphic for a train.
Legends of Graffiti
Kel on black wall - Seattle 2007
The end result on a wall using the sketch book process.
Legends of Graffiti
Kel on wall - Seattle 2007
Legends of Graffiti
Kel, Bronx wall - 2005
Legends of Graffiti
2Many 2Name App - The New York City Graffiti history of the number 2
Kel1st: "The power of 2 cannot be understated...it has a deep and profound impact in life. It was evident on the NYC trains that were covered with masterpieces created by teams of 2 or more. This was a natural progression for us, we painted, and got up in teams of 2 or more...some may appear to be just one...but there was always a crew behind them. No man was an island. This is the subject of my book app called 2Many 2Name, I have dug deep into my archives and presented the best of the best that existed on MTA during that time. A small history lesson in Wild Style and the brilliant creators behind the works. In some of the pieces I share with you personal stories of my impression and admiration of their work and interviews with them as well."