Ghent-based street artist ROA: world famous and unknown at the same time

Making a lasting impression with a temporary construction, that is what stand holders using our system strive for. Of course we also want to create maximum impact when we exhibit at a fair ourselves. That is the reason for giving our stand at Euroshop Düsseldorf 2020 a street art look. The inspiration for this project came during a team building event in Ostend, when we cycled past a meters high artwork by ROA. Please meet one of Belgium’s internationally most renowned, but at the same time most mysterious and hard to track down street art artists. 

Not much is known about the person behind the ROA pseudonym, except that he lives in Ghent and does not like media attention much, even though he belongs to the world’s best street artists. Rather than words, this Belgian street artist prefers his artwork to do the talking: meters high wall paintings of animals in a very recognisable style. In our own country, you can find them on façades in Doel, Ostend and mainly Ghent, but ROA’s fame reaches far beyond our shores, with references from Mexico, Puerto Rico, New York, South Africa, New Zealand, London, Berlin… Armed with paint rolls, graffiti cans, a mask and cherry picker, he turns drab walls of on many occasions dilapidated buildings into amazing eye-catchers. 

Impressive animal paintings

Animals are ROA’s favourite subjects: an owl in Hasselt, a chameleon in Malaga, a jumping wolf in Rome or a 3.5-meter-high rabbit in London, or even a 25-meter-high numbat in Australia: despite these gigantic dimensions, ROA depicts all animals with an incredible eye for detail. For fur or feathers for instance, he will use hundreds of fine lines. In a number of works bones, muscles and organs are visible. The choice of animal depends on the actual location and the wall the graffiti will appear on. Windows and door openings are being integrated in the design of the black and white creations, with the stance of the animal being defined by the shape of the wall.

Work that conveys a message

By his choice of depicting (many a time dead or endangered) animals, ROA hopes to increase awareness about animal welfare. Stacked horses, an emaciated rabbit, exotic animals in cages…ROA’s creations seem to transcend their aesthetic value by their plight against animal cruelty. Without any words, not even needing any interviews to make an impact, this artist conveys a strong message.

Homebase Ghent, international top

For years, the abandoned Malmar factory in Ghent was ROA’s favourite playground. This legacy of at least fifty invaluable drawings was about to disappear when plans for the largest cohousing project of the city were approved. Luckily, the drawings have been saved. Via gateways in the old factory walls, both inhabitants and passers-by will still be able to enjoy ROA’s art. Call it a permanent open air exhibition. It is a great way for the city of Ghent to honour one of its most famous residents, even though his identity remains a definite mystery.

Did you know …

• … Roeselare-based light artist Alexander Stragier, mentioned in the previous beMagazine, brought ROA’s heron in Ghent to life?
• … in 2011, ROA made a number of pencil and pen drawings for the video of U2’s song ‘Sleep Like A Baby Tonight’?
• … in 2014, ROA contributed to Arne Quinze’s ‘North West Walls Street Art Project’? Back then, he painted for Rock Werchter a series of sea containers with thirteen imprisoned exotic animals.
• … ROA’s murals are permanent as well as temporary? Because of a renovation ‒ and not without quite some protest ‒ last year for example ‘sleepy pigs’ was destroyed, one of the little amount of works by ROA in Brussels.
• … ROA’s work also is part of the permanent open air exhibition The Crystal Ship in Ostend? During our team building day in 2018, the façade was part of our graffiti bike quest.

Book tip: ROA Codex

We already were fascinated by the work of ROA, but during the time of writing this article, a book on the work of this anonymous street art artist came out, and we were ones of the first to buy it. Publishing house Lannoo named the ROA Codex ‘art monography of the year’ – which is no exaggeration. Over 352 pages, you are treated to a great anthology – in text and mainly images – of the huge black and white animal drawings ROA adorns buildings all over the world with.
ROA Codex is available via Lannoo’s website and priced at 65 euro.

Immerse yourself in the fourth edition of our beMagazine