Renard Kelley, a.k.a. Vens is from Long Island, New York. His artistic journey started in his childhood before he could spell his name. Comic books, especially Marvel, caught his attention growing up. He enjoyed reproducing artwork he saw in comics like Heavy Metal, Creepy and Eerie magazines until he branched off and created his own world of comics. Renard went to school for art and studied oils, acrylic, still life and landscape paintings, but loved cartoons, and their vibrant colors the most. When he was introduced to graffiti in the 1980’s, it grabbed his attention. He also likes to make portraits and still life drawings, but capturing the classic feel of NY graffiti in cartoon form is what he prefers to do.
Renard’s art, whether on paper or walls, is not the same with every piece that he does. According to Renard, “Challenging yourself creates growth,” and all of his drawings tell a story of struggle. He recently started making digital art and enjoys that as well. About digital art he says, “It’s amazing what you can do with digital art by taking your drawings to a whole new level.” Renard is a member of the world famous original NYC graffiti crews, “T.N.S.,” “T.F.P.,” “T.D.S.,” and “Ex-Vandals.”
Facebook: Renard Kelley
