Dominican-born graffiti artist and painter John Andrew Perello, aka JonOne, was born in New York in the 1960s. Growing up in Harlem, JonOne began tagging trains and walls in his neighborhood at the age of seventeen. Self-taught, he moved on from urban supports to canvas, a medium on which he exhibited all over the world. His works are clearly influenced by his personal experience, marked by hip hop, the street and the metro, as well as by the codes of modern painting.

With his innovative style, which goes beyond the laws dictated by graffiti, street art and urban culture, he creates “freestyle” works with no limits. The freedom he advocates above all else is his only watchword.

After settling in Paris in 1987 and working with artists of all stripes (Speedy Graphito, LAII, etc.), he began a new conquest: that of the canvas.

In his graffiti paintings, space is fully utilized; there is no such thing as a white void. Color is John’s lifeblood, his palette rich and vivid, tones and contrasts revealing subtle nuances. In a harmonious composition that appears as spontaneous as it is measured, shapes knot and untie, undulate or become straight. His toilent work combines all contrasts: symmetry and asymmetry, repetition and unification, precision and suppleness. Each of his works is a joyful, abstract improvisation.

In a very short space of time, JonOne made a name for himself in Parisian art circles, winning over critics and collectors alike. Today, the artist’s popularity is evident from his presence in major galleries.