Banksy

Not the first or entirely original (see Blek le Rat), but indisputably the most impactful in elevating street art from unknown to broad public consciousness. His wit, wry political statements and ability to spot opportunities for subversion make him as exciting now as when he became famous over a decade ago. We all wish there was less hype and circus around him, but he probably feels similarly.

Shepard Fairey

This man needs no introduction. Shepard Fairey's Andre and Obama Hope images are some of the best known artistic images of the past decade. His recent street work has mostly focused on complex layered patterns as backdrops to propaganda-style images.

Swoon

Swoon is based in New York, but she is active all over the world. Her wood block images are precisely cut and then pasted on the street. The pieces often depict characters with expressive faces and elements of their life composed to form the body. She also founded the 'Swimming Cities' artist collective that creates eccentric boats for various adventures.

Blek Le Rat

One of the godfathers of the European street art movement, Blek le Rat inspired hundreds of artists around the world with his stenciled style. He is frequently cited as a major influence of artists like Banksy and Space Invader, and through his work in Paris he established a style of urban art that quickly spread through Europe and eventually the United States.

Space Invader

One of the longer-established and better-known street artists, Invader's mosaic tiles can be found in cities around the world. The creation of a real-world game (of hunting the invaders) from an electronic game character is a fun twist. As simple as they are, the space invaders still manage to bring personality, and often have a local flavor.

C215

Frenchman C215 creates romantic stencilled portraits, often of his daughter Nina. His monochromatic stencils are great, which he paints on surfaces with character, like rusty doors or mail boxes.

Zilda

Zilda's hand-painted classical images are unique for the sense of history he brings to street art from ancient mythology in his most recent series, to classic Italian movies from the '50s in another. Particularly effective is his placement of movie characters on streets where the movies were filmed.

Vhils

Vhils' powerful portraits are created by subtraction rather than addition: he etches, tears or acid-burns the surface, which adds a depth and character from the wall to the image that you don't see with paint. Most recently, he's started using explosives to etch shapes.

Roa

Roa is one of the hardest-working and most talented muralists in the world. His fascination with animals translates into huge still-life walls around the world, and large-scale wildlife take dominant positions in urban environments. His work is striking, particularly given the animals are often in various states of death, decay or slumber.

JR

Making social commentary arresting, beautiful and impressive is no easy feat; TED-Prize-winning JR achieves it. From his native Paris to Africa to South America, JR celebrates communities' quiet heroes by elevating them to massive scale and showing elements of their character.