Angel Ortiz, born in 1967 in New York City’s Lower East Side, began tagging his local neighbourhood at the age of ten under the moniker ‘LA II’ or ‘LA 2’ (Little Angel). He became part of the local graffiti scene and joined a crew operating in the LES - The Non-Stoppers (TNS). TNS was one of the Lower East Side's largest crews of the period. A unique aspect of the group was that it included members from neighbourhoods that traditionally held long and violent rivalries. The crew's official headquarters was located in an abandoned tenement building at 199 Henry Street, which TNS claimed as its own.
In 1980, Keith Haring, then newly arrived in New York, noticed Angel’s ‘LA II’ tag around the Lower East Side. The two connected and began a collaborative partnership that would come to strengthen both their artistic practices. Combining Haring’s distinctive linear style, all-over structure, and iconic figures and symbols with LA II’s signature tags, the pair responded intuitively to one another’s contributions, producing work that bursts with creativity and visual energy. In 1982, the duo exhibited at the Tony Shafrazi Gallery in New York, creating works on canvas, sculptures, and large-scale tarpaulins.
Over the next several years, Angel toured the international art scene alongside Haring, having left school at the age of sixteen. Together they collaborated on murals, found objects, paintings, and installations around the world. One notable collaboration took place in 1983, when the pair were commissioned by Elio Fiorucci to create a site-specific mural in Milan. Painting overnight for thirteen hours, Haring and Ortiz transformed the 5,000-square-foot store from a blank space into a dynamic work of art.
Despite working closely as a pair for nearly a decade, Ortiz remained somewhat in Haring’s shadow and often went uncredited for works exhibited in galleries and museums. This only worsened after Haring’s tragically early death in 1990, and Angel fell into relative obscurity while his contemporaries broke records at auctions across the world.
After years away from the spotlight, Ortiz gradually began rebuilding his career, reconnecting with the art community and reaffirming his place within the history of street art. As public interest in graffiti and 1980s New York culture resurfaced, so too did recognition of his vital role in shaping that movement.
From the 2010s onwards, Angel “LA II” Ortiz experienced a powerful resurgence in the contemporary art world, reclaiming recognition for his individual artistry beyond his collaborations with Keith Haring. His work began attracting renewed attention from galleries and collectors. In September 2022, Ortiz held his first solo exhibition in the United Kingdom in over four decades, “King of Hearts,” at D’Stassi Art in London. The show featured his vibrant, graffiti-driven canvases and reaffirmed his influence on the evolution of street art. The following year, he presented “Ode 2 NYC” at Chase Contemporary in New York, showcasing around thirty new large-scale works that celebrated his lifelong relationship with the city’s streets and creative culture. In May 2024, D’Stassi Art hosted “The Great Collaborator,” an exhibition highlighting Ortiz’s collaborations with other major street artists (including STIK, Shepard Fairey, and Mr Doodle) underscoring his ongoing impact within the global graffiti movement.
Angel Ortiz, born in 1967 in New York City’s Lower East Side, began tagging his local neighbourhood at the age of ten under the moniker ‘LA II’ or ‘LA 2’ (Little Angel). He became part of the local graffiti scene and joined a crew operating in the LES - The Non-Stoppers (TNS). TNS was one of the Lower East Side's largest crews of the period. A unique aspect of the group was that it included members from neighbourhoods that traditionally held long and violent rivalries. The crew's official headquarters was located in an abandoned tenement building at 199 Henry Street, which TNS claimed as its own.
In 1980, Keith Haring, then newly arrived in New York, noticed Angel’s ‘LA II’ tag around the Lower East Side. The two connected and began a collaborative partnership that would come to strengthen both their artistic practices. Combining Haring’s distinctive linear style, all-over structure, and iconic figures and symbols with LA II’s signature tags, the pair responded intuitively to one another’s contributions, producing work that bursts with creativity and visual energy. In 1982, the duo exhibited at the Tony Shafrazi Gallery in New York, creating works on canvas, sculptures, and large-scale tarpaulins.
Over the next several years, Angel toured the international art scene alongside Haring, having left school at the age of sixteen. Together they collaborated on murals, found objects, paintings, and installations around the world. One notable collaboration took place in 1983, when the pair were commissioned by Elio Fiorucci to create a site-specific mural in Milan. Painting overnight for thirteen hours, Haring and Ortiz transformed the 5,000-square-foot store from a blank space into a dynamic work of art.
Despite working closely as a pair for nearly a decade, Ortiz remained somewhat in Haring’s shadow and often went uncredited for works exhibited in galleries and museums. This only worsened after Haring’s tragically early death in 1990, and Angel fell into relative obscurity while his contemporaries broke records at auctions across the world.
After years away from the spotlight, Ortiz gradually began rebuilding his career, reconnecting with the art community and reaffirming his place within the history of street art. As public interest in graffiti and 1980s New York culture resurfaced, so too did recognition of his vital role in shaping that movement.
From the 2010s onwards, Angel “LA II” Ortiz experienced a powerful resurgence in the contemporary art world, reclaiming recognition for his individual artistry beyond his collaborations with Keith Haring. His work began attracting renewed attention from galleries and collectors. In September 2022, Ortiz held his first solo exhibition in the United Kingdom in over four decades, “King of Hearts,” at D’Stassi Art in London. The show featured his vibrant, graffiti-driven canvases and reaffirmed his influence on the evolution of street art. The following year, he presented “Ode 2 NYC” at Chase Contemporary in New York, showcasing around thirty new large-scale works that celebrated his lifelong relationship with the city’s streets and creative culture. In May 2024, D’Stassi Art hosted “The Great Collaborator,” an exhibition highlighting Ortiz’s collaborations with other major street artists (including STIK, Shepard Fairey, and Mr Doodle) underscoring his ongoing impact within the global graffiti movement.