Not in Kansas Anymore
Tanner Kerley has a style all his own characterized by bold chunky lines, pop
figures, and an eye-catching color palette. You’d think that he’s been doing
murals for years, but to our surprise Kerley tells ASLUT that he has been
taking the craft more seriously in the past year. However, this small-town Kansas guy has dabbled in art for nearly a decade.
His street art journey began with creating stencils. “I watched a stand up of Bob Saget, and thought it’d be funny to make a stencil of him for a shirt,” Tanner said. “Then a friend thought it’d be funny on the back of my truck.” This banter with the arts took Tanner viral on People of Walmart, with viewers questioning the legitimacy of the stencil. He tells us that moments like this reaffirmed that art is what he wants to do with his life.
Since moving to Tulsa, he has really found his tribe working with Clean
Hands on the epic mural on 31st & Yale. But Kerley tell us that he hasn’t
always been in a place as art focused as Tulsa. “In Sedan, Kansas, we didn’t even have an art class in high school,” Tanner said. “And at this point I’m still working to understand what I want my art to be.”
The blend of graffiti culture, street, and modern art has formed a hybrids style that Tanner has used to find his voice. “You just gotta keep at it, there will always be nay-sayers,” Tanner said. “But it’s a grind and people will soon recognize what you’re doing” he says. Tanner Kerley is painting the town and if you’d like to commission him he can be reached via Instagram @iamtherascal.