Political graffiti

The artist who painted the controversial graffiti mural backdrop for presidential candidate Howard Dean’s recent campaign stop in Bryant Park is Keo, 36, a Lower East Sider, whose real name is Blake Lethem. James Oddo, a Republican city councilmember from Staten Island, criticized the mural, saying graffiti is vandalism, and the mayor called the use of the artwork “unfortunate.” A Dean spokesperson said it represents “the appreciation of a part of urban culture that is real.”