Graffiti or Street Art?

Nantes 2010

On my first visit to Nantes in 2010 to visit my daughter, she introduces me to street art which I called graffiti. But I thought some of it was quite artistic. We were walking down the riverside to the ferry terminal to catch the ferry across the River Loire to Trentemoult, an old fishing village turned artists’ hangout. With its colourful little houses, labyrinthine streets and exotic plants, it feels much different to the hustle and bustle of Nantes.

There’s a cool breeze but it’s not raining so I stopped to take some photos of some great graffiti on the old walls of the brewery which are under the cliffs. We had to rush to catch the ferry. Trentemoult has become an enclave of writers and artists. We wandered through crooked streets and back alleys finding little treasures everywhere. I took lots of photos because I love little places like this but I cannot find them.

The sky was heavy and looked forbidding so we headed for the warmth and dryness of the bistro which is only a bar at 4 in he afternoon, We shared a bottle of red. It was warm inside and looked miserable outside. We ordered a glass each of Côte du Bourg which was a very nice drop.

We sat at the window table watching the approaching storm which eventually arrived as a fierce hailstorm. We were glad we were undercover.

You can see from the above photos how understated the street art was in Trentemoult. The brewery walls were anything but understated.

Some of these wall paintings were very weird and I have no idea what the message was or even if there was a message. Art even in a gallery usually has to be explained to me. But after my visit to Nantes, I was more aware of “street art” and “graffiti”.

In Lisbon, this crocodile almost jumped down and ate me.

This building was a landmark when telling someone directions. “Keep walking past the crocodile building.”

The one thing that I hated in Lisbon was graffiti was scrawled over a beautifully tiled building. That’s sacrilege. Here’s one of those tiled buildings.

This was was on the edge of the road lining the Douro River in Porto. I’m not sure if it tells some sort of story…it’s possible.

From that wall of what I called graffiti, I have developed a sense of appreciation of many street artists even though I don’t always understand the message. I’ve learned that if a town is known for its street art, I have to at least go and have a look at it. That’s the strange thing about travel — you never know what direction your interests are going to turn.

Sheila Tracy writes an excellent story about the street art in Lisbon. She’s far more knowledgeable about the artworks than I am.

CosmicDancer writes how a painted door project can transform a town or village. Check out those doors!