TRAVEL | ART | STREET ART | GRAFFITI
Street Art Can Be Found No Matter Where You Look
Who decides what street art is anyway?
When we editors decided to use “Street Art” as our August challenge in Globetrotters, I knew that I had some work to do. It wasn’t just that I had to write this article, but I had a few thousand photos to go through (about 44k!) first, to find the photos of street art that I have taken on our travels around the world.
Now that the time-consuming part is finished, I have put all the images I like the most into a file, and now I just need to decide amongst 138 pictures, which ones I want to use for this article.
I’m not sure which task is more difficult.
Bear with me here, this post will be very image heavy!
To learn more about our August monthly challenge, read this post by fellow editor Anne Bonfert who lays it all out:
Some of you probably know that my partner and I paint murals as we travel full-time. Although I could selfishly write this whole post about our work, I find it much more rewarding to recognize other artists' work, as these are the pieces that constantly inspire our creativity on a daily basis.
Despite my choice to create street art with a paintbrush, I do interpret street art in many different ways. Through my writing and photography in this article, I hope to broaden your perspective to understand that street art can come in many forms, shapes, materials and sizes.
Plants
We are both plant lovers and when we come across any sort of beautiful plant display, we can’t help but stop and gawk at them for a bit. We loved the bright blast of green that these displays provided, especially considering that the rest of the Moroccan medina alleyways can be quite stark in general.
Coming around a corner to see displays like this always makes us smile.
I have to say that there really is not much paint on walls in Morocco, but they don’t really need it. Their tile work and architecture are beautiful enough. If you have been to Morocco, I’m sure you will agree.
Tile Work and Tile Mosaics
That brings me to some of the stunning and intricate tile designs that we have come across in numerous locations around the world. Sometimes they portray famous people, like the large and shiny piece that depicts San Juan, Puerto Rico’s first female Mayor, Felisa Rincon De Gautier. Some will display the local landscapes or scenes that feel familiar to the country, yet others are simply beautiful and intricate patterns.
The time and effort that goes into all of these projects is astounding!
Sometimes the art on the streets is quite literally below our feet. Take this beautiful sidewalk as an example in Istanbul.
Sculptures
From giant larger-than-life horses to small and easy-to-miss mushrooms, even meditating frogs and life-like dragons, we have seen our fair share of sculptures on our travels. I feel as though some people may forget that sculptures are art as well and they have an important role in our society.
Sculptures can depict parts of our collective history, parts of our current modern life, or can just create a feeling of happiness and whimsy when we see them. They evoke emotions, just as wall art does, and they definitely deserve their moment of recognition.
Bright buildings and accessories
I love it so much when neighborhoods come together to create some color in their midst. Even though there is no artwork to speak of here, you can’t deny that these images are creative and colorful and surely make people smile.
Everyday items with a creative twist
I can’t tell you enough how much I loved the payphones in Antalya, Turkey. Some were in the shape of daisies, some were dolphins, and others were seagulls. If only I had somebody to call! Do collect calls still exist?
Of course, Christmas decorations can be very beautiful and the entrance to a walkway in Varna, Bulgaria felt like we were entering a magical wonderland. Brightly colored vehicles sit on the sides of many streets. If it’s not good for driving, you may as well make it look nice!
I also love it when people get creative with their houses and doors. This door knocker should surely be considered street art. It is on the street after all!
Painting Kindergartens, Schools and Daycares
Something we have noticed is that many cultures go out of their way to make the schools, especially the daycares and kindergartens, bright and colorful. We found many examples of this in Africa, and the buildings really popped out amongst the others that usually had no aesthetically pleasing attributes at all.
I truly felt like we were in the jungle with Baloo as we walked past this impressive mural on a daycare in Thessaloniki, Greece.
Colorful Storefronts and Displays
I am a sucker for a colorful display and they will always draw me in. I loved the outside of this candy store in Istanbul and its bright display of homemade candies in jars, plus its colorful lollipops.
And how cute is this furry yeti-like character in Bulgaria?
Graffiti
Graffiti will always be a very subjective taste for people. Many don’t understand the messages that are behind graffiti, thus they don’t understand why it was done in the first place.
While graffiti challenges people's sensibilities, it does deserve its place in the street art world. In fact, it is mostly responsible for starting it all.
I will always appreciate all kinds of colorful art and love how it brightens up an otherwise grey and sometimes sad world.
Sharing Messages
Sometimes street art aims to share a more direct message by using words. I couldn’t help but snap this great design as we roamed the streets in Morocco.
It’s true, love is all we need.
And some are a little less serious:)
Art to tell a local story
I’m proud to say that both of these murals were painted in my home country of Canada.
These images all depict life, culture and beliefs in Guatemala and Southern Mexico.
And these surely helped us to realize that we had firmly arrived in Africa while traveling in Sudan.
Some Art I Find Strange As Well
Even as an artist, it is sometimes hard to understand the meaning behind others’ art pieces. We all have tastes and gravitate to those things we like and don’t like. However, even if I’m not drawn to the art, I will always respect the amount of work that goes into the pieces.
These are three that don’t really excite me.
I seem to prefer color!
Since I showed you three that I don’t like, I thought it appropriate to show you some that I do. I will let you decide what fuels my fire.
I think Bulgaria is my favorite country for street art
In reviewing my photos, I can see that a lot of my favorite street art is from Bulgaria. Even these great pieces below were from Plovdiv, Bulgaria. I’m pretty sure it is the same artist on all three walls. Such cool characters!
And of course, there is mine.
It would really be completely silly of me to not share our own pieces in this article. We have painted the outside of 4 different buildings now, so I guess we can start calling ourselves ‘street artists’ as well as mural artists these days.
These are the two latest projects that we completed in my hometown of Canmore, Alberta, Canada.
And these are a couple that we did in Uganda on 2 separate occasions and in two different communities.
What do you see in the world that excites you?
After seeing these examples (75 of them to be exact), we editors at Globetrotters hope that you find some inspiration and are willing to share your stories of street art from around the world. We have already seen some great articles about this topic, but we know that there can be more!
Let us know what catches your eye as you roam about our fascinating and diverse planet!
Enjoy these already-written articles on Globetrotters that are about street art:
