Category Archives: streets

Paris: Street Art Guide

Paris is an open air museum! Looking up, we can discover amazing pieces from graffiti writing, humourous stencils , poetic collages or monumental murals. We take you through the best locations in Paris to enjoy art in the streets from the festive district of Oberkampf via the 13th arrondissement or the suburbs.

From Montmartre to Butte-aux-Cailles , you have to open your eyes because each crossing is a pretext for creation and in many places in Paris, colourful frescoes have covered  concrete walls.

In recent years, the 13th arondissement of Paris is the favourite spot for street artists and has today become a true open-air museum ! In the vicinity of the National metro station, in the rue Jeanne d’Arc and the boulevard Vincent Auriol, it is possible to observe more than thirty murals! The American artist Shepard Fairey has produced several of them, from Rise above Rebel ( which we helped organise with the Mayor of 13th District) and one bearing the French motto: ” Liberty, equality, fraternity “.

Next door, a mosaic of several meters high representing the whimsical doctor of television series Doctor House is signed by French artist Invader .  The artist also invaded the city with other 1600 mosaics, so look up when wandering around.

Throughout the neighbourhood, you only have to walk around to discover a masterpiece, from Tristan Eaton, Okuda,  Bordalo or the colossal fresco “Embrace and Struggle” depicting two men facing each other in 18th century clothes. , made by the Irish painter Conor Harrington.

East of Paris, the districts of Oberkampf , Belleville and Ménilmontant are high places of street art. Thanks to the action of associations like Le MUR , some facades even have their own artistic programming!  Every two weeks, a new artist is invited to paint at 107 rue Oberkampf (11th). The performance takes place during the day and in public, a real treat for the eyes!

Lek & Sowat

Going up in rue de Ménilmontant (19th), there is an iconic fresco by Jérôme Mesnager : characters form a round and sing to the glory of the musical past of the neighbourhood. Higher up in the same street is the facade of Pavillon Carré de Baudoin which is repainted regularly by renowned artists like Lek & Sowat.

Finally,  you can enjoy a bit of nature while admiring art by wandering through the park of Belleville (20th) where frescoes of street artists such as Seth or Pez adorn walls and pillars.
In the center of Paris, the Halles district to Serge Gainsbourg’s home are the artists’ playground.

On the Igor-Stravinsky Square (4th District) for example, a fresco of 350 square meters shows the enigmatic face of a man inviting silence: a monumental stencil work signed Jef Aerosol .

On the other side of the Seine, Rue de Verneuil (7th),  the house occupied by the singer and poet Serge Gainsbourg is regularly covered with graffiti , drawings, paintings and collages, paying tribute to the musician Since his death in 1991.

Finally if you fancy travelling in the vinicity of Paris, Vitry sur Seine is a town dedicated to Street Art thanks to the artists and local authorities.

Banksy’s ‘Alternativity’ in Bethlehem

Elusive artist Banksy is back at his “Walled Off Hotel” in the city of Bethlehem in Palestine with a new stunt to celebrate the festive season with a “festive spectacular” titled Alternativity, and continue to raise media awareness in one of the most troubled parts of the globe. Alternativity features a play directed by Rihaam Issac and Danny Boyle and other surprises.

As a nod to the biblical events, two versions of the Alternativity flyer feature a heavily pregnant Mary sitting on a donkey while Joseph is looking perplexed at the separation wall while the star is shining on the other side. How do they cross?

Nearby the hotel, Banksy just unveiled two brand new street pieces.

The first piece “Peace On Earth” is a text based work which reads “Peace on Earth *terms and conditions apply.” Located in front of the Milk Grotto Church. The clever text-based works juxtaposes the spiritual and universal ‘Peace on earth’ quote and religious Christmas Star with a consumerism message ‘Terms and conditions apply’, highlighting the sarcastic turn of our modern day society.

It also references to the delicate balance to maintain peace.

The second piece shows two stencilled angels, equipped with a crowbar and trying to breakthrough the separation wall. One of the angels is wearing a handkerchief to cover his face while the other has a little beanie in true vandal style to carry out their mischief. As usual with Banksy, its a perfect placement for this cute and cheeky artwork.

The piece was supposedly painted a few days / weeks ago and hidden in plain sight with a banner announcing the event.

Photos by John Cmakers

 

 

Paris: Urban Week in La Defense

For its 4th edition the Urban Week festival returns to the business district of La Defense in Paris from 20 -23 September 2017 with a series of events celebrating street culture from street art, music, sports and food.

Through the project SAATO, 18 international artists are doing live painting sessions: MUG (AUS), BRUSK (FR), VESOD (IT), MONSTA (FR), STOM 500 (FR), BANE&PEST (CH), WISE TWO (Kenya), KALOUF (FR), MR CENZ (UK), BELIN (ES), NEAN (BE), DOES (NL) DEGE (FR), RNST (FR), MOMIES (FR), INSANE 51 (GR), RUSS (FR), MR DHEO (PT).

Photo credit : Celine Neveux for Butterfly Art News

URBAN WEEK
20 -23 September 2017
Paris La Defense

London: Banksy pays tribute to JM Basquiat

Banksy JMB - Butterfly art News

Ahead of the upcoming Museum show about Jean Michel Basquiat at the Barbican opening this week, elusive artist Banksy painted a series of murals on the adjacent walls leading the museum and released pictures on his Instagram account.

Banksy JMB 065 - Butterfly art News.jpg

The first one depicts JM Basquiat as a graffiti artist with his dog being searched by the Metropolitan Police, while a second one feature people queuing for London Eyes Wheel where the capsules have been replaced by iconic JMB crowns.

Banksy JMB Wheel 01 - Butterfly art News
Banksy JMB Wheel 03 - Butterfly art News
Banksy JMB Wheel 02 - Butterfly art News

Berlin: ‘UNSTOPPABLE’ Urban Nation Museum for Urban Contemporary Art

Urban Nation

After several years in the making, the URBAN NATION MUSEUM FOR URBAN CONTEMPORARY ART will open its doors to the public on 16 September 2017. The Museum is literally ‘UNSTOPPABLE’ ,not even by the police…

This center for exhibitions, research and exchange on urban art is unique in the world. For the inaugural exhibition, a team of ten curators led by executive creative director Yasha Young selected some 150 leading artists to create exclusive artworks for URBAN NATION. They include outstanding international figures such as Shephard Fairey, Vhils, Nick Walker, Sandra Chevrier, Know Hope.  

On the opening weekend, Bülowstrasse will be transformed into an open-air art gallery with an extensive program featuring live painting and performances by renowned artists like Blek Le Rat, Zezao,  Olek, Herakut or Mademoiselle Maurice. workshops, show acts and much, much more.

The neighbouring streets are buzzing with new street art and installations for the upcoming Art Mile and open air festival during the inaugurational week end.  We caught up with some international artists while they were painting new murals during the countdown of the Grand Opening.

 

Mademoiselle Maurice
Mademoiselle Maurice

Isaac Cordal
Isaac Cordal 

James Bullough
James Bullough

UrbanNation 1Up
1Up

Zezao
Zezao

Blek Le Rat
Blek Le Rat

Tank Patrol
Tank Patrol

Louis Massai
Louis Masai


David De La Mano

Stay tuned for our coverage of the opening!

URBAN NATION MUSEUM FOR URBAN CONTEMPORARY ART
Bülowstrasse 7, 10783 Berlin-Schöneberg
Opening weekend:
16 September 2017, 7 pm to 10 pm
17 September, 10 am to 6 pm