Thursday 1 March 2012

ART OF THE STREETS




Last weekend I took a trip to one of my favourite parts of London the streets near Old Street and Brick Lane. The street walls here are the chosen canvas of some amazing artists. Roa a Belgian artist has been busy around the streets of Brick Lane. This beautiful crane is in Hanbury Street famed as being the location of one of Jack the Ripper's murders! Apparently Roa's intention was that the bird was a heron but after being asked if the bird was a crane by the Bengali locals, who hold the crane as sacred, Roa transformed his heron into a a crane. Roa always asks the owners of the walls he paints for permission and many owners are very enthusiastic about the idea. Roa's draftsmanship is impressive and his designs are painted freehand and not drawn beforehand! He places his creatures in the cityscape which is a natural home for scavengers and vermin. Another artist at work in the city is Phlem who hails from Sheffield. His work is incredibly detailed and he works on paper when he is not painting on walls. The name phlegm came from one of four bodily humours in ancient Greek medicine. Phelgm was believed to be responsible for an apathetic and unemotional temperament. I can't imagine this artist is either of these things.

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