I’ve written about yarn bombing before. Yarn bombing is a joyful form of street art that takes knitting and crocheting from the fireside and the easy chair and the knitting circle outside to trees and fences and telephone poles and anything that’s standing still for awhile and can be covered in colorful granny squares and pom poms and stockinette. Always surprising and delightful.
Last week’s post on the Philadelphia Fashion District referenced the Streetsdept.com blog which chronicles street art in Philadelphia. I love street art because it’s free for the viewing, usually relevant to current events, or a chronicle of past events that need to be memorialized. People have been drawing and writing on public walls since ancient times. Street art can be viewed as a crime or high art.  I prefer to think of it as public art.
Lisbon in Portugal has a lively and vibrant street art scene as I discovered on a trip there earlier this year. Here are some highlights:
The Fox covers the side of a building and is made up of junk and recycled materials.
Read more about the artist, Attero Bordalo II, here.
The Alfama District is home to some great street art including a mural dedicated to Fado singer Maria Severa Onofriana.
Here’s one of my favorite Lisbon murals. It’s called “Respect” and is also in the Alfama District. Apparently there is a whole cadre of senior street and graffiti artists in Lisbon. We were told that this mural depicts one of them reacting when a younger colleague does not show her the respect to which she is entitled. Read more about the older artists here. Read the real story behind the Respect mural here.
Some more Lisbon street art pictures
If you want to learn more about Lisbon street art, the Camels and Chocolate blog is a good place to start. Better yet, go to Lisbon and walk the streets.
Two photos taken on the streets of London this week seem to provide timely advice given recent events.
Ornamento 