This morning Moss Stitch and I reprised our London walks of early 2011, and went to Shoreditch in search of street art. Street art is flourishing in this part of East London, and we filled our cameras with examples of every imaginable size and colour.
The wit is what I like most.
Oh, and the colour and bold design too.
If you go walking long enough you start to become familiar with the different artists - there were a few collections of phone boxes which I liked, and some detailed line drawings by the same artist.
Shoreditch is a small area, full of coffee shops and cafes - when I first lived in East London it was a very grimy, derelict part of town, and is now incredibly and self-consciously trendy in a polished grime sort of way. Film makers now live and work in Shoreditch. We zigzaged around and covered the whole area in barely a couple of hours (and this time included a record THREE cafe breaks because the weather was so arctic we needed warming up with frequent cups of coffee).
As Shoreditch gets trendier and wealthier, I really hope the street art stays. It's a reminder of the happy soul of the place, and also its working class past. Plus, I just really love it. It makes me smile on a bitterly cold early spring day in London.
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If you are interested in finding out more about street art you might enjoy:
- Street Art London
- The Shoreditch Street Art Trail at HiddenCity
- Hooked blog
- More photos from the walk in my Flickr set
So much colour! Love the telephone boxes.
ReplyDeleteVery cool--and not just in the weather sense! K x
ReplyDeleteWho knew? It's fabulous, all that colour and expression.
ReplyDeleteAnd, what??? THREE cafe stops? Good girl ; )
the gummy bear is my favourite!
ReplyDeleteI love the t.elephone boxes!
ReplyDeleteI feel like my heart has just sprouted a pair of wings, beaten them fast as it climbs the skies, then soared around on gliding feathers, singing. Honestly, that's not an exaggeration! Some beautiful, un-famous yet proud & engaging art turns out to be just what I needed at the end of a long cold day stuck indoors with my boys & the housework. Thank you Nancy!
ReplyDeletewow.
ReplyDeleteMust take my boys to Shoreditch!