Musings

Serendipitous Pavement Art

Suzanne

Now and again, looking down can be rewarding.  It can even be a joyful experience.

This descriptive heading was used initially by Rachel McAlpine, a Wellingtonian who happens to write poetry and strings a few more words together over at Write Into Life.

I just loved her creative heading, and with her permission, I have created a walk down a few paths to show you what the Squire and I have found while out walking during our travels.

To view Rachel’s click on the link below.

via Walking back home: the joy of serendipitous pavement art

Melbourne Pavement Art

When we encountered this fantastic pavement art, quite a few years ago, we were speechless, a feat for me!  At the time it looked so real, as real as a painting hanging up in some posh Chelsea Art Gallery, not on the streets of London.  I have such an admiration for artists. Especially those that put so much of themselves and energy into creating their art onto a concise medium.  This artwork will soon disappear with time or if the weather decides to turn inclement.  Their art won’t be criticised or admired for years to come.

Maybe that is the reason?.

I do think though it will never be forgotten by many going by the number of cameras clicking.  This is where the artists’ hard work was rewarded by charging people for capturing a longer-term appreciation of her artwork.

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Then we walked around part of London were flowers on a dull summer’s day were our reward for venturing down this way.

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Then a few years later, it was down another street we wandered, one in Western Australia.  It is a small town with a significant appreciation of Art.  The best kind of town, one that acknowledges differing forms of self-expression.

Don’t you think so?

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Back to London a few years later to encounter a White Rabbit and its storytelling owner spinning a yarn of the non-existent virtues of this unperfect world we live in.

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Which leaves me to hop along and finish this post of yet another path we have walked.

Published by Suzanne

Travel and Life Musings from New Zealand and Beyond. . . . . . .

56 thoughts on “Serendipitous Pavement Art”

  2. I absolutely love pavement. It’s a great way to get art out there to the masses, it’s also a good way to deliver any particular messages without permanently graffitiing anything. Plus it cheers up dreary pavements wonderfully. These are fantastic, Suzanne. I can’t beli the first one is on a pavement!

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    1. Totally agree with all your comments Hayley, I love street art when it is done in a way to beautify and compliment what is around it. What amazes me is the skill and time that goes into it, then without a moments notice it can disappear. Maybe it is too teach us to really be in that moment when you do see the beautiful art or whatever it is and appreciate it. I have taken so many of these, though not on my drives I have with me. Though the quality of the photos isn’t so great from years ago. Definitely great for messages to all.

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    1. It is and I so admire those artists for taking their time and skill to show it to the general public. As most people can’t afford or feel a bit intimidated visiting a art gallery.

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    1. Cheers Ellen, and you are totally correct it is all about keeping our eyes open for those splashes of creativity that are all over the place. Some more obvious than others 🙂

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  6. Pavement art is fascinating isn’t it? Always impressed by the vision and skill that those artists have to create something from nothing. You can’t learn that sort of thing.

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  12. Fabulous photos Suzanne and thanks for sharing your pavement art with us. There certainly are some very talented people but what a shame when the rain washes it away. As you say, many have captured the art on photos so all is not lost.

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    1. I love finding quality street art on our walks. Very talented people who can create something that looks like it should be hanging on a museum wall.

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  13. I love pavement art! We have an annual festival in the Little Italy area of our city where fabulous chalk artists ply their trade. I imagine they get paid to participate since it’s a big draw, but I can’t imagine doing that much work (and, of course, having that much talent) only to have your masterpieces be gone in a few days. Have you ever seen pictures of chalk art that is done with a forced perspective so – if seen from just the right angle – it looks like it’s three dimensional. Amazing!

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    1. Oh those three dimensional drawings are amazing!! What I have seen more than the chalk art displays are the sand ones. At a local beach back in NZ. Yes, hard to contemplate doing that much work and for it not to be a forever piece. Though I suppose if you have the ability to recreate that same thing over and over you can never “loose it”.

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  14. Some people have incredible talent! Coincidentally, I saw the original Birth of Venus in Florence a couple of weeks ago. At first glance, I thought that pavement art was the real thing!

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    1. April, good point. Though if it helps your perception of this art form no one stood on it and I do think people did respect it. As usual I enjoy your honesty 😀 How is veggie garden handling this heat?

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  22. There’s always someone who says it better than you. And that always applies to pavement art! The Botticelli is amazing and I’d just have to stop and play Snakes and Ladders 🙂 🙂

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  25. I love them. I hardly ever see pavement artists now. It seems to be a lost skill but I remember watching them in London when I was a child.

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    1. Perhaps the streets are more crowded now and the city councils don’t allow it. It certainly drew in the crowds and hopefully more income for the artist. Another popular space for drawing or I should say raking is the beach. Amazing what can be achieved with an artist flare and a rake.

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