Street Art in Shoreditch

[Click on the pics if you want to see them in full.] 

Jill and Slim were visiting London so we decided to go on the Shoreditch Street Art Tour. Since it was Sunday, we met up at Columbia Street Flower Market. 

Jill & Slim - we found some street art before the tour. 

Blindingly pink flowers at the market. 

Boxcar Joe Strouzer entertaining the masses.

After we strolled around some, we had brunch and then we made our way to the goat statue at Spitalfields Market, where we were supposed to meet the tour.

Spitalfields spire + goat. 

There were about 15 people on the tour. The guide was a tall enthusiastic guy named Dave. I was kind of worried about the tour at first since he spent at least 10 minutes telling us how to cross the road. Probably since there wasn't insurance, but still, I wondered if he was going to sling us all in a harness like kids at a nursery school. After we managed to cross the road twice without getting killed, Dave seemed to relax about this. We started off talking about stickers and then he went on to take us through Brick Lane, showing us some alley ways I never noticed. By the end, I felt like I'd gotten a pretty comprehensive overview of street art in London. And it was great that Dave also gave us some philosophy. I love how street art epitomizes the whole cheap art idea evinced by my friend Peter Schumann. Art doesn't have to be some rich person's game, placed behind a velvet rope in a museum, hyped up a la Andy Warhol. Art should be for everyone. Everything is art or can be. If you don't know the Cheap Art Manifesto, you ought to read it.

Andre the Giant sticker by Shepard Fairey, he of the Obama HOPE poster. 

Pigeon expressing his opinion over DO NOT ENTER. 

Street Art overlap. 

Jill & Slim and the tour group. 

Muslim family wondering why we are gawping at a wall. 

The Bruce Lee pic at the bottom was left by a street artist to be picked up. 

Girl in our group who scored the Bruce Lee. 

Street Art lock-down. 

I agree completely. 

Jill and Slim. 

Pigeon posing with the moon on the mosque. 

Interracial couple and a kid on a see-saw with his pal. 

Painted facades. 

Brick eye. 

Scored a paper butterfly from some pasted on a wall. 

This was on top of a street sign. 

Art? 

Dave and a glowering lion. 

Passing the Truman Brewery. 

Peeling sign. 

Self-portrait in a broken mirror. 

Edgar Allan Poe. I often feel like this. 

Birch tree with great texture. Looks like peeling signs or paint. 

I love textures, actually. It's like abstract art but better since it's got history. 

Another great wall of peeling paint and paper. 

Apparently this was a squat? 

Love, graffiti and the shadow of birds. 

Get yer kleptomania on. 

Not really, it's rather nice actually. 

CCTV says. 

After the tour, we meandered over to the canal and found more art. 

Anyone seen this cat? 

Jill & Slim by the gas tanks.