Paris Street Art: Street Art from the City of My Soul

Paris is the city of my soul and Paris street art inspires me like no other.

In the street art of Paris, you can find in equal measure spray art, acrylic, stencil, 3D sculpture, wheat paste and mixed media. Yes, other cities offer each of these to varying degrees, but in Paris it’s all there for the feasting- a street art fanboy’s boys wet dream.

Unknown artist. If you know who created this, HMU so I can tag and give credit.

Every autumn, I go to Paris for a few weeks. In that time and space in the city I adore, I am more “me” than I ever am. I can’t think of a single pejorative to use when Paris comes to mind and the few short weeks I get to spend there are the most refreshing and inspiring of all the weeks in the year.

Paris also has an incredible amount of unexpected, kick-ass street art to offer. I can flick hundreds of photos during my stay. So much so that tops on my packing list are an extra camera battery and an extra 64GB SD card, maybe two. Who needs underwear when you have street art to shoot? In a pinch, I can go commando.

If I ever find myself alone and without 4 dogs and 6 cats, I will be hopping a jet plane to Paris. It may be a permanent move or it may be for a year. I wont know until- or if- it happens, and that is the magic of Paris generally and Paris street art specifically- anything can and DOES happen!

The quickest way to the modern girl or boy’s heart is with a can of spray and some street art. This is by artist @ArtofBust.

This is is a collaboration between Mother Nature and artists @Bust_the_Drip and @nasti.404 and is located in Monmartre.

How to Shoot Paris Street Art with a Travel Companion Who Thinks You’re Crazy

When I travel to Paris each year, I go with my husband, who appreciates the actual street art much more than he does being left on a street corner as I run ahead, or bolt back a block, or make a quick left turn onto a small, winding side street to flick photos of something that has caught my eye. Essentially, he appreciates the finished result, not so much my process.

Since Paris offers so many things for every traveler, we have learned to schedule some time each trip where I head in one direction with my camera while he heads towards a small, quaint museum or to an exhibit I’m okay missing.

On these days, we meet up for a late-afternoon coffee or an early supper where we trade notes and regale each other with stories about our day over a bottle, okay, two bottles, of Sancerre.

Other days, we spend our time joined at the hip, taking in the vibe of the City of Love as a couple of coupled men- you know, married in the most traditional and parochial sense.

This approach to traveling works for both of us. You see, we are both independent men who have both common and distinctly unique interests and lives. By allowing ourselves time to go enjoy the things we each enjoy, our trip is much more complete.

“Koons Humps Haring” by artist @EricZeKing.

(A Sampling of) The Street Art of Paris

I leave Paris with hundreds of photos. Actually it’s probably closer to a thousand or more, each piece of art special and striking in it’s own way. Narrowing them down to any sort of “best of…” list is daunting and basically impossible. That said, I always find a few treasures that really speak to me, each one for different reasons.

I’m sharing some of my favorite photos from the fall of 2016 in this 2 part series of blog posts. I hope you’ll let me know which is your favorite in a comment below.

Also, if you know of a great wall that I need to add to my Can’t-Miss- list, please let me know so I can add it to my itinerary for the fall of 2017! And finally, if you dig street art as much as I do, please share this on social media or join the mailing list- or both if you’re a hard core fan!

3D Sculpture Art

These are definitely two of my favorite Paris street art walls. This 3D ear struck me as fitting since half of my dogs are deaf and much of the information I share is about deaf dogs. These public sculptures are by artist @UrbanSolid Art.

Unknown artist. If you know who created this, HMU so I can tag and give credit.

The French Panty Wheat Paste Series

The French Panty Wheat Paste Series by artist @fe_tavie.

The Beautiful Chaos of Graffiti

There is a frenetic beauty and chaos in graffiti that is often overlooked or frowned upon. This was spotted in a private alley and I had to shoot through the locked gate.

Shot at night in Le Marais.

Shot in Le Metro near L’Arc de Triomphe.

David Bowie Tributes

David Bowie had died earlier in the year and the city was a veritable street art tribute to the Man Who Fell From To Earth. Artists unknown. HMU if you know who created these so I can tag and give credit.