Parisian (street)Art #6, 7

Found on the streets of the 1st Arrondissement. Granted, the "Metro" photo wouldn't technically be considered "street art" (because it was put there deliberately by the government)... but the signs add character to the urban landscape.

Parisian (street)Art #4, 5

Fat man on a little bike!

Found on the streets of Montmartre.

Flower power... Parisian style

Parisian (street)Art #3

Found on the streets of the 6th arrondissement. 

Parisian (street)Art #2

Found en route to Sacré Cœur. 

Parisian (street)Art

Paris is famous for its art museums and galleries. However, scattered throughout the city is a different type of art... something that is available for all of the public to enjoy (or hate). Street art (aka graffiti) isn't for everyone, but regardless of your tastes, you have to appreciate the determination and creativity of the artists. This was one painting I found in Saint-Germain-des-Prés just above a gallery (more to come later). 

The Pearl of the Orient

As one of the world's leading international financial centres, Hong Kong has a major capitalist service economy characterized by low taxation and free trade. This economy attracts people from all over the world and has created vast amounts of wealth (Hong Kong has one of the highest per capita incomes in the world)... but it has also lead to extreme gaps between rich and poor. 

Since Hong Kong is small territory, there is a lack of space. This has caused demand for denser constructions, which developed the city to a centre for modern architecture and the world's most vertical city. The dense space also led to a highly developed transportation network with public transport travelling rate exceeding 90 percent (the highest in the world). Hong Kong has numerous high international rankings in various aspects... its economic freedom, financial and economic competitiveness, quality of life, corruption perception (becoming a police officer in Hong Kong is one of the most difficult application processes), Human Development Index are all ranked highly.

Anyways, when you combine all of these elements in a dense area, it leads to interesting street photography. These are a few of the photos I took while wandering around Kowloon and Hong Kong Island.

Morocco - "The Ruins"

During my trip to Morocco, there was a bit of "social unrest" with the locals. A lot of people had built homes illegally over the last several years... and the government finally decided to take action and start knocking them down. It's my understanding that (in the past) there was an unwritten agreement between the people and the government stating that if someone owned land, submitted for approval to build, and did not hear back in 2 months and 1 day... they were allowed to build. Apparently, that's no longer the case. Even if the people own the land, they cannot build without specific approval from the government. It was quite a scene seeing bulldozers and cranes destroy concrete structures and leave skeletons in their place. The police and military were out in full effect to make sure no one rioted.

Nonetheless, with all deconstruction comes art. A lot of the destroyed buildings have been taken over by graffiti artists bringing new life to them. Below are some photos I took of the aftermath.

A Different Perspective of the BU Bridge

The Boston University Bridge... my favorite bridge crossing the Charles. I just wish they would finish construction on it at some point.

Boston Under the Bridge

I Was Already In Love With You By Then...

Street scene in NYC.

June 17, 2011

A sweet abandoned building I found in some random foreign country. Can anyone guess where this picture was taken??

(hint: graffiti is in Spanish)

June 11, 2011

Abandoned house in Cambridge, MA... really cool colors and textures (love the teal!). Wonder what lives inside that dilapidated storage area in back?? (didn't really want to go find out)

May 29, 2011

Abandoned house in Cambridge, MA.

I was riding my bike around Cambridge yesterday and happened to roll past this abandoned house. The colors and textures are incredible (LOVE the teal!!)... would like to actually go inside it somehow and shoot some more pictures. Wondered what happened to it that caused people to vacate?
Also, what is that box with a red 'X' for??

May 6, 2011

Admiring the view from on top of the Boston University Bridge. I really like the railroad crossing in foreground. It's super rusted and is covered in graffiti... very unique.

April 23, 2011

I took this photo on the "gritty" streets of Hong Kong... just outside of a bar in Lan Kwai Fong. I really liked the textures, shadows, and warm/dark colors. I'm surprised I was able to compose something like this during the midst of a night out in LKF. I happened to be there during Rugby Sevens week and was surrounded by massive amounts of drunken Aussies & English... fun times!

March 9, 2011

London art?

The streets of East London have some of the best graffiti art in the world. If you're ever there, I definitely recommend cruising the streets for an afternoon just to check it out. This definitely was not one of the best pieces I saw... but I liked the combination of colors and textures in a confined space.

February 25, 2011

Graffiti art on lock down.

Another random image from the streets of NYC...

November 17, 2010

Fearless...

July 27, 2010

Frosty comes to Harvard Square. This picture was taken right outside my apartment in Harvard Square. I liked the combination of colors and how the light is hitting the wall.