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Street art doesn’t require a museum or gallery. This medium of art is a way to breathe life into old neighbourhoods or to re-contextualize, re-energize and re-imagine a building. It’s one of the most unique and powerful means of artistic expression in our modern society. Graffiti, colourful murals and street tags are a common part of most urban landscapes. And although many believe that street artists operate on the fringe of society, these artists are giving something back to society by communicating with everyday people about socially relevant topics.

Street art is developed in public spaces that includes traditional graffiti artwork, sticker art, stencil graffiti, poster art, guerrilla art and street installations.

What is life without a dash of colour? Bright colours define enthusiasm, power, joy, love and passion. While darker shades can illustrate anger, willpower, aggression, leadership, rage, and courage. There are streets around the world that go beyond colour but embody vibrant examples of how people engage with their urban environments, energising them with visually-engaging murals and transforming them into works of art.

So what are the differences between these street art genres?

Street Art

Street art is usually painted commissioned. Graffiti is word-based, whereas Street Art is image-based. Combining figurative and graffiti images. Street art is a form of art expressed by painting or spraying on a wall or another surface (such as traffic lights or billboards) usually without permission from the private or public owner of the support. For this reason, street artworks have traditionally been viewed as acts of vandalism.

Guerrilla Street Art

Guerrilla art is a street art movement that started in the UK, but has spread all around the world and is now established in most countries. Guerrilla art focuses on cause and effect, not the material piece itself. Guerrilla artists seek to shake things up, force you to take a second look, change your preconceptions about your everyday surroundings.

Graffiti Art

Graffiti is usually done without permission and within public areas. From the simple written words to amazing wall paintings, Going back to ancient times, with examples dating back to ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, and the Roman Empire.

The urban street art scene is thriving in Africa, especially in South Africa where it’s growing in momentum. With exciting and innovative work in a genre viewed as provocative and empowering, it’s responsible for vivid murals and artwork all around its metropolis and its suburbs.

Braamfontein and Maboneng are famous for their public artworks and activism in the downtown areas and is also renowned for its graffiti created by artists from diverse backgrounds and different social and political visions. The Cape Town International Public Art Festival has been developed to showcase the variety of talent on offer and held its fourth festival in February 2020.

Mak1One

Mak1One grew up during the oppressive 70’s, a time of racial distress for all those of colour due to the apartheid governance and laws of segregation.He pursued graffiti, not as a means to fame but merely as a platform to express his thoughts and inspire others to question the governance of that time. His interest and role concerning graffiti were groomed by the environment and context of the apartheid era.

Faith 47

Faith47 is a self-taught artist still based in South Africa. She has received recognition for her work beyond her home country and has participated in gallery shows and projects worldwide. Faith47’s work can be found in many locations in South Africa and various other international cities around the world. The style and the energy of her work are clearly recognizable, and is incorporated into the texture of the urban environment.

Nardstar

She is a graffiti and mural artist from Cape Town. Her work is based on traditional graffiti with a fresh spin. She uses a strong colour palette with doses of cubism, articulation and sensitivity.

DALeast

DALeast, born in 1984 in Wuhan, China, is a prolific, multi-faceted artist known for his unusual paintings of animals. He has been making art since he was three and studied sculpture at the Institute of Fine Arts. He was fascinated by every form of art and worked on everything – painting, sculpture, installations, synchronizing performance, and digital art. He officially began doing art in public space in 2004 under the pseudonym DAL.

Ricky Lee Gordon (Freddy Sam)

Ricky Lee Gordon and his creative alter ego, Freddy Sam, was born in Johannesburg in 1984 and now works primarily in Cape Town. His pieces are displayed on large murals not only in Cape Town but Kathmandu and Istanbul. His mission with the murals is to epitomise the community it represents; something identifiable and inspirational. In Ricky’s own words “I am trying to create beauty in my work that allows for beauty in other people.” One of his signature murals is I Am You, You Are Me.

Jack Fox

JackFox was born in 1998 and is based in Cape Town, South Africa. He has already produced murals and participated in gallery projects in Paris, Berlin, Madagascar, New York, Switzerland and Cape Town. Besides street art, he’s also involved in comic book art and music production. His murals can be seen in the suburbs of Woodstock and Salt River in Cape Town.

Falko One

Falko One is now known as one of the most important and earliest street artists in the world and many of his paintings are on the sides of buildings or people’s homes in poorer neighborhoods; some of the most awe-inspiring work on the planet.

Chris Auret

A South African artist who paints, murals, photographs, films, writings, sounds and lots more. He lives in Muizenberg and the Garden Route. “I make for myself first, and then others, with good intentions embedded in each brushstroke, film frame or sewn stitch. “

Sonny Sundancer

This British-born self-made street artist is based in Johannesburg. He has a passionate love of animals and wildlife with vibrant artworks that aim to seek to raise awareness for endangered species.

The Mother City’s streets have teamed up with one-of-a-kind works of art that embody the Capetonian soul and share stories of the past, present and future. A township tour of Khayelitsha and street art walking tour of Woodstock while meeting the inspiring local residents and artists who are creating incredible things across the city.

The Pioneers of Graffiti and Street Art

Banksy

One of the world’s most recognized artists, Banksy is a famous – but anonymous street artist who creates resonant social, political, and humanist messages with a distinctive stenciling technique. He is responsible for catapulting guerilla work into the mainstream as a viable form of art.

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