The Nature of Street Art: A Canvas for Environmental Messages
Street art has always been a powerful medium for expressing social and political views, transforming cityscapes into vibrant canvases and sometimes provoking images. Among the myriad themes street artists choose to explore, environmental awareness has emerged as a prevalent topic. This post will take you on a virtual tour of seven famous street art pieces across the globe that echo the call for environmental protection and sustainability.
1. Banksy’s ‘I Remember When All This Was Trees’ – Detroit, USA
Arguably one of the most famous street artists in the world, Banksy is known for his distinctive stenciling technique and biting social commentary.
This piece, found in an abandoned Detroit factory, depicts a small child holding a can of red paint, behind him, the words, “I remember when all this was trees.” The powerful message speaks volumes about urban decay and the loss of natural habitats.
2. Bordalo II’s Trash Animals – Lisbon, Portugal
Bordalo II creates striking 3D art pieces using discarded materials, highlighting the issue of waste production and its impact on the planet. His ‘Trash Animals’ series, found throughout Lisbon, reimagines urban waste as vibrant, larger-than-life animal sculptures, showing the beauty of wildlife in a sharp contrast and the ugliness of our throwaway culture.
3. Pejac´s ‘The world going down the drain’ – In Santander, Spain
Spanish artist Pejac‘s street art in Santander, Spain, depicts a the world going down in to the sewer, a potent statement about our dependency on fossil fuels and its consequences for the environment. The simple but effective imagery forces us to confront our relationship with energy consumption.
4. Blu’s ‘SPIRALE’ – At Casa Dei Pazzi in Rome, Italy
This expansive mural by the Italian artist Blu depicts our colorful world tru history being consumed by greed and waste. Filled with provoking symbolism, it’s a critique of consumerist society and the environmental degradation that accompanies it.
5. Nemos’s ‘Cagacemento’ – In Milano, Italy
NemO’s: I lived in Milan in Italy for a while and because I come from a small city surrounded by countryside this big city seemed like a desert of cement to me, the skyline was barely visible! Every huge metropolis seems like a stain of oil that looks still but is slowly expanding and gulping everything down! I felt the necessity to show and tell the story of the expanding city that feeds on nature and expels cement waste!
6. Isaac Cordal’s ‘Follow the leaders’ – Berlin. Germany
This installation, popularly known as “Politicians discussing global warming”, by Isaac Cordal, a Spanish artist known for his miniature sculptures, shows small figures in business suits partially submerged in water, indifferent to their impending doom. It’s a biting commentary on the inaction regarding climate change.
7. Nele Azevedo placed 1,000 melting ice sculptures in Berlin to show the effects of climate change
More photos and about the artwork: Tiny ice figurines draw attention to big problem
8. Make Earth Green Again – By HIJACK.
More: Street Art by HIJACK – A Collection (42 photos)
9. Oakoak uses a stop sign to highlight climate change with a polar bear stranded on melting ice.
More: Oakoak’s Genius Street Art! (10 Photos)
10. Waterline on Climate Change by James Colomina in Amsterdam, Netherlands
Follow James Colomina on Instagram!
11. Support — By Lorenzo Quinn in Venice, Italy
Two massive white hands rise from the Grand Canal, appearing to hold up the walls of the Ca’ Sagredo Hotel in Venice. Created by Italian sculptor Lorenzo Quinn, the artwork is both dramatic and symbolic—a call to address climate change before it’s too late.
About and more photos: Support – Message About Climate Change
More: Climate Change Addressed Through Street Art (16 Powerful Images)
Which one is your favorite?
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I like number 3 and number 11! They are all good but those two are my favorite!
[…] Banksy’s ‘I Remember When All This Was Trees’ in Detroit, USA, depicts a child reflecting on urban decay and the loss of natural habitats, prompting viewers to consider the consequences of development and deforestation. [1] […]
Sorry there is nothing that humans can do to change the climate… We have tried many times 🤪
How sad that’s how you feel.
It’s humans that HAVE changed the climate……those with power & wealth.
It’s humans that will reverse the damage done…..those with integrity & conviction.
There’s more of us than there are of them…..& we hold the true power……without us ‘they’ are nothing.
[…] Source: Art Fighting For The Planet (9 Photos) – STREET ART UTOPIA […]