Street Art Utopia

Funny Fake Shadows (20 Photos)

August 27, 2026
By Vidar
Split image showing two of Damon Belanger’s painted fake shadows in Redwood City, California: a toothy monster beside a blue USPS mailbox and daisies extending from circular bike racks.

A mailbox grows teeth. Bike racks bloom. A parking kiosk sprouts a monkey.

In downtown Redwood City, California, Damon Belanger painted gray silhouettes that begin exactly where a real shadow should. A bench becomes Dog the Cat, a row of bike racks becomes Robot Band, and a streetlight breathes fire.

Belanger built the series around fixtures that were already there—benches, racks, railings, hydrants, signs, and mailboxes. He drew chalk outlines with stencils, then filled them with gray paint designed for concrete patios. Friends and members of the selection committee helped with the painting. The city lists the 2016 series as the Sidewalk & Shadow Art Project.

These 20 photos include alternate views and two installation shots, so several artworks appear more than once. The city’s walking map names the works: Lazy Daisies, Mr. RWC, Robot Band, Wild Ride, Ryu, Laberinto acuático, and more.

💡 Nerd Fact: The project counts do not quite agree: the original commission called for 20 sidewalk stencils, the San Francisco Chronicle reported images at 23 locations in May 2016, and the city’s August 2016 map names 22 works.

Explore Damon Belanger’s official project page and follow Damon Belanger on Instagram.

Artwork by Damon Belanger. Photos by Beth Mostovoy: the first Lazy Daisies view and the first Robot Band view; remaining images via Damon Belanger.

Mailbox Monster by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, California: a blue USPS mailbox beside a painted gray fake shadow with a wide mouth and jagged teeth.
Damon Belanger’s Mailbox Monster in progress in Redwood City, with orange cones and tape surrounding the freshly painted toothy shadow beside a blue mailbox.
Dog the Cat by Damon Belanger in Redwood City: a black metal bench beside a painted gray fake shadow shaped like a long animal with a round eye and curled tail.
Lazy Daisies by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with painted gray flower stems and blooms extending from circular bike racks across the sidewalk.
A bicycle locked to circular bike racks beside Damon Belanger’s painted Lazy Daisies shadows in Redwood City, California.
Work-in-progress view of Lazy Daisies by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with a person kneeling beside the bike racks and painting the gray flower shadows on the sidewalk.
Mr. RWC by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with a downtown map sign beside a painted gray robot-like fake shadow.
Railroad Robots by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with a metal railing connected to painted gray handcar wheels and tiny robot figures on the pavement.
Bouncing Ball by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with a U-shaped bike rack connected to a curving gray painted trail ending in a round ball shape on the sidewalk at night.
Wild Ride by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with a real bicycle beside a painted gray wheeled creature raising both arms on the sidewalk.
A cyclist passing Wild Ride by Damon Belanger, a painted gray wheeled creature connected to the bike racks on a Redwood City sidewalk.
Robot Band by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with circular bike racks connected to long painted gray robot-musician shadows.
Low-angle view of Robot Band by Damon Belanger, showing the painted fake shadows stretching from a row of circular bike racks in Redwood City.
Close view of Parking Monkey by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with a sidewalk payment kiosk beside a small gray painted monkey shadow with a curled tail.
Parking Monkey by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with a pay-by-space parking kiosk beside a painted gray monkey shadow raising one arm.
Crazy Train by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with a bike rack and fence connected to a painted train, track and robot-like passengers at night.
Night view of Crazy Train by Damon Belanger, with painted train cars and tracks running beside a long metal fence in Redwood City.
Laberinto acuático by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with a yellow fire hydrant beside a gray painted labyrinth shadow at night.
Ryu by Damon Belanger in Redwood City, with a streetlight beside a painted gray dragon head breathing fire at night.
Close view of Ryu by Damon Belanger, a painted fire-breathing dragon shadow extending from a black streetlight in Redwood City.

Which one is your favorite?

Discussion 8 comments

  1. @streetartutopia I love the bitey mailbox!

  2. @streetartutopia I pass these every day. They're cool!

  5. Very funny only more people thought more and the things you could come up whith lol

    Reply

  6. Have the real shadows been edited out of the photos ? I would like to see a daylight photo that includes the real shadow.. I imagine that it would be quite a jumble of shadings

    Reply

    1. No, it’s an overcast day, meaning the clouds block the sun. It’s bright enough to see, but it diffuses the light, leaving very faint & soft shadows. In some, you can see the actual shadow, and it somewhat breaks the illusion. Night time is easier, as it’s the same level of light in the same place, so it’s easier to play with, whereas the sun moves throughout the day and changes with the seasons.

      Reply

Join the conversation

Keep it kind, keep it real, keep it short.

Keep exploring

More visual stories

15 Sculptures You (probably) Didn’t Know Existed Related

15 Sculptures You (probably) Didn’t Know Existed

Open story When Nature Become Art (9 Photos) Readers loved

When Nature Become Art (9 Photos)

Open story Yayoi Kusama Covered the World in Dots (12 Photos) Fresh

Yayoi Kusama Covered the World in Dots (12 Photos)

Open story