Street Art Utopia

Bordalo II Builds Animals From Trash (30 Photos)

August 30, 2026
By Vidar
Split image of Bordalo II’s Red Squirrel in Dublin and Iberian Lynx in Lisbon, both assembled from discarded materials

Animals Made From What We Throw Away

Bordalo II turns discarded plastics, car parts, tires and broken objects into animals that project from walls, wrap around corners and stand in public squares. Much of the waste remains easy to recognize.

Meet Bordalo II, the Artist Behind the Trash Animals

Artur Bordalo, born in 1987, lives and works in Lisbon. He chose the name Bordalo II as a tribute to his grandfather, the painter Real Bordalo.

His team gathers discarded objects through local partners, then cuts, bolts, layers and paints them into large animal forms. The work focuses on overproduction, overconsumption and the waste they create. Bordalo II has said the first Big Trash Animal was made for Walk&Talk in the Azores; the series later spread around the world. The live counter on his official website currently records 178 tons of reused materials since 2012.

Bordalo II divides the Big Trash Animals into three approaches. Neutral works camouflage the waste so it reads almost like fur or feathers. Half-Half works place a more natural-looking side beside exposed material. Plastic works abandon camouflage and let containers, bumpers and other objects remain easy to recognize.

The 30 works below span 2014 to 2026. Some are still landmarks; others have disappeared or moved. The idea remains the same: animals made from materials that damage wildlife.

🔗 Follow Bordalo II: Instagram · Facebook

More on Street Art Utopia: 22 Photos — A Collection of Street Art by Bordalo II

Three large pink flamingos by Bordalo II and SEN, made from discarded materials and projecting from a turquoise wall in Olhão, Portugal

🦩 “Os Flamingos da Ria Formosa” — By Bordalo II, with SEN, in Olhão, Portugal 🇵🇹

Installed in July 2026 on a corner of Avenida D. João VI near the Cubo roundabout, three flamingos step across a turquoise façade. Bordalo II led the project; Olhão artist SEN joined the team at his invitation, and Marina Aguiar photographed the finished work.

💡 Trash Fact: Local reporting calls the commissioned installation “3 Flamingos,” records about 300 kilograms of waste, and says it was made to draw attention to the protection of the Ria Formosa.

Original post: Bordalo II

Baby elephant by Bordalo II, its head and trunk assembled from dark discarded objects on a wall in Braga, Portugal

🐘 “Mamutji pequenino” — By Bordalo II in Braga, Portugal 🇵🇹

A baby elephant pushes out of a Braga façade. Bent plastic, hoses and other dark castoffs form the forehead, ears and trunk. Only a few areas are painted.

Bordalo II shared the work in January 2025 as “Mamutji pequenino.” A contemporary local report described it as a baby elephant and said its exact Braga location had not been disclosed.

💡 Nerd Fact: An elephant’s trunk can have up to 40,000 muscles. Elephants use it to drink, handle objects, trumpet warnings and greet one another, according to the World Wildlife Fund.

Original post: Bordalo II

Round pufferfish by Bordalo II, with large eyes and visible plastic pieces on a blue wall in Trafaria, Portugal

🐡 “Ballon Fish” — By Bordalo II in Trafaria, Portugal 🇵🇹

Completed in December 2025 on the Trafaria parish council building at Rua Sacadura Cabral 14, the pufferfish was created with Trafaria Criativa. The parish council describes the species as invasive in the Tagus and the work as an environmental warning.

💡 Trash Fact: Its exposed objects resemble Bordalo II’s Plastic approach, but the artist’s archive does not formally classify this work.

Original post: Bordalo II

Bordalo II’s Half Hedgehog wraps around a building corner in Montreal, Canada, with muted gray-and-brown painted scrap on one side and colorful plastic on the other

🦔 “Half Hedgehog” — By Bordalo II in Montreal, Canada 🇨🇦

In 2023, Bordalo II wrapped the work around the corner at 4351 Saint-Dominique Street. Muted, painted metal, cables and scrap formed one half; bright containers, toy-like shapes and colored plastic formed the other.

Bordalo II’s page for the work says it was made for MURAL Festival. The official archive dates it to 2023 and lists it in the Half-Half sub-series.

💡 Current Status: The building was demolished in early 2026. With the artist’s permission, iSCAN and HiDRONE captured the work photogrammetrically just before it disappeared.

Tall mountain lion by Bordalo II, assembled from brightly colored discarded materials on the west wall of ONE San Jacinto Plaza in El Paso, Texas

🐆 “Plastic Mountain Lion” — By Bordalo II in El Paso, Texas, USA 🇺🇸

Installed in 2022, a mountain lion sits upright on the west wall of ONE San Jacinto Plaza, its face and chest assembled from colored recycled materials collected by the local community.

💡 Scale Fact: Texas Highways reported that the student-founded Green Hope Project organized the 64-foot work. It was Bordalo II’s first Texas installation.

More: Plastic Mountain Lion in El Paso

Large red squirrel by Bordalo II, assembled from discarded car parts and other waste on a building façade at George’s Quay in Dublin, Ireland

🐿️ “Red Squirrel” — By Bordalo II in Dublin, Ireland 🇮🇪

Bordalo II built the animal in 2017 beside the former Workshop Gastro Pub at 10 George’s Quay. The scraps are painted to resemble fur and paws. The artist’s official archive places the work in the Neutral sub-series. Photo by Trev Whelan.

💡 Archive Fact: In August 2019, Bordalo II confirmed that the squirrel had been taken down and that a planned move could not be completed.

More: The Dublin Red Squirrel · Official record: Bordalo II

Huge brown bear by Bordalo II, made from tires, car bumpers and scrap and leaning from Teatro Colosseo in Turin, Italy

🐻 “The big bear” — By Bordalo II in Turin, Italy 🇮🇹

The bear leans from the Teatro Colosseo wall facing Via Bidone, with its paws near street level. Tires, bumpers and rough metal remain visible beneath the brown and black paint.

The MuseoTorino record dates the work to 2016 and preserves the title “The big bear.” Bordalo II’s original post says it was made for his Turin solo show DECOMPOSED.

More: Bear — By Bordalo II in Turin

Iberian lynx by Bordalo II, more than ten meters tall and built from brightly colored plastic waste in Parque das Nações, Lisbon, Portugal

🐈 “Iberian Lynx” — By Bordalo II in Lisbon, Portugal 🇵🇹

More than ten meters tall, the freestanding lynx was unveiled in Parque das Nações on 23 June 2019. It was the public legacy of the World Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth and the Lisboa+21 Youth Forum. Brightly colored containers, panels and fragments remain visible across its surface.

💡 Conservation Fact: In 2024, the IUCN moved the Iberian lynx from Endangered to Vulnerable after its population recovered to more than 2,000 animals.

More: 6 Photos of the Iberian Lynx

Mother and baby Barbary macaques made from discarded materials by Bordalo II, embracing on a wall in Viseu, Portugal

🐒 “Barbary Baby and Mom Monkey” — By Bordalo II in Viseu, Portugal 🇵🇹

The installation showed a mother macaque holding her baby against the wall on Rua do Coval, near Cava de Viriato. Bordalo II installed the work in July 2020 for Viseu’s municipal Cubo Mágico street-art program.

💡 Animal Fact: Barbary macaque infant care is not limited to mothers. A behavioral study documented frequent male association with and care for infants soon after birth.

Original post: Bordalo II · More: Trash Art in Viseu

Burro de Miranda donkey head by Bordalo II, made from plastic, rope, metal and other waste on a turquoise wall in Vimioso, Portugal

🫏 “Burro de Miranda” — By Bordalo II in Vimioso, Portugal 🇵🇹

Completed in February 2023 at PINTA, Vimioso’s nature and adventure park, this is one of two Burro de Miranda murals created with the Portuguese donkey-protection association AEPGA for its EcoDonkey project. Both murals were built from municipal waste collected in Serapicos and Vilar Seco.

💡 Local Species Fact: The work is not a generic donkey. AEPGA says both installations highlight the conservation of the Burro de Miranda breed.

Original post: Bordalo II · More: The Eco Donkey Project

Young owl by Bordalo II, split between muted painted plumage and colorful scrap at the University of Coimbra in Portugal

🦉 “Meia Coruja Meia Esticada” — By Bordalo II in Coimbra, Portugal 🇵🇹

Unveiled in January 2022 on the north façade of Colégio das Artes at the University of Coimbra, the young owl combined muted, natural-looking plumage with bright, exposed objects.

In his original post, Bordalo II described the owl as trying to reach her goals: one side holding to the old walls, the other facing new questions, ideas and solutions.

💡 Current Status: The owl was removed in March 2026 for building works and placed in storage. The university had not announced a new location when the report was published.

More: Young Owl Trash Art

Baby beaver face by Bordalo II, divided between brown painted scrap and bright plastic on a corner in Bernex, Switzerland

🦫 “Half Baby Beaver” — By Bordalo II in Bernex, Canton of Geneva, Switzerland 🇨🇭

Made in June 2021 on the corner of Pillet SA’s offices in Bernex, Half Baby Beaver was Bordalo II’s first work in Switzerland. Brown-painted layers suggest wet fur on one wall, while bright castoffs stay exposed on the other.

💡 Build Fact: A feature on the installation says Pillet gathered metal and plastic waste—including bumpers, cables, helmets and construction signs—and the artist and two assistants installed the work in four days.

Original post: Bordalo II · More: Half Baby Beaver

Chimpanzee by Bordalo II, made from discarded materials and gripping a peach-colored building in Lisbon, Portugal

🐵 “Half Chimp” — By Bordalo II in Lisbon, Portugal 🇵🇹

Long arms climbed the façade at Rua de Xabregas 49. Muted materials shaped the head and one arm; exposed blue, yellow, red and green pieces formed the other side. Photo by equis007.

💡 Archive Fact: Bordalo II created Half Chimp for his solo exhibition ATTERO, which opened on 4 November 2017. The artist posted the work the day before the opening; the façade installation has since been removed.

More: Half Chimp in Lisbon

Large seahorse by Bordalo II, assembled from discarded material at the University of Algarve in Faro, Portugal

🌊 Seahorse — By Bordalo II in Faro, Portugal 🇵🇹

In April 2021, Bordalo II unveiled two seahorses in Faro: this Neutral-series work at the University of Algarve’s Gambelas Campus, and a Plastic-series counterpart at Faro Municipal Camping Park. An eight-kilometer route linked the two sculptures, with information about seagrass, marine litter and Ria Formosa’s seahorses.

💡 Conservation Fact: The European Commission’s HIPPOSAVE page says Ria Formosa’s seahorse numbers fell by more than 90 percent within two decades.

More: 5 Photos of the Faro Seahorse

Six-meter hoopoe by Bordalo II, made from discarded objects on a tall white wall in Santarém, Portugal

🐦 “Poupa” — By Bordalo II in Santarém, Portugal 🇵🇹

The hoopoe’s crest follows the roofline while its long beak points over the street below. The six-meter work was assembled from discarded materials and installed on the Villa Graça façade beside Igreja da Graça on 26 August 2020.

O Mirante reports that the hoopoe is part of the Ribatejo fauna and that Bordalo II worked with a seven-person team.

💡 Nerd Fact: Hoopoe eggshells contain microscopic crypts that hold secretion from the female’s preen gland. In a controlled study, that secretion carried symbiotic Enterococcus bacteria. Preventing females from applying it made the shells more permeable to several bacterial groups. Higher symbiont density was also associated with hatching success.

More: Poupa in Santarém

Large coastal plover-type bird by Bordalo II, made from pale discarded materials on a rust-colored wall in Praia de Mira, Portugal

🐦 “Pássaro Borrelho” — By Bordalo II in Praia de Mira, Portugal 🇵🇹

Installed in August 2021 on the façade of the Praia de Mira health center extension, Pássaro Borrelho depicts a small coastal bird known in Portuguese as a borrelho. Municipal sources do not identify the exact species.

Made entirely from waste, the work was commissioned for the intermunicipal program O Mar que nos Une, according to the Municipality of Mira.

More: Trash Art by Bordalo II

Santa Maria goldcrest by Bordalo II, assembled from pale discarded materials on a white building in Vila do Porto, Azores, Portugal

🐦 “Estrelinha-de-Santa-Maria” — By Bordalo II in Vila do Porto, Santa Maria, Azores, Portugal 🇵🇹

Created in August 2021 for Associação Cultural Maré de Agosto, Estrelinha-de-Santa-Maria stands in Vila do Porto’s municipal garden. It depicts Regulus regulus sanctaemariae, an endemic subspecies found only on Santa Maria, as documented by the University of the Azores.

Original post: Bordalo II

Ouriço Luminoso by Bordalo II, a bright multicolored hedgehog assembled from plastic waste on a dark wall at Castelo Branco bus station in Portugal

🦔 “Ouriço Luminoso” — By Bordalo II in Castelo Branco, Portugal 🇵🇹

Bordalo II installed Ouriço Luminoso on a wall of Castelo Branco’s bus station in July 2021. Built largely from discarded plastic, it was his second work in the municipality after the griffon in Alcains.

Original post: Bordalo II

Peregrine falcon by Bordalo II, made from layered gray waste with its talons extended on the SMAS workshop façade in Portela de Sintra, Portugal

🦅 Peregrine Falcon — By Bordalo II in Portela de Sintra, Portugal 🇵🇹

Unveiled on 21 May 2021 for the 75th anniversary of SMAS de Sintra, the peregrine falcon occupies a façade of the utility’s Portela workshops on Avenida Almirante Gago Coutinho. Bordalo II chose a species resident in Sintra-Cascais Natural Park.

Commission record: SMAS de Sintra

Bordalo II’s Melting Pingouin, a gray-and-black penguin made from discarded materials on a green wall in Bordeaux, France

🐧 “Melting Pingouin” — By Bordalo II in Bordeaux, France 🇫🇷

Bordalo II installed Melting Pingouin at Darwin, in the former Caserne Niel, for the 2015 Ocean Climax Festival; Spacejunk Art Center curated the work. Its dark surface drips down the green wall.

Original post: Bordalo II · Image archive: Street Art Utopia

Bordalo II’s Big Raccoon, a large black-and-gray trash sculpture stretched across a stepped wall in Belém, Lisbon, Portugal

🦝 “Big Raccoon” — By Bordalo II in Belém, Lisbon, Portugal 🇵🇹

The raccoon stretched across the stepped walls behind Centro Cultural de Belém. Its features lined up from the front and broke apart from the side. Bordalo II created it for his 2015 solo show Pânico, Drama, Terror at Arte Periférica Gallery in CCB. In his original post, he called it Guaxinão.

💡 Nerd Fact: When the Belém building was marked for demolition in 2025, the artist adapted and reinstalled the piece in Chelas as Re-Raccoon.

Image archive: Street Art Utopia

Bordalo II’s wide-eyed Yellow Frog assembled from found materials in a recessed wall in Qala, Baku, Azerbaijan

🐸 “Yellow Frog” — By Bordalo II in Qala, Baku, Azerbaijan 🇦🇿

Two big round eyes sit above a squat body of yellow and green scrap. Bordalo II built the frog in 2015 for the 4th International “From Waste to Art” Exhibition at the Qala State History and Ethnography Reserve, outside central Baku.

Original post: Bordalo II · Image archive: Street Art Utopia

Bordalo II’s black Ldn Rat made from discarded materials inside a brick railway arch at Kachette in East London

🐀 “Ldn Rat” — By Bordalo II in East London, England 🇬🇧

Created for GraffitiStreet’s Underground Group Show in July 2015, Ldn Rat filled a brick railway arch at Kachette, 347 Old Street. It was a temporary indoor installation, not a permanent public mural.

💡 Nerd Fact: GraffitiStreet records that the discarded materials were collected across East London.

Original post: Bordalo II · Image archive: Street Art Utopia

Bordalo II’s colorful Froehlicher Tucan assembled from found objects across stacked shipping containers at Urban Spree in Berlin, Germany

🦜 “Froehlicher Tucan” — By Bordalo II in Berlin, Germany 🇩🇪

Bordalo II built Froehlicher Tucan at Urban Spree in March 2015. The bird spans three stacked shipping containers. COlabs’ process film documents a build completed in under 72 hours, while StreetArtNews reports that it used locally gathered trash and found material.

Original post: Bordalo II · Image archive: Street Art Utopia

Bordalo II’s Owl Eyes, a large brown owl made from scrap on a green wall in the historic center of Covilhã, Portugal

🦉 “Owl Eyes” — By Bordalo II in Covilhã, Portugal 🇵🇹

The owl covers a crumbling wall at Rua Alexandre Herculano and Rua do Cotovelo. Bordalo II fitted the scrap around the building so the eyes look straight down the street.

💡 Nerd Fact: Turismo de Portugal dates the work to October 2014 and says Bordalo II used the owl, a symbol of wisdom and culture, to call for investment in Covilhã’s aging historic center. Photo by Pedro Seixo Rodrigues / WOOL.

Image archive: Street Art Utopia

Bordalo II’s red-and-blue parrot assembled from discarded materials on an overgrown wall in Lisbon, Portugal

🦜 Parrot — By Bordalo II in Lisbon, Portugal 🇵🇹

Red and blue fragments turn an overgrown wall into a bird perch. The eye, curved bill and layered feathers stay clear even as leaves grow over the edges.

Contemporary coverage documented the Lisbon work by September 2014.

Image archive: Street Art Utopia

Bordalo II’s long green Camaleão sculpture made from discarded materials at the Bragança Shopping tunnel entrance in Bragança, Portugal

🦎 “Camaleão” — By Bordalo II in Bragança, Portugal 🇵🇹

Completed in 2014, Camaleão stretches across the tunnel entrance to Bragança Shopping on Avenida Sá Carneiro. Car panels and dark rubber shapes remain visible beneath the yellow-green paint.

Work record: Visit Bragança · Title and year source: Revista Rua, University of Campinas · Image archive: Street Art Utopia

Bordalo II’s large, big-eyed fish from Peixes d’Alcântara, assembled from colorful found materials in Lisbon, Portugal

🐟 “Peixes d’Alcântara” — By Bordalo II in Lisbon, Portugal 🇵🇹

The local guide GetLisbon places Peixes d’Alcântara opposite Alcântara-Terra station on Avenida de Ceuta. Installed in 2015, the work is a series of big-eyed fish built from found materials and trash.

A contemporary report describes the fish as a reference to pollution in rivers and oceans.

💡 Nerd Fact: Lisbon City Council traces the Caneiro de Alcântara to the enclosure of the former Alcântara Stream. An official planning profile maps the underground channel beneath Avenida de Ceuta beside the railway.

Original post: Bordalo II · Image archive: Street Art Utopia

Bordalo II’s Trasherpillar, a giant green-and-yellow caterpillar made from old car parts on the Fórum Carballo building in Carballo, Galicia, Spain

🐛 “Trasherpillar” — By Bordalo II in Carballo, Galicia, Spain 🇪🇸

For Rexenera’s first edition in 2015, Bordalo II used old car parts to build Trasherpillar along the side of the Fórum Carballo building.

Official city record: Trasherpillar · Image archive: Street Art Utopia

Bordalo II’s Salamander, a large ground-based sculpture made from car bodies, tires and plastic containers in Águeda, Portugal

🦎 “Salamander” — By Bordalo II in Águeda, Portugal 🇵🇹

Seen from above, an entire car body becomes the salamander’s head while cut panels, tires and rubber extend into legs and a long tail. The animal sits on a turquoise-painted section of the civic square.

The Google Arts & Culture record dates Salamander to July 2015 and places it at Praça do Município in Águeda.

💡 Nerd Fact: AgitÁgueda curator Mistaker Maker says the work was inspired by a salamander from the Vouga River Special Conservation Area. It was built from three motor vehicles, tires and plastic containers.

Image archive: Street Art Utopia

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