Made You Smile (9 Photos)

September 17, 2026

By Vidar

A plant becomes a ladder. A shadow becomes a roller coaster.

A chalk mouse climbs a pavement plant, a fairy waters a real flower, and a family of wooden cabinets seems ready for a walk. Elsewhere, lilacs become Sideshow Bob’s hair and a fence shadow carries a tiny roller coaster. These nine artworks put everyday surroundings to playful use.

🌱 Nadine and the Vertical Commute — By David Zinn in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA 🇺🇸

A real plant growing through the pavement becomes a ladder for Nadine. David Zinn draws the mouse climbing out of a blue opening, joining the chalk drawing to the living stem.

💡 Nerd Fact: Nadine is one of Zinn’s recurring characters, alongside Sluggo and Philomena. His temporary street drawings are improvised on location using chalk, charcoal and found objects.

🔗 Visit David Zinn’s website

🧚 Fairy with a Watering Can

A purple fairy tips a watering can toward a real white flower growing at the foot of the wall. Painted stars and dots spill from the spout instead of water.

🚶 Vern and the New Arrivals — By Judson Beaumont

Vern, the tall chest of drawers, joins three smaller cabinet characters on a concrete ledge. Curved sides and dangling limbs make Judson Beaumont’s wooden family look ready to climb down and wander off together.

💡 Nerd Fact: The Straight Line Designs furniture family also includes a character called Vinny, complete with tattoos.

More: Furniture by Judson Beaumont

🔗 Follow Straight Line Designs on Instagram

💜 Sideshow Bob — By Pappas Pärlor in Motala, Sweden 🇸🇪

Johan Karlgren, known as Pappas Pärlor, tucks a fuse-bead Sideshow Bob into a lilac bush in Motala. Real purple blossoms supply the character’s enormous hair.

💡 Nerd Fact: Some of Karlgren’s smallest works use 90 beads or fewer and take about two minutes to make.

More: More bead characters by Pappas Pärlor

🔗 Follow Pappas Pärlor on Instagram

🗑️ The Friendliest Trash Can — By Vanyu Krastev in Bulgaria 🇧🇬

The open metal lid already looks like a broad grin. Vanyu Krastev adds two googly eyes to finish the face.

💡 Nerd Fact: The practice is called eyebombing. Kim Nielsen and Peter Dam coined the term in 2011 for adding googly eyes to everyday objects in public spaces.

More: More eyebombing by Vanyu Krastev

🔗 Follow Vanyu Krastev on Instagram

🎢 Roller Coaster Shadow — By Tom Bob in Long Beach, California, USA 🇺🇸

Painted passengers take a ride along a fence shadow. In Tom Bob’s Long Beach piece, the illusion lines up when the sun reaches the right angle.

💡 Nerd Fact: Tom Bob obtained permission from property owners and city officials for the Long Beach works documented by KABC in 2019.

More: More street art by Tom Bob

🔗 Follow Tom Bob on Instagram

🧞 A Whole New World — By Oakoak

Jasmine appears behind a real balcony railing, while Aladdin sits on the boarded doorway below. In A Whole New World, the building supplies the setting for their meeting.

💡 Nerd Fact: Oakoak is from Saint-Étienne and has been making his small street interventions since 2007.

More: Six street artworks by Oakoak

🔗 Follow Oakoak on Instagram

🐦 Birds on a Pipe — By Ernest Zacharevic

An adult bird perches above two chicks on a real wall pipe. The tangled wire around it serves as their nest.

💡 Nerd Fact: Zacharevic’s breakthrough came with his murals for the 2012 George Town Festival in Penang, Malaysia.

🔗 Visit Ernest Zacharevic’s website

➕ Simple Maths — By TRUST. iCON

Winnie-the-Pooh stands beside “1 + 1 =” and an outline heart in TRUST. iCON’s Simple Maths.

💡 Nerd Fact: Winnie-the-Pooh takes his name from a real female black bear at London Zoo. Her owner, Harry Colebourn, called her Winnie after Winnipeg; Christopher Robin later gave the name to his teddy bear.

🔗 Visit TRUST. iCON’s website