I Didn’t See That Coming (9 Photos)

Everyday things with unexpected roles

Give a boulder two handles and it turns into a handbag. These nine street artworks and public sculptures start with familiar shapes, then give them something else to do.

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🤐 “IQOS World Revealed” — By Alex Chinneck in Milan, Italy 🇮🇹

A giant zipper turns the front of a building into something as flexible as a jacket. Alex Chinneck created this temporary installation at Opificio 31 on Via Tortona for Milan Design Week in April 2019. The curled corner carries windows with it, while the person and bicycle below make the scale clear. Photograph by Marc Wilmot.

💡 Design Week Fact: Chinneck built a new exterior over the historic Via Tortona building, his first temporary installation outside Britain. About 50,000 people visited during the week it stood.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsIQOS World RevealedAlex Chinneck · 2019 · Via Tortona, MilanShown for six daysFacade 17 m widePolystyrene (builder says)1The old-looking Milanese facade was fake, pieced together from details of nearby streets down to graffitied shutters and aged plaster.Domus2Its builder reports the peeling corner was a three-tonne curved steel piece, with most of the rest CNC-milled polystyrene painted to look old.satis&fy20198 Aprdesignboom report, press-preview day (photos: Marc Wilmot)20199 AprOpening; Dezeen, Domus, Artribune201910 AprVenue photo of the wall zip inside201914 AprLast day of the show20265 JanVenue photo: plain facadeRead the full file →

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💜 A Fence Leans In for a Kiss — By Oakoak

Two bars of an old fence bend toward each other, and two small pink faces turn them into a couple about to kiss. The rust and chipped purple paint stay as they are; Oakoak adds only the faces.

More: Clever Street Art by Oakoak

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👜 Stone Handbags — By Cheng-Tsung Feng

A pair of handles changes how you read these boulders. The stones keep their rough surfaces and irregular shapes, but now look like bags someone has set down outside a shop. The largest one is an especially convincing argument for traveling light.

More: More Art That Makes You Look Twice

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🦍 “Everything Is Possible” — By Villu Jaanisoo in Helsinki, Finland 🇫🇮

Tire treads become skin folds, fingers and the broad muzzle of this seated gorilla. Villu Jaanisoo built Everything Is Possible from used car tires for the University of Helsinki’s Viikki campus. A night fire destroyed the sculpture in January 2018, MTV Uutiset reported; this photograph shows it before the fire.

💡 History Fact: The design won a Viikki environmental art competition held by Finland’s State Art Commission in 2006, but the gorilla was not installed until October 2009.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsKaikki on mahdollista (Everything Is Possible)Villu Jaanisoo · 2009 · Viikki campus, HelsinkiUsed car tyresAbout 5 m tall2006 competition winner1It was built from used car tyres and chosen through an invited competition held in 2006.State Art Commission2A fire in the early hours of 10 January 2018 destroyed the sculpture completely.MTV Uutiset200924 SepUniversity announces the unveiling200929 SepYle reports the gorilla has arrived20146 MayPhoto by Harald Bøhn201410 MayInstagram photo by Panu Lempiäinen (our photo)201810 JanDestroyed by fire in the night201811 JanState Art Commission reports arson20185 FebOnly supports and tyre remains leftRead the full file →

More: Villu Jaanisoo’s Tire Gorilla

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💡 A Bench for Two Lamps

Two lamp posts have taken a seat. Their bases rest on the ground like boots, their long stems bend into legs, and one lantern leans toward the other. The empty end of the wooden bench makes the pair look even more like people caught in a quiet conversation.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsLampioni InnamoratiRodolfo Marasciuolo · Parco del Valentino, TurinTwo lamp posts on a benchMade by a city gardenerBuilt from scrap materials1Marasciuolo first made a single lamp post, then added a companion because it looked so sad on its own.Corriere Torino2He told TPNews the bench was his first work shown in Turin, in the Giardino Roccioso, about ten years before 2022.TPNews201614 SepUltima Voce report20219 AugTorino Top News202217 JanGuidaTorino20226 MayTPNews interview202414 FebCorriere Torino202412 JunRadio Viva FM20246 SepTorinoToday202625 JanTorino CronacaRead the full file →

More: Outdoor Sculptures Full of Surprises

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✨ “Light My Fire” — By Tom Bob

The light was already there; Tom Bob supplied the insect. Painted wings, eyes and a bright green body turn an ordinary wall fitting into a firefly with a glowing abdomen.

💡 Artist Fact: Tom Bob grew up in New Bedford, Massachusetts, and moved to New York to pursue art. He says he asks building owners and the city for permission before he paints.

More: More Street Art by Tom Bob

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🪨 Stonehenge, Sidewalk Edition

A handful of paving stones becomes a miniature monument. Upright blocks carry horizontal slabs, making a tiny stone circle beside a traffic cone. The cone towers over it like another landmark.

More: From Stonehenge to Street Art

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🍄 A Street-Sized Game Level — In Cork, Ireland 🇮🇪

The boxes are already the right shape. Paint turns one into a question block and another into a green pipe, while coins and enemies from the games spread across the wall behind them. The pavement becomes the bottom of the level. A 2013 blog post places the wall near Fitzgerald Park and University College Cork. Photograph by Denise Murphy.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsSuper Mario Street SceneArtist not identified · near Fitzgerald Park, CorkSuper MarioPainted electric boxes1The street’s own electric boxes are painted as part of the game level.Ireland Before You Die2The Journal lists it among Cork’s street art, “near Fitzgerald Park”.TheJournal.ie201421 AprPhoto by Denise Murphy20184 JulThe Journal lists it near Fitzgerald Park201812 NovIreland Before You Die featureRead the full file →

More: Street Art in Cork

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🔁 Reboot Universe

A small sign gives a pedestrian crossing button a much bigger assignment. Instead of asking for a change of signal, it offers a restart for everything. The plain lettering and familiar roadside setting make it look almost official, right up until you read what it says.

More: More Funny Signs