A Delicate Balance (10 Photos)

November 5, 2026

By Vidar

🎨 Cover: artworks by Eduardo Relero and Nicolas Lavarenne.

A chain, a chair back, a pile of books

These figures have very little to stand on. Artists turn chains and ivy into narrow paths, stack chairs beneath a mural and send a figure stepping out over the sea. Eduardo Relero’s broken bridge starts the collection with a particularly unreliable-looking crossing.

🌊 “Le Défi” — By Nicolas Lavarenne in Antibes, France 🇫🇷

One foot stays on the stone; the other reaches out over the Mediterranean. Lavarenne’s sculpted figure stretches its arms behind it, holding the instant before a step. The city of Antibes records its acquisition of Le Défi in 2023.

💡 Artist Fact: Lavarenne had no art training. According to a WIPO Magazine profile, he studied mechanical design and worked in the motorcycle industry for a few years before turning to sculpture.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsLe Défi — Nicolas Lavarenne, AntibesNicolas Lavarenne · 2023 bronze · AntibesAntibes ramparts2023 bronze versionPublic sculpture1Antibes acquired a bronze version of Le Défi in 2023, following the artist’s 2016 open-air exhibition.City of Antibes2The city places it on the Promenade des Arts, between the Picasso Museum and Plensa’s Nomade.City of Antibes2016Resin version exhibited in Antibes, according to Nice-Matin20235 DecBronze installation reported by Nice-Matin the following day202427 FebCity article; its notice records temporary removal during works20266 OctJean-Marc Payet photographs Le Défi on the Antibes ramparts.Read the full file →

More: Sculptures You Probably Didn’t Know Existed

🪑 Finding a Good Balance — By Sasha Korban in Tbilisi, Georgia 🇬🇪

One foot rests on a chair back; the other reaches across the pile. Korban’s woman stretches out her arms above chairs tipped in almost every direction. The peeling facade makes the stack look no more dependable.

💡 Artist Fact: Korban came to murals from underground. He worked in the Komsomolets Donbasu coal mine in eastern Ukraine from 2006 to 2011.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsFinding Good BalanceSasha Korban · by 2019 · Tbilisi, GeorgiaTbilisiSasha KorbanTruth Hounds1Made within a project of the international human-rights organisation Truth Hounds.Rubryka2According to Moy BY, Minsk's expert art council turned down the sketch before it was painted in Tbilisi.Moy BY201916 JanArtist’s photos reported · Rubryka201917 JanArtist’s photos reported · Moy BY202613 OctStill listed in guide (updated) · Red Fedora DiaryRead the full file →

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🎪 Chain Tightrope — By OakOak in France 🇫🇷

The chain is real. The little woman at its far end is painted, right where the links meet the wall. Her pink umbrella and outstretched arm turn a barrier into a tiny tightrope act.

More: Street Art by OakOak

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📚 “Concrete Horizons” — By Edoardo Ettorre in Gurjaani, Georgia 🇬🇪

A stack of books gives this child just enough height to look over the wall. The child rises onto tiptoe, while the building’s real windows remain visible within the painted wall. ANSA identifies the Gurjaani mural as Concrete Horizons.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsOrizzonti di cemento #5Edoardo Ettorre · 2026 · Gurjaani, GeorgiaGurjaaniTbilisi Mural Fest 2026Concrete Horizons1Created for Tbilisi Mural Fest 2026, reportedly with the support of the Italian Embassy in Georgia.ANSA2A girl balancing on a pile of books leans over a wall: reading as a way to see further.Edoardo Ettorre202629 JulReported · ANSA202627 OctDescribed in guide (updated) · Red Fedora DiaryRead the full file →

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🌿 Calvin and Hobbes Take a Walk — By OakOak

A real ivy stem supplies the path for Calvin and Hobbes. OakOak places the pair among the leaves, with Hobbes’s arms spread as they follow its curve. Leave a plant alone long enough and it may acquire pedestrians.

More: OakOak’s Street Surprises

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🌉 The Broken Bridge — By Eduardo Relero

Three Red Cross volunteers kneel beside a gap that exists only in paint. A cyclist hangs over the broken bridge, with water and stone pillars far below. It is still a flat street, though the photograph makes that hard to accept.

💡 Artist Fact: Relero is an Argentinian artist based in Madrid, and his 3D paintings are regularly borrowed for good causes. D+C notes that civil-society organizations have used them in campaigns, including one Amnesty International displayed at the 2019 Hannover Messe.

More: Street Art by Eduardo Relero

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🤸 “Simple Acrobatic” — By Artez in Wuppertal, Germany 🇩🇪

A reclining man, an upside-down woman and an overturned chair form one complicated balancing act. The pose fills a gable wall in Wuppertal. Urbaner KunstRaum documents the mural at Steinweg 66.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsSimple AcrobaticArtez · 2025 · Wuppertal, GermanyWuppertalUrbaner KunstRaumSimple Acrobatics1Painted at Steinweg 66 for the 2025 edition of Urbaner KunstRaum Wuppertal, according to Street Art Cities.Street Art Cities2Part of Artez's Simple Acrobatics series, which rethinks how the human figure appears on a mural.Colossal202510 JunCreated on date · Street Art Cities20254 AugPhoto published · ColossalRead the full file →

More: 12 Murals by Artez

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🛞 “The Transhumanist” — By HIJACK

A headset, an exposed brain and a keyboard on the forearm: this rider has plenty to manage above one small wheel. HIJACK gives him a rigid, upright stance. At least his hands are free from the steering.

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🤸 “Man Crossing the River” — By Jerzy Kędziora in Bydgoszcz, Poland 🇵🇱

A figure balances on a wire above the Brda River, holding a long pole. The sculpture’s carefully placed center of mass helps keep it stable. It was unveiled on May 1, 2004, the day Poland joined the European Union, just across the bridge to Bydgoszcz’s Old Town.

📂 Artwork File · Sourced factsPrzechodzący przez rzekęJerzy Kędziora · 2004 · Bydgoszcz, PolandBydgoszczMan Crossing the RiverOver 2 m tall; 50 kg1Marks Poland's accession, together with Bydgoszcz, to the European Union.City of Bydgoszcz2Over 2 metres tall and 50 kg, it keeps its balance through weight distribution and its centre of gravity at the rope.Visit Bydgoszcz20041 MayUnveiled · Art Balance200918 AprPhotographed · Wikimedia Commons · camera date202328 AprPhotographed · Wikimedia Commons · camera date202519 MayNamed by the city · bydgoszcz.plMore photos2023 Above the Brda, seen from the bridgePhoto: Mariusz Guć / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)Read the full file →