Street Art

There is a phenomenon that happens in Paris that I've never seen (or perhaps just never noticed) in any other city I've been in: artists "paint" on buildings. This is done without permission and can be done with paint, paper collage or even tile.

This week I found these two in the Marais:

and


These "pieces" generally have a very short shelf-life. They are quickly painted
over by unhappy building owners.

So, why would anyone "waste" their time with art that will vanish as quickly as it was put up? Is it for the satisfaction of having your art seen by many? Or perhaps the joy of defacing property? Are they some secret code for a secret society that -- in these cases -- are really green people with wings?

Perhaps most do it because some artists are actually discovered that way. How the galleries find the artists of these mostly unsigned chef d'oeuvres is a mystery to me. I'll have to put on my detective hat and do some detectiving.