Street Art Of Lisbon

Lisbon is an open-air gallery, not just for its beautiful tile-covered façades and the traditional cobblestone designs, but also for its street art. The Portuguese capital is known as one of the cities with the best street art, and some local artists like Vhils and Bordalo II, who have works all over the world. Vhils is known for carving faces on façades, while Bordalo II creates art from trash.

Following the revolution of April 25, 1974 there was an explosion of political murals, and today artistic graffiti is even sponsored by the City Council.

One of the popular destinations for street art is LX Factory. It's a factory complex from 1846 reborn in 2008 as a "factory" of creativity and experiences. It kept the industrial spaces and invited companies related to the arts, which later brought shops, cafés and restaurants. Today there’s a little bit of everything, from fashion to books, and restaurants. The interiors maintain many of the old street art, while most of the façades are covered in street art.

Note: My blog post on Barcelona's Street Art is here.

The Trams Of Lisbon | Simple Gallery

 

Portugal’s capital currently has five different routes and 58 trams, of which 40 are vintage streetcars. These "heritage" trams are small, nostalgic, and are an emblematic symbol of Lisbon, making for great photos.

The trams of Lisbon are more than vehicles; they are the city’s storytellers, carrying whispers of history up and down the steep, cobbled streets. Tram 28, the most famous of all, snakes through the capital like a golden thread, weaving together Lisbon’s diverse neighborhoods, and is especially popular for its scenic journey through historic districts like Alfama, Baixa, and Graça.

The "Remodelado" trams, introduced in the 1930s, became iconic with their bright yellow color and ability to navigate narrow, winding streets. Many of these vintage trams are still in use.

The Trams Of Lisbon

trams of Lisbon by Tewfic El-Sawy on on Exposure

Call Me KIJU

Here are impromptu street portraits of Kiju on Crosby Street in Soho, NYC. Kiju is an alternative rock performer.

SoHo's Fashion Billboards

Some of my street fashion shoots begin at the corner of Houston and Crosby Streets, and on several occasions, I attempted to position the models so the massive Calvin Klein billboard would feature in the background. However, it always ended up overexposed.

Still, this sparked the idea for a mini-project showcasing Soho's iconic billboards, especially with the buzz of New York Fashion Week in town. This is an ongoing project, and this post updated whenever I have new billboards to show.

A few interesting details about these 75-foot billboards: they are typically contracted for 28-day periods and can range in price from $5,000 to an astonishing $50,000 per day, depending on the location. For instance, if the Calvin Klein billboard is in a prime spot, it would cost approximately $1.4 million every 28 days, with its image updated every two weeks.