One of the reasons why I love Penang is a historical centre of George Town that has developed into quite the arts and cultural district since the inception of the George Town Festival, a month long arts festival, in 2010.  Wandering around the city hunting for street art becomes quite fun for everyone.

 

 

Thanks to the enthusiasm of tourists and locals more and more street art appears every year. Recently a new series of iron sculptures called “Marking George Town” appeared that gives tourists more information about the history of Georgetown in a relatively funny way. Better than boring museums or tedious guidebooks 🙂

 

Every time I visit this part of George Town I find a new one I haven’t noticed before. My favourites are especially the ones, where artists used common things together with their work. For example Kids on Bicycle, Old Motorcycle and many more.

Recently Lee and I have also discovered a destroyed building in the city centre, which was full of different sketches – but I recommend you to take repellent. We were hit hard during the photoshooting with countless mosquito bites, but it was definitely worth it.

In 2016, the building is surrounded by metal walls due to its condition for everyone’s safety. It is a pity since there are many amazing and original pieces.

 

Street art projects in Penang

Now let’s take a look at different artists. The street art you can expect to see during your wanderings in the city can be classified into several categories:

Ernest Zacharevic work

This Lithuanian artist is probably the reason why street art became such a big deal to Penang in the first place. His works are by far the most popular out of all the street art and it can happen that you will have to wait in a queue to take pictures with these pieces.

 

Marking George Town

These 52 iron structures can be found throughout George Town, and were actually commissioned by the Penang tourism board. These were put up to provide a fun pictorial anecdote about the history of the street it is located on, and is a rather fun way to learn a little bit about Penang’s heritage.

 

101 Lost Kittens

This collection of 12 cat-related street artworks is a project by Thai artist Natthapon Muangkliang and Malaysian artists Louise Low and Tang Yeok Khang aimed at creating awareness towards stray animals.

101 kittens art project in Penang

 

Other street art in Penang

There are many different street artworks besides those listed above from many different artists. I hope that one day I will be able to map them all 🙂

You can download a brochure with most of the street art, its information and a map where to find them rigth from this page -> http://www.visitpenang.gov.my/download2/street-art-2014.pdf