Trendy bars, pop ups, restaurants in shipping containers and colourful cereal for dinner - today’s Shoreditch is a far cry away from the Shoreditch of old. However, while the area has been subjected to a facelift to become one of the coolest parts of the capital, there remains an underground vibe of gritty, urban culture in which the street art scene has its place. Artists like Banksy have put it on the map but it is not just works from the famous Bristolian which grace Shoreditch’s walls. Here are some essential works to check out when you next walk past, as compiled by The Stage.
Jimmy C - Portrait of a Woman
Location Address: Whitby St, London E1
In Shoreditch much of the graffiti, however intricate or notable, disappears as quickly as it appears but Jimmy Cochrane’s (AKA Jimmy C) Portrait of a Woman has remained since 2010. The pointillism style which the artist favours is ubiquitous around London (he was responsible for the famous David Bowie memorial mural in Brixton). So ubiquitous that there is another example of his art just around the corner.
Phlegm - Mural
Location Address: 16 Heneage St, London E1 5LJ
You can spot Phlegm a mile off; his quirky, offbeat cartoon style composed of mostly black and white characters really does stand out and tells a story. His mural on Heneage Street took no less than three days to create, organised with the help of Global Street Art in 2012. The chimneys on the side of the building are painted to correspond with the mural’s towers - giving the piece an almost three-dimensional effect.
Alice Pasquini: Colourful Female
Location address: 10 Quaker St, London E1 6SZ
Alice Pasquini hails from Rome and infrequently passes by London but we’re pleased to say that she has made Shoreditch home to one of her pieces. In fact this piece caused a spot of controversy when it was first painted; one of the landlords allegedly made a comment about the colourful amount of flesh Colourful Female was showing. Alice’s street name is AliCè.
Lewis Campbell: No Evil
Location Address: 1A Heneage Street
Several doors down from Phlegm’s mural on Heneage Street you might not want to turn a blind eye to can hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil - yes that’s right - it’s the three wise monkeys. Lewis’ alter ego is actually called the Lost monkey, which represents the potential ideas and imaginings that fill an artist’s head – just bubbling under the radar of the subconscious. Lewis has created lots of different pieces of street art under his alter ego.
As street art is subject to change and at the time of publishing most of these pieces still grace the streets. However, regular repainting and tagging means that some pieces are gone in a matter of days, so we invite anyone who knows of more recent pieces to submit them to us. Just click the ‘Add a Gallery/ Street Art Location’ button in the bottom right-hand corner of the map.
Source: The Stage
This looks incredibly cool!