Dublin’s Street Art Turns Mainstream Public Art
Street art has blossomed across the globe in a spectacular way. Dublin is home to an incredible array of street art seeping into the mainstream public art scene by many talented artists. Often called transient art due to the its temporary state, it has become a striking art form and voice for activism. Ireland’s superstars of street art include Maser (see image below), Aches, James Earley, Asbestos, Conor Harrington as well as Vanessa Powers, and Sarah Bracken Soper, just to name a few.
Dublin Street Art
Head to the Temple Bar neighborhood in search of street art. Just wander Crow Street or Fleet Street down by the Liffey River. The well known artist Maser @maserart created a mural outside the Rock & Roll Museum. The artwork located on Curved Street features B.P. Fallon, the Irish musician and DJ who toured with U2 among others.
Also just around the corner, high up on the Brill Building, you’ll find a touching mural by artist Sarah Bracken Soper @sarahbrackensoper. The artist collaborated with Focus Ireland, a nonprofit working to end homelessness to create the work. We see a woman holding another person, but you cannot see them. That is because the second person symbolizes a homeless person. The mural titled Unseen but not Forgotten is way for the artist to stand in solidarity with the homeless population that are not often seen. They are tucked away in small cramped hotels and other forms of housing that often allows the residents and also tourists of Ireland to forget them.
More Street Art in Temple Bar District
Many businesses also work with street artists such as Connected Ink Tattoo. There is no doubt that one or more of their crew created the above mural on its building. on the shop’s metal storefront gate. Also nearby Reinkarnated Dublin Tatoo Shop brings its own pizazz with a vibrant mural on its storefront metal gate.
Finally also located in the Temple Bar district is the Blooms Hotel. Mural artist James Earley has created stunning images across the exterior of this hotel. The artist spent over a year painting the building. His portraitures were inspired by the book Ulysses. https://www.blooms.ie
Portobello Street Art
In the Portobello neighborhood of Dublin, the work of street artist Eraquario @eraquario made quite an impression on me. Here you see a young woman with a cigarette dangling from her mouth. She points a banana like a gun. I am assuming the artist’s signature tagline Bitch please don’t kill my vibe was a nod to rapper Kendrick Lamar’s 2013 song which first used the phrase. Or perhaps the please added to the front of the phrase was a slight reprimand. Art is whatever you choose to see.
Dublin Canvas Beautifies the City
Dublin Canvas established a project back in 2013 that invites artists to paint utility boxes around Dublin. It began as a trial run by Dublin City Council’s Beta projects…needless to say it has been quite successful, so much in fact the council has extended it to an even larger scale. This is a fantastic project, and warrants its own article. Stay tuned for more about Dublin Canvas. https://www.dublincanvas.com/
Mallika Chawla @_hueknows is an Indian artist and UX designer who created The Heart and Soul of Dublin. You can find this at Hatch Street/ Earlsfort Terrace, Saint Kevin’s, Dublin 2.
Go forth and enjoy the street art. You can also create a street art tour for yourself with Google Maps.
CLICK HERE to read more articles about Ireland. We also encourage our readers to visit Dublin’s official tourism website at https://www.visitdublin.com/ as well as Ireland’s website – https://www.ireland.com/
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