In Paris’ working-class 13th arrondissement, a young girl wearing a lilac-colored dress and traditional vinok, a crown of flowers and ribbons, proudly waves the Ukrainian flag as she crushes Russian tanks under her Mary Janes. She is the creation of the street artist known as Seth, whose fresco appeared on rue Buot just three days after Russia invaded Ukraine. Prints of the work, entitled “Onwards Ukraine,” have sold out at $55 a pop, with all profits donated to two non-profit organizations helping Ukrainians.
In the nearly six weeks since Russia invaded Ukraine, Europe’s most prominent street artists have created a panoply of anti-war murals popping up in cities across the continent.
Street art has become a huge tourism draw around the world, with visitor bureaus promoting their destinations’ creative bona fides with walking tours and festivals. A search on the activity marketplace Viator pulled up nearly 95,000 street art tours.
Here is a selection of the latest works by some of Europe’s most prominent street artists.
Tvboy in Barcelona, Spain
A new work by the Italian street artist Tvboy depicts an imprisoned Putin in an orange jumpsuit. It recently appeared outside a tony shoe store on the Plaça Sant Jaume in the artist’s adopted home of Barcelona. One would be hard-pressed to find a more prominent place to display a work of art in the Catalan city. The grand, flagstone-covered square is also home to the Palau de la Generalitat, seat of Catalonia's government, and is a traditional gathering place for festivals, political protests and sports celebrations.
Harry Greb in Rome, Italy
The prolific Roman street artist known as Harry Greb reimagined Putin on the cover of Time magazine, the Russian president’s forehead stained with a Gorbachev-esque birthmark in the shape of Ukraine. The artwork is posted on a wall along the shady Lungotevere dei Tebaldi, the boulevard that hugs the River Tiber.
Big Ben in Lyon, France
In his hometown city of Lyon, in a town square named for peace, the French street artist known as Big Ben painted a mural of Vladimir Putin ripping the head off a dove. It’s a departure from the artist’s typically lighthearted work. Big Ben has built a reputation as the best pochoiriste — stencil artist — in France’s third-largest city.
Andrea Villa in Turin, Italy
Sometimes called “the Turinese Banksy,” the political satirist and street artist Andrea Villa created a mock Gillette advertisement depicting Vladimir Putin with a Hitler mustache. Andrea Villa is famous for his incisive adbusting posters; this one went viral thanks in part to a retweet from the hacker group Anonymous.
Stanislav Belovski in Sofia, Bulgaria
In Sofia, the capital of formerly communist Bulgaria, an arresting work from pop artist Stanislav Belovski portrays Russian President Vladimir Putin carrying his own lifeless body. Belovski is known for borrowing from pop culture and connecting current political news with larger events in art history.
Tuse in Gdansk, Poland
A mural of Putin, Hitler, and Stalin with a slogan “No More Time” has appeared on a wall next to the PKM Gdansk Jasien train station. It is the work of one the most recognizable street artists in Poland, Piotr Tuse Jaworski, better known as Tuse, and the first in a series of anti-war “Solidarity with Ukraine" murals appearing in Gdansk.
Kelu Abstract in Paris, France
The Butte aux Cailles neighborhood in the French capital’s 13th arrondissement is a favorite playground for urban artists, like the portrait master Kelu Abstract, whose “Fight For Your Rights” fresco has quickly become one of Paris’ most-photographed anti-war murals.
