A policeman stands over graffiti about social distancing at a temporary market in Chennai, India, April 9, 2020. ARUN SANKAR / AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
Messages of respect, hope, and frustration have appeared in our largely empty public spaces.
BY WINNIE LEEThe bright yellow wall with bold, black words shouts for attention. Next to it there is a figure wearing sunglasses and a face mask, holding open a coat to reveal the word “HOPE” tucked into the pockets. Artist Corie Mattie found a wall in West Hollywood, California, and painted this mural by herself in less than 48 hours, according to her Instagram account. She is now seeking additional walls to deliver her illustrated tidings of hope.
Throughout the ages, artists have taken their messages to public spaces, from Pompeii’s walls in Roman times to New York City’s subway cars in the 1980s. Driven by the current pandemic and its unique aesthetic—knobby viruses, face masks, messages of solidarity—creatives around the world have continued to express themselves publicly. Cities and beyond are studded with love for healthcare workers, cynicism for politicians, frustration at the crisis, or simple encouragement.
Atlas Obscura has compiled a collection of these messages—direct, witty, poignant. The streets may be mostly empty of people during lockdown, but they’re not empty of humanity.
A mural in Los Angeles, California, April 4, 2020. APU GOMES/ AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
A mural reads “Fight!” near the construction site o of a medical center’s new building in Moscow, Russia, March 26, 2020. SERGEI SAVOSTYANOV\ TASS VIA GETTY IMAGES
A man walks past art of a person pulling a chain with a germ attached to it, by the artist known as the Rebel Bear, in Glasgow, Scotland, April 3, 2020. ANDREW MILLIGAN/ PA IMAGES VIA GETTY IMAGES
Visual artist Grandsan paints graffiti at a butcher shop in Kibera, Kenya, March 23, 2020. YASUYOSHI CHIBA/AFP/ GETTY IMAGES
Street art in Amsterdam’s “Red Light District,” April 4, 2020. DEAN MOUHTAROPOULOS/ GETTY IMAGES
This graffiti in front of Cologne Cathedral in Germany says “To hell with Corona,” March 17, 2020. INA FASSBENDER/ AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
Street artist Pegasus depicted Boris Johnson in Shoreditch, London, March 17, 2020. COVER IMAGES/ ALAMY
Artist Kai ‘Uzey’ Wohlgemuth depicted a nurse as Superwoman in Hamm, Germany, April 8, 2020. INA FASSBENDER/ AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
A man rides past a mural in Los Angeles, California, April 3, 2020. ROBYN BECK/ AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
