The Ultimate Street Art in East London Guide
The Ultimate Street Art in East London Guide
The best places to see street art in East London, with self-guided walking tour maps
We’ve got some of the best street art in East London, but you have to know where to look to find the really good stuff. With that in mind, I read a couple of blogs, jotted down some street names, and went on a self-guided walking tour of my own in East London.
Over a couple of weekends, I walked the streets of Shoreditch, Hackney and Spitalfields, and I saw some of the best street art in East London. Here’s where to get it.
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Street Art in Shoreditch, East London
Places to find street art in Shoreditch
- Brick Lane
- Seven Stars Yard
- Allen Gardens
- Grimsby Street
- Bacon Street
- Redchurch Street
- Whitby Street
- Old Nichol Street
- Chance Street
- Ebor Street
- New Inn Yard / King John Court
- Old Street
Map and walking tour of street art in Shoreditch, East London
1. Street art in Brick Lane
Some of the best street art in East London is located on Brick Lane. The first thing we saw was this gorgeous mural on the side of a building, showing a pacman balloon eating a balloon pizza. Underneath is an illustration of a silver balloon with a smiley face.
The street artist behind the work is Fanakapan, who’s signature style is the 3D foil balloon. Fanakapan says his work mirrors the masks that people wear all the time in real life. Interesting.
As well as larger murals, Brick Lane also has a variety of other street art styles. I don’t know who the artists are, but I love the colourful graffiti, and the Indian lady piece here.
2. Street art in Seven Stars Yard
The Seven Stars Yard is located just off Brick Lane, at the back of a building that used to be the Seven Stars Pub. The pub closed in 2002 but the name stuck. Artists use the brick walls to often, and the street art changes rapidly.
As part of our self-guided walking tour we saw a bunch of different street art styles, although it’s a shame that I couldn’t identify the artists.
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3. Street art in Allen Gardens
Our self-guided London walking tour continues to Allen Gardens which is a popular spot in East London for street art. It’s located just off Brick Lane.
The first piece to greet you is a collaborative mural by the artists Fanakapan and Jim Vision, called ‘A Psychedelic High 5’. It was painted in 2019 as part of the Graffestival Graffiti Mural festival in Shoreditch.
In it, Fanakapan has used his signature anamorphic balloon style with the number 5 balloon, and Jim Vision has provided the colourful portrait of the girl. There’s also a lot of detail and it’s a fun collab.
If you walk around the corner from the Fanakapan/ Jim Vision mural you’ll see another street art mural by the artist ThisOne. It’s a black and white piece featuring a dog in a top hat, with a bunch of suitcases. ThisOne usually creates monochromatic pieces, featuring flowers or animals on a black backdrop.
Allen Garden is also home to a lot of graffiti pieces, and you can often see people in the process of spraying them.
4. Street art in Grimsby Street
Carrying on your self-guided street art walking tour through Brick Lane, another stop is on Grimsby Street. Here you’ll find a piece by the artist Cernesto, of two entwined elephants.
5. Street art in Bacon street
Bacon Street is filled with portraits of Carol and Charlie Burns, two people who have lived and worked in the area. The Carol Burns portrait was created by Nether410, a street artist originally from Baltimore. His work focuses on the local community, shining a light on the people in it.
6. Street art in Redchurch Street
Shoreditch has great examples of street art, and some of the best can be found on Redchurch Street. My favourite is a mural of a juicy watermelon, by the artist Woskerski. He started drawing in 1997, and is now known for his vibrant street art and illustrations.
7. Street art in Whitby Street
Carry on your self-guided walking tour to Whitby Street, which has some of the best street art in Shoreditch. There are two pieces in particular that I love. The first is by the artist Jimmy C (James Cochran), who’s style veers towards impressionism with repeated patterns. In this case Jimmy C has used spheres to build out the portrait of a woman. It’s a stunner.
The second piece I really like is another portrait by Jim Vision, using his signature vivid colours and dream-like perspective.
8. Street art in Old Nichol Street
Thierry Noir is a prolific street artist in London, and you’ll see a snippet of his work on Old Nichol Street. He uses colourful characters in a modernist style.
9. Street art in Chance Street
Next, walk to Chance Street in East London to see a massive mural by the artist MadC (also known as Claudia Walde). The mural was painted during London Mural Festival in the MadC’s signature style, with help from Rosie Woods.
10. Street art in Ebor Street
Ebor Street is a great stop on your self-guided walking tour of London. It has a gorgeous street art mural stretching across the base of a building by London-based artist Ben Eine. The piece is in Eine’s signature style and features bold and colourful typography.
Further along Ebor Street you’ll see an ad by Dior, which is in a street art style. It’s interesting how the medium has been stretched to cover haute couture ;) Cynicism aside, it’s also a lovely piece, and I wish I knew who created it.
11. Street art in New Inn Yard / King John Court
If you want massive street art murals, there’s no better place to be than at the crossing of New Inn Yard and King John Court. Here you’ll find a bunch of different murals by different artists, but each based on the theme of connectivity.
And it also has one of my favourite murals by the artists Mr Cenz and Lovepusher.
Mr Cenz is one of the most popular street artists in London and has developed his signature style over the last few decades. He’s known for creating striking portraits, using a broad spectrum of bright colours to create large-scale murals.
12. Street art in Old Street
East London is home to a bunch of street art murals by the artist Stik. He uses a distinct stick-figure style so you won’t mistake his work when you see it. One of his pieces is on Old Street, close to the New Inn Yard and King John Court junction.
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Street Art in Spitalfields, East London
Places to find street art in Spitalfields
- Hanbury Street
- Commercial Street
- Fashion Street
Map and walking tour of street art in Spitalfields, East London
1. Street art in Hanbury Street
You’ll find lots of street art around the Spitalfields market area of East London, so it’s a good place to add to your self-guided walking tour. Hanbury Street has some particularly interesting pieces. My favourite is by the American artist Frank Shepard Fairey.
Shepard Fairey is also a graphic designer, illustrator, and activist. He’s also founder of OBEY clothing. His work is particularly contemporary, and he’s also known for his murals of Obama’s face, captioned with the word ‘Hope’.
Also on Hanbury Street is the next street art mural by Peter ROA. His crane is now iconic on the London street art scene. You can just about see it here – next to the ROA crane is the work of artist Martin Ron.
The next piece I really like is by the artist Ant Carver, featuring a girl resting her head on a golden skull. Next to her are candles, dice, and a white rose. Ant Carver is known for this realistic portraiture, and this mural is striking because it also symbolizes living with loss.
And opposite the ROA crane is the next mural, featuring neon-like graphics by Dan Kitchener. The piece is called “Midnight Drive” and showcases Kitchener’s signature style. His work often features Asian city-scapes and bright neon lights.
2. Street art in Commercial Street
And the next place you should head to on your self-guided walking tour of East London is Commercial Street. It’s located just off Spitalfields Market, and on it you can see a mural of Salvador Dali. The mural is by the artist Zabou and shows Dali with his pointy moustache and a cat (with pointy whiskers).
3. Street art in Fashion Street
Another great spot for you self-guided walking tour is Fashion street, which again is close to Spitalfields market. When you get there, you’ll find a piece by my favourite artist, Mr Cenz. He uses swirling paint strokes to create vivid street art portraits, that almost look pan galactic.
Street Art in Hackney, East London
Places to find street art in Hackney
- St Mathews Row
- Wellington Row
- Scawfell Street
- Orsman Road
Map and walking tour of street art in Hackney, East London
1. Street art in St Mathews Row
I’m not that familiar with street art in Hackney, but I did have a wander around as part of my self-guided walking tour. Here’s what I found.
My first stop was St Mathews Street, which has two murals. One is a floral mural by the artist Sophie Mess https://www.instagram.com/sophiemess_/?hl=en in collaboration with Rosie Woods. It showcases Sophies signature purple, pink and navy colour palette.
The second one is a smaller portrait of a girl with goldfish. I wish I knew who the artist was.
2. Street art in Wellington Row
Our next stop in Hackney is on Wellington Row, where an orangutan mural by the artist Louis Masai.
Masai toured the UK as part of his #ProtectPongo series of street. The series was in partnership with Meridian (a nut butter brand that doesn’t use palm oil). The purpose of the series is to highlight the plight of orangutans, who are facing extinction, and it’s a plea to the public to stop buying products that use palm oil.
3. Street art in Scawfell Street
Scawfell Street is one of the best places to see street art in Hackney. It’s home to a giant mural painted by the artist Axel Void (Alejandro Hugo Dorda Mevs). It’s one of the murals he painted as part of his residency at the gallery located on the same street.
4. Street art in Orsman Road
End your self-guided street art walking tour on Orson Road. Here you’ll find a floral mural that wraps around one of the buildings. Unfortunately, I don’t know who the artist is, but it’s a gorgeous piece.
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So that my ultimate guide to street art in East London! I had a lot on my self-guided walking tour around Shoreditch, Spitalfields and Hackney to find some of the best street art in the city.
