Arty August 2024...

I finally made it to Chelsea to see how Banksy finished his zoo series to discover that someone had given one of his elephants stripes. 

While in Chelsea, I was happy to see another sculpture by Gillie and Marc: The Hippo was Hungry to Try New Things with Dogwoman.

Jimmy and I skipped the hash on the final Saturday of August and went for a long walk around Shoreditch and Hackney, where we spotted lots of cool murals... 

…including these two which appear to be classic Banksy.

 

Another Day, Another Banksy...

Ashlynn left the following day, so I was on my own to venture out in search of yet another Banksy, this time east of Greenwich. It was a beautiful day when I took the Tube to Greenwich North. My journey started with this cool piece of art called Poured Staircase by Ian Davenport. The sign said he created a full-sized replica of the stairs in his studio, poured saturated colors down the steps, photographed the result and transferred it into a vinyl format. 

I continued along the Thames Path to the Thames Barrier, which I first visited in November 2019...

…and then turned into an industrial area to see Banksy’s latest, a rhino which had already been protected. It wasn’t quite as interesting without the car that the rhino seemed to be resting on in the initial photos of the artwork. 

Definitely not the prettiest part of town...

...but saw some very pretty parts of the city later in the day. 

 

Another Long Walk with Ashlynn...

The following day, Ashlynn and I went out for lunch before she did a DJ set at a yoga studio. The owner was kind to invite me to take the class, but I wasn’t dressed correctly, so used the time to take a bit of a nap to Ashlynn’s soothing tunes.

The next day, I went with her to do an errand and then we took a long walk to see this clever Banksy in Richmond next to Kew Bridge. 

Despite having been protected, the whole building had been painted over the last time we were in this area.

It was not windy at all. 

’

Not sure why I didn’t capture this adorable postal box topper from different angles, but you get the idea.

Later we went through Leake Street Arches to check out the latest creations.

Then we walked home along Southbank where we passed a bunch of kids frolicking in this temporary fountain...

…and saw sand art along the Thames for the first time.

 

A Banksy Summer...

Just two days after seeing the Banksy in Walthamstow, Ashlynn and I set off to see a few more for what later turned out to be an entire series of animal murals popping up all over London. 

These monkeys appear to be swinging across a vine below the train bridge crossing over Brick Lane, an area known for street art.

Later we made our way over to St Paul’s to see this City of London Police Box that Banksy had covered with piranhas....

...which was my favorite of all the Banksys that popped up in London in 2024.

By that time, it was surrounded by barriers and had multiple guards trying to prevent onlookers from getting run over in the street. 

 

More Street Art...

Gods Own Junkyard was in an industrial park with several small brewers and distilleries with colorful entrances.

We also passed some cool street art on our walk back to the station. 

That evening we hosted Julie, Thomas and Alan for pizza and cocktails on our terrace.