My previous post ‘Reykjavík: A Mysterious City’ foretold of a post focusing on the cool street art in Reykjavík, Iceland. Here it is! It had to be done. After looking through mine and a friend’s pictures from our separate trips to Iceland last year, I realised that we had captured a very interesting and visually pleasing portfolio of photographs of Icelandic artwork (mainly street art) and I wanted to share it so that others can appreciate it and see it all put together in one place.
Pretty much all of this art is free to view around the city and I think that looking at it tells you an awful lot about the country and culture. Icelanders tend to be very creative and this is conveyed in places you’d least expect, all around the city.
Here are some examples. Most of the street art photography is the work of my friend, Laura Damant.
A rather intriguing and surreal sculpture stands ominously by the Tjörnin lake. Named ‘The Monument to the Unknown Bureaucrat.’ This sculpture by Magnús Tómasson appears to be a sort of homage to working people; people that are part of the ‘rat race’ and that, in many ways, endure an often unacknowledged, almost anonymous existence.
It was originally located in a different part of the city but was moved to the centre in order to actually be among the real life workers. It was left without a pedestal in order for the statue to be a more humble and realistic representation of what it stands for. The fact that they transitioned this sculpture in order to convey the proper message across shows how important art is in Icelandic culture.
My friend did a walk from the Hallgrímskirkja Church to the sea front and photographed these funky examples of street art painted on to various buildings during the walk. Just look at the incredible detail and unusual concepts. The spectacular bursts of colour in otherwise neutral areas allows them to stand out and grab your attention as you walk by.
I adore the colours in this one, it makes me think of the swinging sixties! It is vibrant and psychedelic and the lonely gold car could almost have been planted their purposefully. Such amazing use of colour, it makes me wonder whether the artists purposefully splash colour around to de-neutralise the city. I have heard before that some Icelanders start to feel melancholy due to the bitter weather and lack of light during the winter months. Maybe art is their remedy.
The intricacy of this piece is fabulous. I have seen cool artwork on buildings around Leeds, where I live, but nothing quite like this.
These pieces are classy and dramatic. It is by Australian artist Guido van Helten who was apparently commissioned to do this after another of his murals was spotted elsewhere. Check out more of his projects here. These particular paintings are inspired by images from the Reykjavík Museum of Photography of the 1961 theatre production No Exit. Van Helten has done an immense job of livening up this old theatre turned film studio to something that looks really modern and current.
This one looks particularly creepy, slightly concealed by the twisted trees and patchy grass. If any readers have an insight into what this piece is about, I’d be very interested to know!
A painting of a fisherman is sure to signify the importance of the fishing trade in Iceland. With not that many animals inhabiting the country, fish has always been a major staple of their cuisine, so a mural of a fisherman on a building located by the seafront seems only natural. My friend took this one from the top of the church and she says she had a fabulous view of it from there. It is definitely worth going to the top of the church for the incredible views you get of the city.
The run down quality of this one is rather eerie. I can just make out a figure sat playing the piano. Very interesting use of light and dark in this picture from what I can make out, I would definitely like to know more about it.
I have absolutely no idea why the word ‘DEAD’ is written so boldly on the front of this shop. It baffled me then and it baffles me now! This picture was taken at about 9:30am in January before all the shops had opened (they open later in Iceland due to it only getting light at around 10am.) We never went in as it was closed but it seemed to be a sort of fashion and trinket shop full of unusual things. I think the cow head on the door and the cut out gnome help to portray this!
This image was on a wall next to one of the shops and I thought it was really cool and unusual. Very modern looking with the multi-coloured triangles.
This is one of my favourite paintings and so incredibly Nordic. We went to Cafe Loki for some lunch and this is what we were greeted with! It is a huge mural that goes all the way along the back wall of the cafe upstairs. This is only one half of it! We didn’t photograph the other half for some reason but if you want to see the full version, you can on the cafe’s Facebook page here.
This is Harpa, the tremendous concert hall by the sea, co-designed by Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson and played by the the likes of Björk and Sigur Rós. This building has become a real hot spot in Iceland and definitely somewhere you can count on to experience something mind blowing. I love the way the designers have used colours reflective of the building’s surroundings and the almost infinite obscure cylindrical shapes that capture the light. It makes the building twinkle and look magical and modern.
This is what you find inside. A graceful, enchanting staircase flooded with light and patterns from those perspective-shifting window shapes.
Dotted with lights and birds as if in flight as you ascend the case. It is magnificent.
Some quirky graffiti here and a fire hydrant. I got quite excited about this as I’d never seen one before! That sounds crazy, but they don’t have them in every country and I just had never come across one.
An unusual little corner in the centre where all the shops and restaurants are. It could almost be mistaken for Spain if not for the Christmas lights and snow.
This is a Moomin themed shop! Another cool exterior literally and metaphorically…and if you’re wondering more about what can be found inside the shops in Iceland – here is a glimpse!
You can find multi-coloured wool and stag heads wearing scarves.
Cute panda and horse teddies.
Giant puffin teddies that actually intimidate you a little as you walk past.
Stuffed Reindeer, shaggy rugs and warm, Nordic jumpers. Cliché but cool.
I had to include this as I think musical instruments are pieces of art too. This is inside the Hallgrímskirkja and this is the church organ. It was really majestic and I recommend going inside.
A fuzzy picture taken in excitement at seeing Christmas decorations still up in mid January! Reykjavík struggling to get light just before 10am.
It was really exciting realising that between us, me and my friend had an excellent mini gallery of murals, sculptures and street art that we each came upon whilst exploring Reykjavík.
If you would like to view any of my friend, Laura Damant’s photography please check out her website.
I hope it inspires you to go if you haven’t already. It really is worth it. To conclude, just above is a picture of me on my first day in Iceland, first sighting of the Hallgrímskirkja!
Do you have any cool pictures of street art from around the world? I’d love your recommendations of where to find more!
