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The Reykjavik Street Art Scene: Discovering the Murals

Pink octopus mural, part of the Reykjavik street art scene.

Greykjavik, as the locals call it. This is drab, ugly, cloudy Reykjavik. The world’s northern-most capital city only sees daylight for three hours a day in the winter. It’s a dreary and depressing place. Or is it? On the sides of buildings and walls throughout the capital city, the Reykjavik street art scene is going strong.

Greykjavik wall mural in downtown Reykjavik, one of the most famous wall murals in Iceland
The Greykjavik wall mural in downtown Reykjavik (attributed to Siggi Odds)
Mural with heart saying "Days of Gray" in Reykjavik
The Days of Gray mural takes the gray bleakness and begins to shine color into the darkness (attributed to nellivanelli). Located at Bankstraeti 4.

There’s color to be found as the drab city reveals its inner self: fun, passionate, and caring about the broader world. The city itself becomes an ever-changing tapestry…and the locals are very proud of their creations.

Fish mural in the shape of Iceland on a garage in downtown Reykjavik
A fish mural in the shape of Iceland

Being from Philadelphia, the city generally regarded as founding the street art wall mural style (a full decade before they were seen in New York City), we are well versed in the urban arts. The city of Philadelphia is home to over 3,600 full-wall murals, and an estimated 250,000 smaller works. What our hometown has in quantity, Reykjavik has in quality.

Three birds wall mural is an example of Iceland street art
Three Birds. Located along Frakkastígur.

The breadth and complexity of the Reykjavik wall murals is something we hadn’t expected. Join us on our journey exploring the best of Reykjavik’s street art scene.

But first, our standard disclaimer when it comes writing about urban arts: There’s a difference between street art and graffiti. We do not endorse or sanction the defacing or vandalism of either public or private property. Many street art murals are on private property. Enjoy them from the street or public easements, but do not trespass on private property. 

Some street art murals are unusual and indescribable
This unusual mural is in a near-constant state of metamorphosis. It always seems to be changing.

These kinds of works are often temporary. Many of the murals and projects depicted here may be already been altered, destroyed, or painted over by the time you visit. Where possible, we attempt to attribute the work to the muralist(s).

History

If you read anything about street art in Reykjavik, you’ll likely see references to the famous Iceland Airwaves/Urban Nation collaboration known as Wall Poetry in 2015 and 2016 (more on this later). Many articles on the local scene seem to start the discussion of urban Icelandic arts here. It’s almost as if there wasn’t any street art in Iceland before that point. Not true.

Tree and poetry wall mural in Reykjavik
Mural in Reykjavik in 2009

Decades after the explosion of graffiti on buildings in our hometown of Philadelphia, teens and young adults in the Icelandic capital discovered the joys of the spray can and the power the image. The graffiti and tagging culture that is the precursor to urban mural art took hold in Iceland in the early 1990s.

The street art movement began with basic tagging in Reykjavik
An example of basic tagging

Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, most of the street art examples to be found in Reykjavik were common tagging and building graffiti. This style started to evolve in the Miklabraut Road underpass leading to Klambratún Park (as it is called locally, Hlíðargöngin).

Here, tagging evolved using the the angular lightning style popular in Europe and elsewhere, before taking more literal/murlaistic techniques.  [Much of this work reminds us of the alleys of Toronto or Ecuador.]

Bubble style street graffiti in Reykjavik by the Ugly Boys
The bubble style has become increasingly popular for tagging

By the time we first visited Iceland in 2009, the scene was firmly established. There were dozens of street art murals littered throughout downtown, many of exceptional quality and most located along or just off the main drag, Laugavegur street. 

Street murals like this beer can are temporary
Beer can on a construction site wall by RWS crew

By 2012, these works were so firmly entrenched in Icelandic culture, that when stenciled murals started showing up along the south coast, people assumed the famous British artist Banksy was in the country. Whether there really are murals by Banksy in Iceland (or just very good fakes), is still a matter of popular discussion. 

There is at least one Icelandic Banksy mural: it was given as a gift by the artist to hang in the Reykjavik mayor’s office. Somehow that gift ended up in the living room of the now former mayor (Jón Gnarr) and caused a major controversy when it appeared to have been stolen from the citizens by the ousted mayor. Political intrigue is the same everywhere in the world.

Street art stencil works like this young girl are seen in the Icelandic capital
Stencil works have been seen with increasing frequency (Note: just a work is stencil doesn’t mean Banksy was here!)

In the lead up to the financial crisis in Iceland, street art cartoons were extremely common. These were whimsical, playful images on non-serious subjects. During the Iceland banking crisis, many of the cartoons (particularly along Lindargata street) were edited and took on a harsher, more critical tone…often immediately before the buildings were destroyed to make way for luxury high-rise buildings.

Evil Mindz mural in someone's driveway in Reykjavik

In the aftermath of the crisis, the edgy style has fallen away and more peaceful, business-friendly projects have taken their places. These days, exploring the street art murals is one of the top things to do in Reykjavik.

Themes

The natural world features heavily in the art on the Reykjavik streets. In a country filled with tremendous natural beauty, it is no surprise that the artists would turn to these natural elements for their beautiful creations. Common themes are bald eagles, wolves, fish, flowers and other natural elements. These naturalistic themes can be found on walls throughout Iceland, including the street art of Hellissandur and Ólafsfjörður.

These same themes reminded us strongly of similar works in Vancouver.

Bald eagle mural.
Wildlife and nature are common themes (attributed to Selur). Located at Laugavegur 25.

A handful of modern mural paintings focus on human achievements, often with an eye towards social justice issues. The rights of women and climate change are popular mural topics in the city.

Reykjavik Wall Poetry Project

The Wall Poetry in Reykjavik project was hardly the origins of street murals, however, it was an important turning point for the medium. Wall Poetry brought murals larger than anything seen before to the Icelandic capital.

Mural by Elle of woman and wolves as part of the Wall Poetry project
A mural created by American muralist Elle for the Iceland Airwaves Wall Poetry initiative. Located at Laugavegur 35.

The Iceland Airwaves music festival, held every November in Reykjavik, is one of the world’s most popular music festivals. Dozens of bands fill the agenda of the multi-day festival, that draws tens of thousands of visitors from around the world. And many of them fly to Iceland on Icelandair, the founder and sponsor of the festival.

In 2015, Iceland Airwaves and Icelandair partnered with the German collaborative Urban Nation to bring Berlin to Reykjavik. The two-year project (2015 and again in 2016) brought semi-famous muralists from around the world to Reykjavik to create large-scale murals.

Caratoes mural on Laugavegur street created for the Urban Nation Wallpoetry program
This is called “Ode to Mother” is one of the most famous murals in Reykjavik and is located right on Laugavegur street (by Caratoes)

The international artists were paired with a musician from the festival to create a work, the result being dubbed Wall Poetry. The Wall Poetry effectively visually translates or amplifies the auditory experience of the artist. A musical playlist was created to allow visitors to experience both the mural and music together.

Mural on side of building with people in bird-head costumes
The Wall Poetry project also included works by the port, such as this one by Phlegm in collaboration with the MUM band. Located on Ægisgata Street.

However, in a move that irritated/angered many in Iceland, Urban Nation excluded all Iceland artists from participating. As a result, some of the works have spelling errors in the Icelandic language and some of the content/themes seem foreign or bizarre to locals. 

Mural on building of a rock mountain in the shape of a raised fist
This mural, Heavy Stones Fear No Weather, was inspired by the song of the same name by Of Monsters and Men. Artists are Wes21 and Onur. Mural is on Ægisgata Street at Nylendugata Street.

Looking back, at the best, the Wall Poetry project seemed a bit ‘tone deaf’ in its approach. At worst, the project came at a time when the wounds over the banking crisis between Iceland and the rest of the Europe were still raw, and this only reinforced a marginalization of Icelanders.

While many/some of the Wall Poetry murals remain, they are often not as popular as those originating from truly local muralists.  This feeling is only underscored by how quickly some of the Wall Poetry murals have been painted over.

Building murals can frequently be painted over or destroyed
The massive fisherman mural located at Skúlagata 4 that was created for Wall Poetry has been painted over and new futuristic work can now be found there. Some people see a whale, most see aliens.
Building mural of young girl riding a moth
The MOTHRIDER (girl riding a moth). Attributed to Telmo & Miel and based on the song Moth Light by Mercury Rev

Artists

But who are the artists that create these dazzling works?

The Reykjavik street art hall of fame
This work on Laugavegur street is a kind of “street art hall of fame”: Kiddust and RWS crew tags alongside a stencil from Bubblegum of a giraffe. These works have been painted over and no longer exist.

In most cities around the world, murals come from the underground–people on the fray of society. But as street art has mainstreamed and become broadly accepted, it could be anyone.

Many of the artists go by edgy and secretive names, like Ugly Bros or RWS or Selur (which sounds way cooler than Örn Tönsberg). But despite the mystery, many of these people are surprisingly approachable.

Paining on wall of people posing for portrait
A self-portrait of the street artists of Reykjavik

There are mainstream artists and business owners who enjoy sharing their creations with the people of the city. Professional mural artists from around the world have been brought in for Wall Poetry. And you still see local kids beautifying electrical boxes.

Street Art Examples

Here are additional examples we discovered on the streets of Iceland’s capital city. When it comes to Reykjavik, the best murals and the best graffiti can generally be found closer to the water, both in downtown and near the harbor.

Flower paintings at parking garage in the capital
The paintings at this parking garage are some of the oldest surviving works in the city
The rainbow pride flag painted on the street in Reykjavik
Sometimes the art is literally on the street
Iceland arts are both colorful and playful, as can be seen in this sidewalk art
Sidewalk art (located outside the Skumaskot home goods store)
Commissioned wall murals, such as this feather work by muralist Sara Riel
Guerrilla works paved the way for large-scale commissioned murals, such as this one by Sara Riel called Fönix. Located along Nýlendugata.
Icelandic Mermaid mural that is attributed to artist Raus
The Mermaid (attributed to Maeja Sif Danielsdottir). Located at Njálsgata 23.
The cat and ball of string murals in Iceland
The entry to this apartment building had opposing murals: a cat and a ball of string. Here’s the cat. (Attributed to Selur)
The ball of string is part of a two-part opposing mural
…and the string (Attributed to Selur)
This Rams head is one of the many beautiful street art murals in Iceland
The rams head mural
Many Iceland wall art murals focus on social progress, social justice, or equality issues
Many works focus on social progress
Businesses hire wall muralists to decorate their premises, such as Braud & Co.
Businesses hire muralists to decorate their premises, such as Braud & Co. (the Frakkastígur location), one of several restaurants in Reykjavik using street art
Wall murals at MB Taqueria
…or MB Taqueria
Painting on wall of Tupac and Einstein toasting each other with beer
…or Bar Kaldi. Nothing like a beer between Tupac and Einstein. Artist is Juan Pictures Art. Located at Laugavegur 20b on the Klapparstigur side.
Horse and animals mural by Ugly Brothers
Another Ugly Brothers mural
Mixed-media murals are popping up in the capital
Some murals are going beyond just paint. For example, the head of this pin is actually a mirror affixed to the wall that reflects back the viewer’s image
A rooster mural on a Reykjavik street
Some murals have exceptional quality or details
Fence along road pained like Super Mario Bros.
Fence at an intersection outside of the city center by Juan Pictures Art. Located at Hringbraut 79.
Electrical box with red heart and word ELSKID

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Sammie

Wednesday 11th of September 2024

Where can I find the yellow fish mural? Would love to visit it!

Lance Longwell

Sunday 15th of September 2024

The address is: Lokastígur 16. Look between the narrow driveway between the two apartment buildings. In the back is a blue garage and the mural is on the front. Observe from the street as this is private property.

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