From Canal de l' Ourcq to Saint-Denis, Pantin and Clichy, the city’s northern streets are filled with art
© Daniel Thierry
Just a stone's throw from place de Clichy, head for square des Deux-Nèthes to admire the portrait of Abbé Pierre, created in 2011 by US urban art star JonOne. A few meters away, on rue Biot, the walls are covered with works by Jef Aérosol. Over in Montmartre, there’s plenty of street art to enjoy around the city’s most famous hill. Come face to face with imaginary creatures by Codex Urbanus, the 3D faces of Gregos, Clet's hacked street signs, and Cyklop’s bollards. And just next to the Jules-Joffrin metro station, don't miss the 300-metre-long graffiti wall on rue Ordener!
Several works located around Stalingrad metro station are well worth a look, like this gigantic fresco at 238 boulevard de la Villette by Lazoo. Opposite, at 249 boulevard de la Villette, don't miss the man with the ram’s head. This is one of the few works still visible by Bilal Berreni, better known as Zoo Project.
© Ludovic Maisant DR
Rue de l'Ourcq is the fiefdom of artist dAcRuZ. The walls and street furniture are covered with the astonishing primitive Inca-style masks of this local roving icon. For more than 10 years, he’s played an active role in the Ourcq Living Colors urban art festival, when top graffiti artists spruce up the district’s 19th century walls. To discover their works, head for rue l'Ourcq, rue Germaine-Taillefere and rue de Thionville.
The banks of the Villette basin are home to some twenty works created during FestiWall - a Parisian celebration of urban culture created in 2016. On the quai de la Loire and quai de la Marne, admire works by Moyoshi, Jo Di Bona, JBC, Daco and others.
At 39 quai de la Loire, don’t miss the Pavillon des Canaux, an old lockkeeper’s house now transformed into a café-restaurant, which is regularly used as a backdrop for colourful frescoes. Just a stone's throw from rue Henri-Noguères, discover a 96-metre-long street art wall that regularly features new works.
The De l'Art à l'Ourcq tour is an urban artistic itinerary stretching from the Rotonde de la Villette to Aulnay-sous-Bois, across several districts of Seine-Saint-Denis. Discover some thirty works - collages, stencils, installations, and more - along the way. Every possible surface has been turned into a work of art, from telephone booths to electrical cabinets to bridge pillars. You can do this tour on foot, by bicycle, by river shuttle or as part of a guided tour, in the company of a street art specialist.
The Magasins Généraux in Pantin was a showcase for the best of graffiti art in the 2000s. Moored in the Ourcq Canal, this gigantic concrete liner was a meeting place for graffiti artists from the world over. In 2012, the building inspired the PoDaMa collective to create a giant fresco as part of the Édifice project. The following year, in 2013, for JR's Inside Out initiative, 300 black-and-white portraits were displayed along the Ourcq Canal. De l'Art à l'Ourcq took up the reins in 2014.
The famous Franco-Swiss artist M. Chat has set up his studio in Saint-Ouen, where his great yellow tomcats cheer up countless walls around town.
At no. 37, each month LeMurSaintOuen invites an artist to create a work live. At no. 13, don't miss the match girl by Seyb and Alex. A little further on, a portrait of Bernard Buffet by C215 awaits passers-by. The entrance to the Jules-Vallès market welcomes visitors with an impressive coloured fresco painted by Brok, Alex and Hopare, while at 17 rue du Plaisir, get back to the roots of street art with a fresco created by pioneers Jerôme Mesnager, Némo and Mosko et associés.Is the market about to close? You’re in luck! It’s the perfect time to see the graffiti on its metal shutters. Wait until they’re lowered to see them to best effect.
Other street art hot spots include the skatepark of the Grand Parc des Docks de Saint-Ouen, the Saint-Ouen fire station, the Joliot-Curie sports centre, the Bauer stadium, and the Ampère stadium.
Fancy a stroll through an open-air street art gallery? Head to the Saint-Denis canal with its two remarkable waterside itineraries: Aucwin and Street Art Avenue.
The Aucwin tour is a street art itinerary that starts at the Stade de France (on the lock bridge), runs along the Saint-Denis canal and ends at the SNCF railway station, in the Confluence district, where you’ll discover works by some thirty French and foreign artists.
Street Art Avenue was created during Euro 2016 and features some fifteen works of art along the banks of the canal. New works have since been added. Street Art Avenue is a 5-kilometre-long stroll from the Stade de France to the Parc de la Villette, to do on foot, by bicycle, by river shuttle or as part of a guided tour.
