This detail of a bit of Portuguese street art comes from the Alfama district of Lisbon. This is the oldest neighborhood of the city, with tightly spaced buildings and streets so narrow and twisting that vehicles cannot pass. It was (and reputedly still is) a neighborhood where the poor are more likely to live — though one can see a creeping urbanization occurring around the edges.

I don’t generally photograph graffiti — the “I am here” initials and other personal marks made in public spaces. But there’s a fine line between that and what I think of as street art. I will photograph the latter. Here the imagery covers of a mundane wall — look closely and you can make it out beneath the paint — and uses wildly exuberant patterns and colors.

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G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him. Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email

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