Tag Archives: graffiti

Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Spain, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Calle El Temple, Zaragoza

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“Calle El Temple, Zaragoza” — Water from the morning street cleaning reflects light on narrow Calle El Temple, Zaragoza, Spain.

During our recent visit to Zaragoza, Spain our hotel was a few steps away from this street and from the church that I believe gives it its name. The street was a bit of mystery that we never solved. It looks like the ground floor spaces are filled with clubs and restaurants and other businesses. They are closed in the daytime with their roll-up doors shut… and covered with fascinating painted images and graffiti. The confusing thing is that nothing on the street ever appeared to open for business, even late at night even though we saw deliveries being made.

We stayed close to what I think is the boundary between the San Pablo and La Magdalena districts, very close to the Mercado Central. This is an old part of the city, and it is criss-crossed by many narrow streets, some narrow enough to almost compete with the tiny back lanes of Venice. (Although this area is old, there are also quite modern sections of the city not far away, including the shopping district near Plaza de España.)

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” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Photographs: Scotland, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Ways

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Ways
“Ways” — A graffiti-filled side alley in Glasgow, Scotland.

We visited a number of Scottish towns and cities, ranging from small villages where we were lodged during our Great Glen Way trek up to the urban centers of Edinburgh and Glasgow. We were actually in Glasgow twice. Our (long!) flight from the West Coast of the USA (in two segments) terminated in Glasgow, so we had made arrangements to walk the short distance from the terminal to the closest hotel and fall asleep. The next morning we took a shuttle into Glasgow to catch a trail to Oban, and while waiting we walked just a bit around downtown. But it wasn’t until we returned a couple of weeks later that we had a chance to explore this city.

We liked Glasgow even more than we expected to. We had read various things about the city — some suggested that it was more mundane than its bigger neighbor Edinburgh, but others touted its charm, quirkiness, “workaday” quality, and street art. In the end, we ended up agreeing with the latter reaction. There’s plenty to see and do there, but it doesn’t have the same tourist pressure that we saw in Edinburgh. I made this photograph near the end of a very long walk we took one day. Perhaps it doesn’t quite illustrate the point I’m trying to make about the town, but it was a fascinating little alley off of one of the main thoroughfares.

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” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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Photographs: Italy, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Bologna Porticos

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Boilogna Porticos
“Bologna Porticos” Bologna porticos, covered in graffiti and glowing with reflected light.

Last summer we spent a few days in Bologna, Italy. It was August, the peak of the hot season, and as a result we could certainly see (and feel!) the benefits of the old city’s porticos. Here, as property owners extended the upper floors outward into the streets, they constructed these porticos over sidewalks, supported by columns. This is not the only place you can find them, but they are very numerous in Bologna.

Another notable feature of this scene is the graffiti. I’m generally not a graffiti fan, but it seems to be part of the scene in this area of Bologna. We saw it the first time we visited some years back, and it was still the case in 2023.

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” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Italy, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Graffiti, Bologna

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Graffiti, Bologna
“Graffiti, Bologna” — Extensive graffiti on buildings in Bologna, Italy.

We spent several very enjoyable days in Bologna, Italy last summer. There are many wonderful things about this city — its two famous towers, the activities in the central piazza, the food, and more. But the amount of graffiti in the central city is quite striking, to the point that it seems to be a real part of the city’s character. The street art is quite diverse, including the familiar large scrawls, bits of poetry, and more — in this area including a Madonna and Child image.

I remember this from our first visit years ago. We came into the city late in the day, dropped off the car in a garage staffed with questionable characters, had to hunt for our lodgings inside an unmarked building, and then found ourselves unable to enter. We got in, got settled, and went out to find dinner. In our area the streets were deserted, no streetlights were on, nothing was opened, the walls were covered with similar graffiti. The sensory effect was post-apocalyptic. (I can report that the Bologna experience is mostly much different than that!)

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” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | Post | Email

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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