Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Joining a street art tour is a great way to dive into the culture in Stavanger, Norway. Ruben Soltvedt / Fjord Norway Aside from being Norway’s energy industry hub, Stavanger is also renowned for its picturesque white, wooden houses. These charming structures, numbering in the thousands, are scattered throughout the city, with a particularly high concentration in the historic district of Gamle Stavanger.
The city's pristine white facades create a timeless, quaint atmosphere. Yet, amidst this traditional setting, a vibrant street art scene has emerged, infusing Stavanger with a burst of color and creativity. This striking contrast between the classic wooden houses and the bold expressions of street art adds a distinctive character to the city.
How Stavanger’s Street Art Scene Began Driven largely by the Nuart festival, Stavanger's street art scene is vast and varied. The city’s street art ranges from vast eye-catching murals to more subtle work designed to blend in or interact with the physical environment. Fine Art graduate Martyn Reed moved from London to Stavanger in 1995, and that’s where the story starts.
Eye-catching street art can be seen all over Stavanger, Norway. Fredrik Ahlsen/Maverix Media - Visit Norway “I was part of a loose art collective whose practice explored concepts of power, who had it, how did they use it and who did they share it with. I was naturally drawn to working in public space although the concept of street art hadn’t yet taken hold,” says Reed.
MORE FOR YOU Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Clues And Answers For Thursday, August 22 Oprah Endorses Kamala Harris At DNC: Her Political History—And Rare Endorsements—Explained Bill Clinton Takes Crack At Trump’s Hannibal Lecter References In DNC Speech But it wasn’t until six years later when Reed discovered the work of Banksy at an event that things began to develop. He was surprised at the lasting impact the meeting had on him: “I thought if this work could do this to me, it could do it to anyone. I returned to Stavanger and established Nuart the same year.
” Reed eventually assumed responsibility for curating Nuart, and notes that once the festival shifted its focus exclusively to street art, the impact on the city was immediate. Street art in central Stavanger, Norway. David Nikel function loadConnatixScript(document) { if (!window.
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The city took to it immediately and we were able to curate the city in a very free and thoughtful way,” says Reed. Nuart blossomed, unimpeded by bureaucracy or politics, and enjoyed its “golden years” from 2006 to 2016. Stavanger hosted most of the world’s leading names in street art, including Dotdotdot, Dolk, and Martin Whatson, with many of those works still visible in the city today.
A Commercial Break However, the surging popularity of the more commercial aspects of the culture took hold on the scene. Together with the pandemic, it impacted Nuart’s ability to produce a festival, so the team put their initiative on hold . Visitors arriving into Stavanger by cruise ship are greeted by this mural.
David Nikel Nuart did continue to exist in the form of the Nuart Journal , a peer-reviewed journal with an immediate, open-access policy. Nuart Returns To Stavanger This year, Reed has announced plans to resurrect Nuart. He says the new body of work aims to “challenge the ‘Disneyfication’ of the culture in a thoughtful and entertaining way.
” A “back to basics” series of works, residencies and projects are set to be produced between September and December. The first glimpses are already visible on the streets, but you’ll need to look down to see them. Rats, cats, and crows are among the street-level artworks to pop up so far.
According to Reed, the crow signifies transformation and rebirth, something street art culture “desperately needs after a decade of ‘by the book’ mural festivals sponsored by corporate property developers.” Nuart Festival has returned to the streets of Stavanger with small pieces that interact with the ..
. [+] physical environment. David Nikel At the time of writing, Nuart Festival’s Instagram account is the best place to see the unveiling of this new series, piece by piece.
It states: “although we’ll continue to applaud the technical and artistic skills of large scale murals and their place in the culture, we’re happy to be putting the cherry pickers away and bringing it back down to street level, to the grime and the dirt that created this pearl of a culture in the first place.” Stavanger’s Top Street Art Locations Local street artist ‘Algebra’ shared her recommended spots with Visit Norway , but explained that this will change over time: “The pieces are usually not meant to last forever. They're supposed to be covered up with new ones over time.
The general rule is, the cooler the art, the longer it stays.” Just wandering around Stavanger is the best way to experience the street art. Reed says doing this is how you’ve discover multiple smaller works that tours often miss.
That being said, he also recommends the tours offered by Region Stavanger and Guide Companiet , which offer an “excellent introduction” to the street art scene for people short on time. Don’t Miss Norway’s Most Colorful Street In stark contrast to the white buildings that define much of central Stavanger, Øvre Holmegate—known locally as Fargegaten (the Color Street) — bursts with color. 'Øvre Holmegate' is packed with colorful buildings.
David Nikel In 2005, the street was just like any other until a local hair stylist wanted a more vibrant environment to attract more people to his salon—and other businesses on the street. The street’s design seems haphazard at first glance, but the color combinations are actually the design of Scottish artist Craig Flannagan. Join locals for a coffee early in the afternoon in one of the many sidewalk cafes, or visit later for a livelier atmosphere.
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