Jo’s Monday walk : Street art in Silves

Silves, as one of the loveliest towns in the Algarve and its former capital, is one I seldom fail to take visitors to.  Last weekend, while strolling the streets on my way to a Mediterranean Garden Fair, I was much taken with some distinctive and amusing street art.  Boxes housing electricity cables are seldom an attractive feature, so an initiative to transform them must surely be a good thing.

‘Stencilpes’ is described as an urban intervention project to encourage young people’s interest in art, using images from history, architecture and nature.  I could find little information about the individual artists, but I thoroughly enjoyed spotting the artworks.

Whimsical creatures rub shoulders with cork oaks and olives, grapes and strawberries, birds and butterflies.  On the riverfront, these pieces of modern art pay tribute to Silves’ Moorish past.

High on the hill, the red brick fortress looks down on peaceful streets.  The morning market supplies restaurants and locals alike, but then the town seems to sleep, leaving just the storks to keep watch from their lofty perch.

Great, aren’t they?  No need for me to say much!  A nice change for you.

I found myself wandering into an area I didn’t really know, in pursuit of the boxes.  On the corner of Rua Dom Afonso III stands a pretty little church, Igreja Nossa Senhora dos Martires, and a statue of the martyrs, which looks like it’s seen better days.

I don’t know about you, but I was starting to feel the need for some refreshment.  You’ve been very patient this week, so I’ll give you a choice.

A crispy almond topped cake
Or strawberries and icecream?

While I was eating, a clattering noise overhead caused me to look up.  What a magical sight met my eyes!  A stork was descending to his waiting mate, on their nest above.  I averted my eyes, politely, from their noisy love making.

The garden fair wasn’t the highlight of my afternoon, but I did buy a couple of plants and a terracotta pot.  I wandered back to the riverside parking, a big smile on my face.  And spotted another couple of boxes!

I’m sure I’ve missed a few, but maybe next time?  I hope you enjoyed them too.  S is for Silves will give you a little background on the city.

walking logo

Thanks so much for your company on my little jaunt!  Join me any time you can, here on Jo’s Monday walk. You’ll always get a warm welcome.

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Tour day!

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A Walk at Coulon Park on the Last Day of Winter

Lisa too, but still a little cool, I understand :

Jo’s Monday Walk

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Step Forward or a Peek into the Past

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Enchanted Forest

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Covering up the weariness with a smile; you must be following Cathy’s epic journey?

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There’s a regular Monday meetup over at Sami’s Colourful World for all those of you who love street art.  Have a great week, and see you next time!

137 comments

  2. I absolutely love those boxes, Jo, and such talent on display. There’s one similar box in our area, although I’m waiting for warmer weather to get a photo (and I have to pull over and park first.) But I think our might not be painted but a mural applied to the box, although I could be wrong. Either way, it’s fun to see and much more interesting than just a grey box. Silves’ boxes are delightful. I can see why you kept searching for them. I’ll take the strawberries and ice cream, please.

    If you stop into the distillery after walking through the green fairy garden, you can pick up something to take home to drink. Let’s go!
    https://sustainabilitea.wordpress.com/2019/03/25/monday-walk-the-green-fairy-garden/

    janet

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  7. Pingback: Jo’s Monday walk : Street art in Silves — restlessjo | O LADO ESCURO DA LUA

  8. Such life-like street art. Amazing. Also I see that you have an ice-cream treat 😉 So polite of you to avert your eyes from the birds. I am sure if you watched on, they wouldn’t have minded 🙂

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  11. oh these are such fun, they were doing something similar in Porto but no where near the profusion you found in Silves. And some of them look extraordinarily good. Glad the cake and stroll made up the fair!

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    1. Well, the crimson bougainvillea is nodding happily in the pot this morning. We took Marie and she bought a pot too, so it was a day well spent. I gather a few towns are doing this so there’ll more fun to come 🙂 🙂

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  12. You think you might have missed some?! 😀😀 Jo, what a beautiful town and I’m not surprised this features on your visitors trail! The boxes are painted with such imagination and creativity… a joy to behold and a huge improvement on the bland white/grey slabs! Ahh…the serenity from the gardens is incredible … I just looked on absorbing the tranquility! Many thanks for letting us join you on your recent trip here … and as for the desserts it’s so hard to choose … okay, cake it is! 😀❤️

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    1. There’s one of these ugly boxes on just about every street corner, Annika, so you’d be glazed-eyed if I included them all, but I gave it my best shot 🙂 🙂 And the cake was sublime!

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  14. I’m quite a fan of street art, so this slightly different approach, different from the grittier street art of cities really appealed. You really need to be taken on by the Portuguese tourist board!

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  17. Oh, so many beautiful ones, the strawberry, the frog, the… I just cannot decide! I wish someone would do this here, also! Please keep pics coming!

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  19. Wow, Joanne! Amazing art on the electric boxes. I saw a similar thing in Porto, but not as many or as pretty as these.
    I specially loved the houses and chimneys typical of the Algarve, but would have difficulty choosing my favourite.
    Is that an almond tart? It looks delicious.
    Thanks for participating 🙂

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    1. Yes, almonds- my favourite! 🙂 🙂 I understand that Albufeira and other places have the same thing going on, so I’ll have to keep my eyes open. Thanks a lot, Sami 🙂

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  20. it’s an incredible series. It is an increasingly common idea in Western cities to paint electrical transformers that are usually very ugly.

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