"In the environmental movement, every time you lose a battle it's for good, but our victories always seem to be temporary and we keep fighting them over and over again.” David Suzuki.
Welcome to the world of reverse graffiti, where the artist’s weapons are cleaning materials and where the enemy is the elements: wind, rain, pollution and decay. It’s an art form that removes dust or dirt rather than adding paint. Some find it intriguing, beguiling, beautiful and imaginative, whereas others look upon it in much the same way as traditional graffiti – a complete lack of respect for the law. Reverse graffiti challenges ideals and perceptions while at the same time shapes and changes the environment in which we live, whether people think for the better, or not.
We thought we’d compile a collection of some of the most incredible works of reverse graffiti and the artists behind them for your viewing pleasure.
1. Big Brother Eye etched on to road sign, Leeds, UK.
Moose: The Original Reverse Graffiti Artist
Real name, Paul Curtis, Moose is the grand-daddy of reverse graffiti. He’s been cleaning the streets of the UK and beyond for around ten years.
2. Reverse Graffiti Project, San Francisco.
Using detergent and a wire brush, the tools of many a cleaner, graffiti artist Moose works with advertisers to create innovative clean messages and slogans that inevitably turn into works of art.
3. Reverse Graffiti Project, San Francisco.
One of Moose's more recent works, the Reverse Graffiti Project, was on San Francisco’s Broadway tunnel in conjunction with Green Works, to promote a plant-based cleaner.
4. Reverse Graffiti Project by Moose in San Francisco.
A statement by reverse graffiti artist Moose.
5. Reverse Graffiti Project in San Francisco by Moose.
6. Reverse Graffiti Project in San Francisco by Moose.
7. Reverse Graffiti Project in San Francisco by Moose.
9. Reverse Graffiti Project in San Francisco by Moose.
10. Reverse Graffiti on a wall in the UK by Moose.
11. The one and only, Einstein.
Scott Wade: Reverse Graffiti on Cars
Taking the scribbles of many a budding graffiti artist to new heights, Scott Wade decorates the back of dusty car windows with much more intricate works of art than the usual ‘Wash Me’.
12. Mona Lisa as you've never seen her before.
Scott Wade lives very near a dirt road covered in caliche – a mixture of limestone dust, gravel and clay – which, when driven over throws up a fine, white dust, covering the cars which he then decorates using plain, ordinary artist brushes, and the effects are amazing.
3. Close-up of the Mona Lisa reverse graffiti by Scott Wade.
14. Mona Lisa just as it starts to rain. The rain seems to almost enhance the image.
15. Vermeer's Girl With a Pearl Earring.
16. Football legend Ronaldinho by reverse graffiti artist Scott Wade.
17. The infamous Poker Dogs redone by reverse graffiti artist Scott Wade.
18. Final version of Poker Dogs by reverse graffiti artist Scott Wade just about to be washed away by the rain.
19. The child trapped in the car is reverse graffiti artist Scott Wade's daughter.
20. Pets go crazy by reverse graffiti artist Scott Wade.
21. Etching skulls on the side of the tunnel with nothing but water and a cloth.
Alexandre Orion – Skulls in Sao Paolo
Hailing from Brazil, Alexandre sees his art work as a way of getting an environmental message across to those who ordinarily wouldn’t listen.
22. A chance to see the skulls up close.
A few years ago, reverse graffiti artist Alexandre Orion adorned a transport tunnel in Sao Paolo with a mural consisting of a series of skulls to remind drivers of the detrimental impact their emissions have on the planet.
23. The artist in action.
The Brazilian authorities were incensed but couldn’t actually charge reverse graffiti artist Alexandre Orion with anything so they instead cleaned the tunnel.
24. What happens when caught in the act.
At first they cleaned only the parts Alexandre Orion had cleared but after the artist switched to the opposite wall they had to clean that too. In the end, the authorities decided to wash every tunnel in the city, missing the irony completely, it seems.
Reverse Graffiti from the Public
25. An innovative advertising campaign for Freshaire Choice, an eco-friendly paint brand.
26. Detailed painting on the back of a truck, Trafalgar Square, London.
27. Professional illustrator, Rabia, takes to the streets and cars of Israel and Amsterdam to produce some fun reverse graffiti.
28. 'Don't Litter' etched on the side of a dirty bus, Auckland, New Zealand.
29. Something so beautiful created from something so dirty, in New York City.
30. So plane mechanics do have a sense of humor. A 'Wash Me' sign is written in the dirt of a plane wing.
31. More from Rabia.
32. Lovely.
33. Grrr, scary dust monster on the loose next to Gallery Lombardi in Austin.
34. Surfer or snail? Not sure.


yachris (not verified) says:
Cool! Thanks for putting these up... they're great.
Linda says:
Apologies to a few people who commented about the Girl With the Pearl Earring image, gremlins took over the site while we were moderating comments and they haven't shown up, but yes, you are very right, GWPE was by Vermeer. Chevalier wrote the novel. My art history tutor will be affronted!

rydenbreeze (not verified) says:
oh dag, that sucks. the city removed everything at the end. such great art vanished because people who dont appriciate its beauty... on the other hand, thats a good way to get the city to clean something

Andy (not verified) says:
Too bad you had to spread it out over 5 pages to bump up impressions. I refuse to go beyond one page for a single article unless it is so huge that doing so is an obvious choice.

The Dude (not verified) says:
This is cool, and it is NOT graffiti. Graffiti (regardless of it's art content, or lack thereof) is damaging to the location (removing the whole 'art' topic). This however is NOT damaging, and so is not graffiti and should never be prosecuted. At worst it makes the city clean an otherwise disgusting space.
Good on you all you reverse-graffiti artists!

bubbadharma (not verified) says:
As a Buddhist, I consider this an example of skillful means. Everybody wins - The artist creates his/her statement of beauty, humor...whatever and the publice wins by enjoying it. The disgruntled may feel like they have to clean entire walls or tunnels because of it ( a shame IMO ) but we win again by cleaning off some of the grime left by pollution. And, yes, the disgruntled win...somebody gets to be employed to clean what should have already been cleaned (perhaps) and the complainers get to feel self-righteous. Ferking grand. I posted it on my blog. Thank you.
Bubbadharma

gustavo (not verified) says:
great works!
here's another great artist: http://www.desprojeto.net/


Guy (not verified) says:
my nephew had told me about this guy and I couldn't believe it tell I saw it. very cool!

Libby (not verified) says:
This guy is an artist in every sense - the kid in the car - very original. Its definately worth thinking outside the box!

Libby (not verified) says:
The girl with the pearl earring is my favourite (so far). Its a shame they will get washed off one day.

m4t3 (not verified) says:
good work!!
see ours works on this site www.progettocleanit.deviantart.com

greenmachine (not verified) says:
this is fantabulous. i hope it sweeps the nation, no the world. I was wondering does anyone who has dabbled in this art for real, like stencils and shit, know the best way to do this type of art (i.e. sandblasting vs. high powered hose vs. towel or stencil vs. freehand)? also is this technically illegal? im tryna spread this with a message that advocates for envrironmental awareness such as change to enviro-friendly lightbulbs n stuff in my neighborhood...any feedback would be greatly apreciated. gracias

Dolf Van Sprengel (not verified) says:
A find this way of working so cool, that I wrote a topic of it on my blog!! Very nice work!!

yciuj (not verified) says:
The reverse stuff is amazing. Check out my site for Tips tricks and techniques
http://tr.im/1w0g
Resources for the modern day graffiti bomber / street artist / culture jammer / night walker


x.tammie.x (not verified) says:
These people r so talented , i wonder if they get paid for this lovely artwork...>>>

id (not verified) says:
beautiful.. sad to have seen it go yet brought a smile that the police could do nothing an din the end the city is cleaner.. he had the right idea to tape this as we have all now seen the work of art and it shall never die.



frank (not verified) says:
Great post. It's good to know about how the roots of graffiti art (lying in the new york streets and subways) develop into new evolutions, insights and trends.
There's a free digital graffiti history book available at www.historyofgraffitiart.com

lisa (not verified) says:
That was great art you were not hurting anyone if they did their jobs in the first place it would not have been dirty.



Paige (not verified) says:
Hey, I just found this by accident! Scott is a good friend of mine! Actually, he mostly just uses sticks, twigs and leaves to create his artwork. It's so much more amazing up close. His website is dirtycarart.com.

Riggsi (not verified) says:
Beautiful irony! I think I'll be using this medium to spread the word about our sustainable car share service MyCarClub.com.au.

ggstarling (not verified) says:
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Sean Titcombe (not verified) says:
is there any contact information on Paul Curtis, Moose that i could use for a project that I am working on thank you for your time


Noel (not verified) says:
Check out http://www.reversegraffiti.nl for some cool reverse graffiti actions..

funny graffiti (not verified) says:
Just came across this now, incredible stuff - Scott Wade's graffiti on cars in particular is something special
D_S_S says:
The given example above is intricate and quite a great example of expressing one's self. The interpretation and understanding may vary from onlookers but one thing remains the same - it is not easy to create such piece of art and you can tell by the details that the graffiti was meticulously done. There are those who just want to vandalize that need to be removed by power washing San Antonio removal teams but there are those that you can definitely call graffiti art. We express our emotion through various ways and for those who are artistically inclined, they consider walls and pavements their canvasses for the public to see.




xamoii (not verified) says:
this is awesome !!!!