“people” I encountered in Montreal….

Posted on October 19, 2026 by Mary C

Random sightings around Montreal

below: A portrait on pink accompanied by a gorgeous bird and a few flowers in a mural by Melissa Falconer

A portrait of a black woman on pink painted brick accompanied by a gorgeous bird and a few flowers in a mural by Melissa Falconer, on side of Baguette & Brochette shop

below: The remains of a mural by Phlegm

part of a mural by phlegm, black and white

below: Framed and topless Fractal Juice

graffiti, fractal juice, framed picture of person with colours shifted so that it looks like it is in multiple copies. Person has black hair and many red and yellow flowers in hair, topless, with white fabric draped over one shoulder

below: No faces here, instead two bodies merged into one, “Liberté” by Franco Fasoli (aka Jaz), 2015.

two bodies merged into one at the shoulders, no heads or necks, two silhouettes of bulls behind them, called Liberte, mural painted by Jaz, a k a Franco Fasoli. Arms and legs have tattoos, both wearing blue shorts

below: A face in purple and blue, by Philippe Mastrocola and Melsa Montagne

mural, large face in shades of pink, blue, and purple, by Melsa Montagne and Philippe Mastrocola

below: Part of a larger mural originally painted by Scaner in 2014. It was fixed up in 2018 by Zek One and Axe Lalime.

Part of a larger mural originally painted by Scaner in 2014, skull showing, a skeleton with clothes, upright and walking. Wearing blue jacket, white shirt, and red tie, also wearing a hat

below: Call me Daniel

very red background, street art is black line drawing of a person with no hair on top of head but long hair doen the back, open mouth screaming, with text call me Daniel

below: The top part of “Ne m’oublie pas” (“Don’t Forget Me”), created by artist Kezna Dalz during the 2024 Mural Festival

very white man with red lips and eyes closed looking upward, a halo over his head, wings on his back, in a mural by Kezna Dalz

below: Bottom of the same mural

bottom part of n'oublie pas mural by Kezna Dalz, two people

below: Incomplete and unfinished, Damaged, one-eyed man who doesn’t look too pleased – perhaps it’s the squiggles that have taken over his forehead.

black and white and grey shades, realistic image of an older man with a mustache but one eye and top of head is missing

below: Osheen Siva painted this large portrait with its radiating long blue hair and blue lips.

portrait by Osheen Siva, mural in Montreal, brown person with long blue hair, green lines on neck and shoulder, blue lips,

below: SNIKR’s paint roller girls

building with two murals, on upper floor is a woman with a paint roller, by SNIKR, lower floor has portrait of the young woman with a paint roller as well

below: Mural on the lower level seen closer.

building with two murals bySNIKR, mural on the lower level seen closer. young woman with large collar on her jacket, paint roller over her shoulder

below: I think that the signature says Lea but I am not sure. What I am sure of is that he/she has a strange imagination!

two halves, divided horizontally, upper half is painting by Lea, purple sky, man with small hat, smiley face on front of his shirt, smile on his face, but with hands that look like snake heads

below: “C’est compliqué” (It’s Complicated) by Sara Erenthal. Unfortunately the bottom part of the mural has been painted over. Originally there were two figures within the body of the woman (see next photo)…..

part of mural by Sara Erenthal, woman with surprised expression on her face, black line drawing but with red mouth

bottom part of mural, two figures sanding together

below: All wrapped up.

painting on a wood fence, probably male character with head wrapped in white bandages, blue shorts up to chin, big mouth,

below: Take the iconic I ♥ NY and transform it into a love letter to Montreal.

I love anything to do with Montreal graffiti

below: Tasty treats and curly straws.

man sitting on bench beside a food shop, with mural on outside wall, line drawing of people with drinks with curly straws, and one dog,

below: You’ve seen the signs that say “Beware of Dog”, well, here we have Beware of Old Bald Man!

doorway covered with graffiti including a bald wrestler on the door wearing bootss

below: She has six hands, two of which are holding a skull. She also has a very long (and ugly) tongue. Not the kind of person (creature?) that you would want to run into in an alley – even if she does have some similarities to the Hindu goddess Kali. Kali is associated with time, destruction, death, and the Divine Motherhood; she is the power of creation and destruction. I guess that she needs six hands after all. Painted by Bibi Una.

below: Obscured by fragments of those left behind.

eyes, from an older piece of street art where the lower parts of the face have been papered over with other graffiti, now torn

below: Sad button eyes

graffiti in Montreal on a red brick wall including a sad character that looks ike a stuffie with stitched mouth and tummy, sad face mouth, one eye is an X and the other eye looks like a button that has been sewn on

below: Happy faces

scrawl graffiti in blue and red including a couple of happy faces on corrugated metal fence

below: Rage5 stencilled on five heads covered

5 stencils in a row, woman in black head scarf, necks covered too, with rage5 on each head, graffiti in Montreal

below: mmm

graffiti of man farting. body looks lke Homer Simpson but head is different

below: It vaguely looks like a person….

drawing in black with red scribbled over it, that looks vaguely like a person, graffiti

below: A tiny man under a red heart

two pieces of graffiti on a wall, one is a tiny man and the other is a red heart

below: “I’m feeling blue – may be the skeleton is too, he’s been scrolling so long on his phone he doesn’t realize that he’s now dead.

slaps on the back of a sign, a blue square with text that says I am blue.

below: A big toothy grin and a sticker from peau-bleus

below: FUQU and a wrench (probably profane but c’est la vie), wings and devil horns.

sticker graffiti, character with fuqu on front

below: “I’m grateful you’re alive” … I am also grateful that you have found your way to this page!

sticker graffiti, white with words written on it, I am grateful you are alive

Photos taken September 2024

Scream, Temple, and a face

Posted on October 15, 2026 by Mary C

A look at a few more Montreal murals.

below: “Le Cri” (The Scream) by Scribe (2020)

mural by scribe, large face with blood shot blue eyes, wide open red screaming mouth ith teeth, and little characters in front, some faceless ones marching and others running. runners include a house with legs, a hamburger with legs and an egg shaped globe, also with legs

below: The egg (that could be a globe?) and the cheeseburger ran away.

two creatures running, one looks like an egg and the other has a body like a hamburger with cheese escaping

below: “The Temple” created by Mylène Chabot, Marie Gosselin, Benjamin Picard, and Mathias Vouters on Rue Duluth

mural in soft colours, temple in an urban setting

below: It looks like nature is reclaiming the city

weeds and vines in real life are growing over part of a mural painted by Mylène Chabot, Marie Gosselin, Benjamin Picard, and Mathias Vouters

part of a Montreal mural called the temple

below: Also on Duluth is this large metallic looking face that was painted by Alex Bacon in 2023 as part of Mural Fest. She (he?) seems to be sleeping.

mural by Alex Bacon on Rue Duluth in Montreal, large face that looks like its sleeping, also painted to look metallic, chrome like

Photos taken September 2024

at Blvd St Laurent and Ave Mont Royal

Posted on September 11, 2026 by Mary C

Blvd St Laurent is one of the streets in Montreal that has become known for its street art. Some of the past murals have disappeared as redevelopment swallows up older buildings but new murals keep appearing. Two of these recent murals are at Avenue Mont-Royal and were painted during Mural Fest 2026 earlier this summer.

below: This is Greg Mike’s contribution to the 2026 Montreal Mural Festival. It is about 85 feet long and 25 feet high. There is a white hand holding a paintbrush that has been dipped in blue. There are also several eyes and partial faces surrounding the woman with the blue circle around her eye.

mural by Greg Mike on Rue Mont-Royal, large, bright colours

part of mural by Greg Mike on Rue Mont-Royal, large, bright colours

part of mural by Greg Mike on Rue Mont-Royal, large, bright colours, big yellow daisy

below: Two little Waxhead creatures have survived – they were new in 2015. Looking good for their age!

On upper storey of a building, 2 mural figures by Waxhead.

below: This is part of a mural by Vincent Arnold, and is another 2026 addition to the murals along Blvd Saint Laurent. This pink faced man is reaching for ….

part of a mural by Vincent Arnold on Rue Mont-Royal, pink face of a man

below: ….. fruit. The strawberry doesn’t seem too concerned though.

part of a mural by Vincent Arnold on Rue Mont-Royal, fruit with faces, strawberry, pear, apple, watermelon and banana

below: Forgive But Not Forget

text graffiti that says forgive but not forget

Photos taken September 2026

at Blvd Saint Laurent and Rue Marie-Anne….

Posted on September 9, 2026 by Mary C

… where you can find two large murals on opposite corners.

at Blvd Saint Laurent and Rue Marie-Anne, 2 buildings on opposite corners, each with a street art mural on it

below: Along Rue Marie-Anne is part of Izabelle Duguay’s “Toucher L’horizon” with its pink/blue mountain rising above the blue water. The whole mural wraps around two sides of the building.

on the side of a building, part of Izabelle Duguay's “Toucher L'horizon” with its pink/blue mountain rising above the blue water

below: The “Ange de Bordeaux” was Aristides de Sousa Mendes (1885-1954). He was Portuguese consul-general in Bordeaux France where he defied the orders of the Portuguese government and issued visas to thousands of refugees fleeing Nazi-occupied France, including Jews. He lost his job because of it and died in poverty after the war. The many accolades and awards that he received all came after his death. The mural was painted by Awie in 2022.

mural, Ange de Bordeaux by Awie, covers the side of a building, portrait of a middle age man

bike parked against street sign pole in front of a wild style text graffiti painting

below: A blue lion is the centerpiece in Kevin Ledo’s mural on Marie-Anne (across the street from L’Ange de Bordeaux).

part of a mural by Kevin Ledo, blue and white face of a lion

below: This is a more complete picture of the mural. The blue of the lion as well as the patterns formed by the blue squares and rectangles recall some of the features of Portuguese ceramic tiles.

mural by Kevin Ledo, blue and white face of a lion flanked by patterns, orange and yellow on one side, blue and white squares and rectangles on the other class=

blue and white squares and rectangles like patterns on Portuguese ceramic tiles, mural by Kevin Ledo

below: Waiting to cross Blvd Saint Laurent.

person waiting to cross Blvd Saint Laurent, at Blvd Saint Laurent and Rue Marie-Anne, 2 buildings on opposite corners, each with a street art mural on it

below: More of “Toucher L’horizon”

on the side of a building, part of Izabelle Duguay's “Toucher L'horizon” with its pink/blue mountain rising above the orange water. water is reflecting the setting sun

One of the corners at St. Laurent and Marie-Anne is Parc du Portugal – you can see some of the park trees in the picture above. Directly across the park from Izabelle Duguay’s mural are more artworks with a Portuguese connection.

below: This is a portrait of Amalia Rodrigues. As you can probably surmise, she was a musician. Rodrigues (1920-1999) was known as the Queen of Fado; fado is a Portuguese music genre. The mural was painted by Paulo Carreira.

large mural, a portrait of Amalia Rodrigues, the Queen of Fado which is Portuguese music. Painted by Paulo Carreira

below: This mosaic, “Azulejos” was presented to the City of Montreal by the Portuguese community. The word ‘azulejos’ refers to the painted and glazed ceramic tiles that the artwork is made of.

picture on exterior wall, made of blue and white tiles, lots of details

below: A closer look at part of the image. There are a lot of little details hidden in it.

close up view of picture on exterior wall, made of blue and white tiles, lots of details

below: “Whatever make sense to your soul”. Interesting sticker even if it has a grammar mistake in the text.

sticker with words, Whatever make sense to your soul

below: Shitty graffiti!

two graffiti stickers, one is a small abstract drawing, the other says shitty graffiti

below: “Ma voix est-elle muette a vos oreilles?” A literal translation is: “Is my voice silent to your ears?” Or would Portuguese be more appropriate?… “Será que a minha voz é silenciosa para ti?”

words in French written on a USA Priority mail sticker, Ma voix est-elle muette a vos oreilles?

below: Astro

astro graffiti, black and white, chubby little dog with black sunglasses

below: It’s not easy to see, but the sticker on the bottom is another Astro.

Photos taken September 2026

along Boulevard Décarie

Posted on April 9, 2026 by Mary C

… a few murals seen on Boulevard Décarie in Montreal.

below: By Cecile Gariepy, holding up blue cube houses and showing them to each other in “Chez Nous” on a wall of Habitations Bourret housing project. a gift from the organization MU to the Office municipal d’habitation de Montréal (OMHM) for their 50th anniversary. 2019

portion of chez nous, a mural by Cecile Gariepy

below: Fonki painting of bulldogs and pugs

Mural of group of dogs, bulldogs and pugs, by artist Fonki,

part of larger mural by Fonki of bulldogs and pugs

below: Tilly, another bulldog, painted on pink on what is now an empty building.

below: This portrait of Tilly was painted by Kevin Ledo.

below: This is the street art seen under the portrait of Tilly.

below: Dora the Explorer, in a Tim Hortons & Wendys parking lot.

Dora the explorer mural in Wendys parking lot on Decarie, Montreal

below: Dora the Explorer chases butterflies.

Photos taken April 2026

Montreal theatre hommage

Posted on April 8, 2026 by Mary C

There is a small collection of murals that pay tribute to actors and theatre in the area near rue Wolfe and rue Robin. All of them were painted under the auspices of MU, an organization that is devoted to creating murals about people and their community.

below: One of these murals is a portrait of actor Denise Pelletier (1923-1976) painted by Mateo (with help from Ilana Pichon, Rocio Perez, and Julien Sicre).

street art mural of Denise Pelletier by Matteo, in Montreal

below: On rue Robin there are two matching murals side by side. On the left is one in blue with a man sitting on top of a ladder. The text reads, in French, “Ne compte jamais sur rien ne restez ni sur un echec, ni sur un succes” ( = Never count on anything, don’t dwell on either failure or success.). It is a tribute to the founders of Théâtre de Quat’Sous and was painted by Gene Pendon.

mural by Gene Pendon in Montreal, in blues, a man sitting on top of a ladder, with text in French Ne compte jamais sur rien ne restez ni sur un echec, ni sur un succes

below: “Commencez toujours autre chose c’est la suite qui compte” = Always start something new; it’s what comes next that counts. This is a quote by theatre director (and writer) Paul Buissonneau (1926-2014). It is the work of street artist Sender.

mural by sender in red and black , white line drawing of a building, with a quote in French from actor Paul Buissonneau, Commencez toujours autre chose c'est la suite qui compte which translates to Always start something new; it's what comes next that counts.

below: La Roulette was the name of Paul Buissonneau’s first theatre. It began in 1952 – performances were outdoors in Montreal parks. According to a nearby plaque, this mural was not a Mu production, instead it was a La SPAG initiative (la société pour la promotion des arts gigantesques) and was created by Laurent Gascon. Gascon has produced eight other similar murals that showcase actors, performers, singers, etc.

street art mural, that looks like mosaic, with words La Roulette, which was a theatre in Montreal.

below: Lastly, there is tribute (painted by Hsix156) to Dominique Michel (b. 1932), a Quebec actress, singer, and comedian. She began her career in cabaret but got a start in television in the 1960s.

street art mural of actress Dominique Michel beside a small park in Montreal

For more information about MU, check out their website (mumtl.org)

Photos taken April 2026

infamy and instagram

Posted on January 22, 2025 by Mary C

While we were in Montreal, a number of these posters, or paste ups, appeared. They were part of MuralFest, a street art and mural festival that was happening at the time. Although I recognized some of the people who were pictured, there are a couple that I wasn’t sure of. Here are six that I saw (none of which had any ‘instagram likes’):

larger than life black and white picture with the instagram heart symbol on orange background for number of likes for that picture

Kim Jong-Il of North Korea on a graffiti wall

Joseph Stalin on the side of an old wood building

larger than life black and white picture with the instagram heart symbol on orange background for number of likes for that picture and

someone in a helmet…. any ideas? Mussolini?

Adolf Hitler high up on a brick wall

Japanese? guy on a poster covered wall

another person who I think I should know, but I don’t

******

Photos taken in the summer of 2014

Link

Looking back 10 years ago …..

Aires Libres and Outdoor Street Sales along Rue Sainte- Catherine, Montreal, on a sunny Sunday afternoon. There were many booths with different styles of art for sale. I stopped at a few of them.

Zepol Art, Marie-Pier Lopes (instagram page)

Denial Art (instagram page)

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and things that weren’t art!

Photos taken in the summer of 2014. I am in the process of removing the street art pages that were on my Toronto blog.

animals on the walls of Montreal

Posted on November 5, 2024 by Mary C

below: “Siamoises” – What looks like twin cats in red dresses is actually a row of identical kitties, but the spotlight is on those two. A mural by Mono Sourcil, aka Maxlie Martel.

mural on a red brick wall in Montreal, circle, night with moon in the sky, two identical cats standing, wearing identical red dresses

below: SBU One’s red rooster, or red chicken.

below: Designed by ANYO – squirrels with different coloured hats. I have only shown two, red and turquoise, but there are many more out there….. how many have you seen?!

graffiti sticker on metal, a squirrel wearing a red hat

below: Giraffes

below: A wish for peace and love, amor et paix, for Ukraine.

yellow and blue background, a white dove with word paix which is french for peace

yellow and blue background, three white dovess with word amor and paix which is french for love and peace

below: A small portion of a large mural by Pantonio showing two of the many birds in the mural – a large bluish black bird and a cute little purple and white bird.

part of a larger mural by Pantonio,two birds, one is small purple, and white, the other is larger a blackbird

below: “Mechanic Bird” by Dede Bandaid & Nitzan Mintz, with text: “Of my dozens of keys, the smallest one opens home”

black and white mural on side of brick building, a bird with large wings

below: This rendition of Daffy Duck is the work of Simon Beaulieu – throwup “text” says Simple.

below: Dog (wolf?) with laser eyes.

below: It’s an animal, right? The blue creature on the left. It was painted by Cryote and the whole panel was a collaboration with Labrona and Waxhead.

below: Buzzzzzz……

little yellow bee with open wings, graffiti

Photos taken September 2024

Breaking Walls in Montreal

Posted on August 4, 2023 by Mary C

Breaking Walls was an Urban Arts and Culture event in Montreal that was held back in June of this year. It was supported by Kolors Worldwide (“Let’s kolor the world”) and MOS Canada – Meeting of Styles Canada. The event was held in a space between rue Moreau and the railway tracks, close to rue Rouen, in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve neighbourhood. In hindsight, I realize that I missed a couple of the murals the day that I was there. Additionally, a couple of the smaller pieces that I have included may be graffiti that pre-dates the Breaking Walls event.

below: A Nick Sweetman and Mr. Tensoe2 collaboration

large street art mural with two blue owls

close up view of blue owl painted by nick sweetman, mural in Montreal, on brick wall

below: Vuducat aka Christina Mazzulla

mural by Christina Mazzulla, in reds and pinks mostly, woman's face

below: Jijón painted red and pink figure

mural by mexican artist jijon, pink character

below: I am going to call it a blue traffic circle because it’s blue and it has traffic related items in it such as an orange cone, the front of a car, street signs, and traffic lights yellow. It was painted by Sergio MB. Unfortunately, the red and white tag has already defaced the work.

blue circle shape with traffic related items like orange cone, traffic light,

To the left of this purple dog (by Hank) was a painting of a woman’s portrait in turquoise that unfortunately has already been tagged over. It was painted by Polographe and can be seen on his Instagram page.

below: Arlick Enigma ( Arlick PaXman Team), originally from Mexico, painted this wonderful portrait of a child wearing a parka with a fur lined hood.