Love Lives Here: 9 Animal Murals That Bring Streets to Life
Content warning: Which one is your favorite?
From a unicorn rhino in East London to a giant lynx made of trash in Lisbon, this collection brings together ten wildly imaginative artworks where animals dominate walls and streets across the globe. With hyperrealistic fur, surreal twists, and upcycled materials, these pieces invite passersby to look again—and then again. Let’s explore the creatures that roam the walls of Torrefarrera, Cheltenham, Melbourne, and beyond.
More!: Cute Animals (23 Photos)
Chicken Punk by LexusOne in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
A giant photorealistic rooster wearing a hoop earring and leg bands is painted on a beige wall, towering with presence and detail. The feathers transition from golden and earthy browns to iridescent blues and purples.
🔗 Follow LexusOne on Instagram
The Giant Kitten by Oriol Arumí in Torrefarrera, Catalonia, Spain
Painted for the Torrefarrera Street Art Festival, this photorealistic kitten peers curiously from a black square as if hiding behind a window. The mural contrasts sharply with the textured red-brick building it’s on.
🔗 Follow Oriol Arumí on Instagram
Dog and Fish by Nina Valkhoff in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, UK
This vibrant mural features a spotted dog with soft eyes surrounded by giant magnolia blossoms and a flowing goldfish. Painted in a dreamy color palette of purples, pinks, and blues. More by Nina Valkhoff here!
🔗 Follow Nina Valkhoff on Instagram
The Squirrel and the Robin by Curtis Hylton in Oskarshamn, Sweden
A detailed and softly blended mural of a red squirrel with yellow-orange flowers in its fur, and a robin nestled in its bushy tail. The background is muted, letting the autumn palette stand out.
🔗 Follow Curtis Hylton on Instagram
I Am a Unicorn by Pure Evil in East London, England
A comically stoic white rhino stares forward while graffiti above declares: “I AM A UNICORN.” The piece balances sarcasm and simplicity on a weathered garage door.
🔗 Follow Pure Evil on Instagram
Looking Tyred – Elephant Sculpture by Villu Jaanisoo in Jyväskylä, Finland
This life-sized elephant is sculpted entirely from used car tires, layered and twisted to mimic folds of skin, tusks, and trunk. Created by Estonian sculptor Villu Jaanisoo, the piece merges industrial waste with natural form, standing tall in a public space in central Finland. More photos here!
🔗 Follow Villu Jaanisoo on Instagram
Lynx Cat by Bordalo II in Lisbon, Portugal
Constructed from plastic waste and discarded objects, this massive lynx sculpture bursts with color and texture. Each piece—bottles, bins, toys—forms the fur and face in dazzling assemblage. More photos here!
🔗 Follow Bordalo II on Instagram
Parrot Mural by Carlos Alberto GH in Palenque, Chiapas, Mexico
A 3D-style mural of a scarlet macaw mid-flight, with open wings reaching toward a viewer. The illusion is enhanced by the background perspective, tricking the eye beautifully.
See how he made it here!: By Carlosalberto GH – In Chiapas, Mexico (6 photos)
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Blue Wren by Geoffrey Carran in Melbourne, Australia
This serene mural depicts a blue wren perched on a blooming cherry branch. The vivid pink petals and detailed feathers contrast perfectly against the dark gray wall.
🔗 Follow Geoffrey Carran on Instagram
In cities and towns across the world, animals have taken over walls, alleys, and abandoned buildings—not as intruders, but as muses. Whether crafted from trash, tires, or spray paint, these murals and sculptures remind us of nature’s enduring place in our urban lives, told through fur, feathers, and imagination.
More: 45 Purrfect Street Art Pieces: A Tribute to Our Cats
Which one is your favorite?
11 Beautiful Artworks That Seem to Grow From Nature
Some artworks don’t just sit in nature—they become part of it. Around the world, artists are crafting sculptures and murals that seamlessly merge with their surroundings, using trees, vines, and landscapes as living elements of their work. These 11 pieces don’t fight against nature; they grow with it.
From giant figures emerging from forests to street art that transforms urban greenery into playful illusions, these eight stunning creations prove that art and nature can exist in perfect harmony.More: 8 Inspiring Sculptures Seamlessly Integrated with Nature
1. “Sleeping Child” by El Decertor (Imbabura, Ecuador)
A mural by El Decertor in Imbabura, Ecuador, depicting a young child sleeping against a concrete wall, with creeping ivy blending into the painting as a natural blanket.
2. “UMI” by Daniel Popper (Illinois, USA)
“UMI” by Daniel Popper at the outdoor tree museum The Morton Arboretum in Illinois, USA—an intricate wooden sculpture of a woman with tree roots weaving through her body, set in a green landscape.About and more photos: “UMI” Sculpture by Daniel Popper in Lisle, Illinois
3. Street Art by David Zinn (Ann Arbor, USA)
A street art piece by David Zinn in Ann Arbor, USA, featuring a small green character with a real grass mustache blending into the pavement.More!: Street Art by Happiness Maker David Zinn (21 Photos)
4. Flower Street Art by Fabio Gomes Trindade (Goiás, Brazil)
A mural by Fabio Gomes Trindade in Goiás, Brazil, featuring a girl’s face with a real tree forming her vibrant pink afro hairstyle.More by Fabio Gomes: How Fábio Gomes Turns Trees into Hair: Stunning Murals in Trindade
5. Sidewalk Flower Experiment
A beautiful example of accidental nature-inspired art—kindergarten children dropped seeds into sidewalk cracks, leading to a spontaneous floral pathway.More photos and about: Kindergarten children dropped seeds in the crack of the sidewalk to see what would happen
6. “Nature Rings” by Spencer Byles (Deep Forest, France)
A series of woven circular sculptures by Spencer Byles made from natural branches, blending seamlessly with the surrounding forest.
7. Willow Archer by Anna & The Willow (UK)
A woven willow sculpture of a female archer by Anna & The Willow, set against a wooded path.
8. Wire Mermaid by Martin Debenham (UK)
A wire sculpture by Martin Debenham of a mermaid sitting on a rock, with the intricate metalwork mimicking flowing water.
9. Snake in the Green — Hyères, France
A plain gray cinderblock wall in a hidden grove was completely transformed into a lifelike snake by street artist Rest4. The viper, rendered in vibrant greens, blues, and yellows, emerges from the shadows of the forest floor. The before-and-after framing reveals the power of imagination to awaken forgotten spaces.
10. Fluentem Colos — Little Milford, Wales
Land artist Jon Foreman created this delicate, wave-like gradient in a woodland clearing using carefully arranged leaves. Starting in green and fading to deep orange, the sculpture blends with the forest floor in color, shape, and motion—appearing to ripple like wind through grass. More by Jon Foreman: 9 Leaf Sculptures That Stir the Soul in the Forest (Art by Jon Foreman)
11. Florinda Camila — “WA” Marko Franco Domenak in Lima, Peru
This creative mural cleverly incorporates a real bougainvillea bush as the hair of a painted woman. A monarch butterfly completes the peaceful scene, adding movement to this blend of paint and nature.🔗 Follow WA on Instagram
More: When Street Art Meets Nature (40 Photos)
Which one is your favorite?
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