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Items tagged with: sidewalkIllusions
Before And After (10 Photos)
Content warning: Which one is your favorite?
From illusions that make you fall down rabbit holes to majestic scenes from another century, this collection dives into a world where walls become windows into entirely different realities. In this photo journey, you’ll find Eduardo Relero’s fantastical chalk worlds, historic balconies painted by Carles Arola in Spain, Kurt Wenner’s London underground surprise, and a hotel facade in Poland that doesn’t actually exist. These aren’t just murals—they’re portals, stories, and tricks of the eye scattered across public spaces in Europe and the U.S.
More 3D: 14 Street Art 3D Masterpieces You Won’t Believe Are Real
1. Mural by WALLART in Łódź, Poland
Artist: WALLART | Location: Łódź, Poland
This trompe-l’oeil mural creates the illusion of a lavish hotel interior, complete with a gold-trimmed ceiling, chandelier, elegant staircase, and sharply dressed guests. The play with architectural depth and lighting tricks viewers into believing the wall has been peeled open to reveal another world inside. More photos here!
2. “The Belgian Underground” by Kurt Wenner
Artist: Kurt Wenner | Location: Brussels, Belgium
Painted directly on the pavement, this 3D chalk artwork brings a warped version of London’s Underground to life. Alice descends into a distorted Piccadilly Circus, encountering the White Rabbit and a dreamlike crowd. The illusion bends space as if the sidewalk drops into an alternate universe.
3. Mural by Carles Arola
Artist: Carles Arola | Location: Calonge, Spain
This large-scale mural turns a flat facade into a detailed village scene with balconies, townspeople, a white horse, and even wine barrels in an open cellar. Every element is rendered to match the stone wall texture, blending history and realism into the environment. More photos here!
🔗 Follow Carles Arola on Facebook
4. Mural by Patrick Commecy
Artist: Patrick Commecy | Location: Montpellier, France
This before-and-after transformation shows a blank wall turned into a lifelike apartment block complete with balconies, dogs, and residents interacting. Commecy’s signature style uses vivid colors and careful perspective to mimic real-life structures. More photos here! This mural, visible on Google Maps.
🔗 Visit Patrick Commecy’s Website
5. “Space and Time” by Eduardo Relero
Artist: Eduardo Relero | Location: Bochum, Germany
Eduardo Relero’s 3D illusion on a public square turns the sidewalk into a rumpled bed occupied by eccentric characters. A man even lies on it, perfectly aligned with the painted figures. Relero’s theatrical use of foreshortening and humor is on full display here.
🔗 Follow Eduardo Relero on Instagram
6. Mural by John Pugh
Artist: John Pugh | Location: Hermosa Beach, California, USA
This mural creates the illusion of a massive chunk of building peeled away to reveal a sunny beach scene. People sunbathe on towels while a historic hotel rises behind them. Painted shadows and curved edges give it a sculptural effect. More photos here!
🔗 Follow John Pugh on Instagram
7. Mural by Eduardo Relero
Artist: Eduardo Relero | Location: Fiuggi, Italia
This small but powerful mural shows a man sipping coffee from a window, so lifelike that a passerby holds up his own cup in greeting. With painterly texture and perspective, the piece bridges reality and illusion in an intimate alley setting.
🔗 Follow Eduardo Relero on Instagram
8. Mural in Lyon, France (Before & After)
Artist Collective: CitéCréation | Location: Lyon, France
An iconic example of urban transformation, this enormous facade was painted to replicate surrounding architecture and urban life. The stairs, balconies, windows, and climbing greenery blend perfectly with reality, making the original blank wall disappear entirely. More photos here!
9. Mural by Arleta Kolasińska in Śródka, Poznań
Artist: Arleta Kolasińska | Location: Śródka, Poznań, Poland
This dramatic before-and-after mural makeover transformed a plain white wall into a vivid streetscape filled with colorful facades and playful architectural illusions. The piece features false windows, fake depth, and characters painted into daily life scenes—including one man “climbing” a wall. Commissioned for Café La Ruina, the mural enlivens the historic district and honors local heritage.
More photos and about!: Poland’s Stunning Mural: A Masterpiece in Poznań’s Historic Środka District
10. Mural by Carl Leck in Indianapolis, Indiana
Artist: Carl Leck | Location: Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
This 3D-mural shows a suspended glass soda bottle hanging from a beam, complete with realistic lighting and a cast shadow of a bottle cap. The illusion tricks the eye by blending painted shadows and reflections with the building’s architecture. Created for NINE dot ARTS!
🔗 Follow Carl Leck on Instagram
More: Master of Illusion!: 19 Jaw-Dropping 3D Graffiti Pieces by Odeith
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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