I am happy to observe how street art is developing in Częstochowa [not such a big city in Poland]. While it is developing, the social acceptance of this phenomenon grows. The funny thing is that the street art in Czestochowa started with tags on blocks and graffiti on garages which everyone hated. So, today I would like to take you on a walk along the trail of generally understood and more legal works.
Map of the all murals in Częstochowa: CLICK
- The bird on the Hand, Dominik Moryń, Mielczarskiego St. 21
We start at Mielczarskiego Street. It’s a piece of cake to get here from the train station. You get off the train and head towards Piłsudskiego Street. The Bird on the Hand was painted because of a local charity organization. The theme refers to the history and planned future of the organization.
In addition to the Bird on a Hand, in this neighbourhood, you will find another typographic mural by Filip Gonera, Daniel Kowacki and Dominik Jastrzębski. Just look for the men on the roof. 😉
2. The Time Keeper, Tomasz Sętowski, Wolności St. 19
Time to see the largest and most famous mural in Częstochowa. From Mielczarski Street, we should return to the train station and go to the other side of the tracks. After leaving the station, you will see an amazing, wide, well-kept mural on your right.
This huge piece of art was created because of Stefan Rybicki, the local clockmaker who sponsored the mural. The mural’s author, Tomasz Sętowski, is one of the greatest artists in Częstochowa. I recommend that you look carefully at the painting and pay special attention to how the balconies and windows are inscribed in the mural as well as other unique details in it.
3. In state we trust, Simpson, Śląska St. 23
Two fighting devils are Simpson’s second political mural in Częstochowa. The devils fight with one hand and the other is in a shakehand. According to the author, it symbolizes the rivalry and making pacts between political fractions. The mural is located near an orthodox church and an evangelical church, which may be ironic.
4. Lamb, Simpson, Kopernika St. 57
Simpson is known for his art of commenting on the political and social situation. The mural shows a boy dressed in a T-shirt with a sickle and a cross (communism and Christian symbols), standing over a dead lamb. The interpretation is connected with Polish history. When after II World War the communists rule the country, and the catholic church was the opposite.
5. Museum of Imagination, Tomasz Sętowski, crossing of Szymanowskiego and POW
This mural was one of the first in Częstochowa. Inspired by the paintings of Tomasz Sętowski, transferred to the wall by his son Mikołaj, as well as Tadeusz Kiedrzynek and Marek Laskowski. It has a beautiful, fairy-tale atmosphere.
6. Tower of Babel, Tomasz Sętowski, Dąbrowskiego St. 1
The mural design combines an image previously created by Sętowski with a workshop designed especially for the wall. The wall, as the artist himself says, is like a dream – visible from Biegański Square and is beautifully sunlit.
7. Eye of Cyclops, Jacek Sztuka, NMP Avenue 65 + Mural at Cepelia, NMP Avenue 64
At 3rd Avenue, I recommend you see two murals. The first mural changes an ordinary gateway into a fantastic piece of art. The longer we are looking at the mural, the more we are surprised by what is happening on it.
In front of the gateway, you can find the Cepelia building with a beautiful but forgotten terrace on the roof. This is where the mural of Agata Lankamer and Emilia Dudziec was created. The mural was inspired by drawings of the architect – Wlodzimierz Ściegienny. The terrace is opened during the city art gallery’s working hours.
8. Infinity, Cezary Łopaciński, Kilińskiego Street 10
This is one of the oldest murals in Częstochowa. It was created in 10 hours as part of the 10th Cultural Night in 2013. It is located on the wall of the Ambulance Service.
9. Janosik, Michał Błach, Staszica Street 12a
This mural was created to appreciate Marek Perepeczko – not only as an actor but also as the director of the Częstochowa theatre. The mural was painted by Michał Błach, also the author of the mural “Świtezianka” on the block at Goszczyńskiego St. 4 (district of Trzy Wieszczów).
10. Violin Mural, Michał Błach, Wilsona Street 16
The last stop on our route will be Armstrong Square, where we will find a balancing sculpture by Jerzy Kędziora and a violin mural by Michał Banach. The mural, despite being simple, is impressive and fits perfectly into the surroundings.
11. Świtezianka, Michał Błach, Goszczyńskiego Street 4
The mural is a reference to the main character from a ballad written by Polish writer Adam Mickiewicz. Interestingly, the appearance of the mural’s heroine is not random. The image here is graced by one of Polish models – Ewa Kepys.
12. Miasto, Emilia Dudziec & Agata Lankamer, Aleja Wolności 79
The mural, which was created as part of the Word Deconstruction Festival “Czytaj!” in 2015. To understand the meaning of the mural, look at the poem “MIASTO” by Tadeusz Peiper. I put it here but unfortunately it is in Polish.
Miasto wyśrubowało się w ziemię
pięściami walczącego marzenia
Człowiek
odziany w walce upału
zamieszkał w swojej własnej dłoni
Niebo:
karta tytułowa zaginionej książki
12. No tittle, StreetWind, Garncarska 18
This is not a mural, but still – it’s a great work of (how he called himself on Instagram) an unknown street artist. The cross on the chest is a reference to the catholic culture which is typical for Częstochowa. Częstochowa is called Saint City because there is an important monastery for Catholics and also a lot of seminaries, or we can say now – just one seminary because of lack of enlistees.
13. Adaś, Aleja Wolności 14 [no longer exists]
Sticker depicting Adam Florczyk, creator of the “Czytaj!” Word Deconstruction Festival. Adaś unfortunately passed away far too soon, so it’s good that he returned at least in this form. A social activist to whom Czestochowa owes a lot.
14. No tittle, Monstfur, Dąbrowskiego 13
One of the last mural before split up created by Monstfur. It used to be another mural next to this one created by Egon Fietke but haven’t survived.
15. Migawki z dzieciństwa, Irmina Sętowska, Śląska 3
The mural inside the something like a gate. You can see here the “boboki”, or like my parents used to say „baboki”. According to folk beliefs, ‚boboki” are monsters used to scare naughty kids.
16. Barako Sztuka, Michał Błach, Okrzei 23
The mural was created in 2017 by Michal Blach. It is unique for two reasons. Not only by the fact that it is located in my childhood neighbourhood but also because it was created on a raw wall without backing.
17. Composition with aggressive orange form by Exer, Aleja Wolności 29
This work is also close to the train station, but more hidden than Strażnik Czasu. It is a bit of a mural and a bit of graffiti. More specifically, it is an inscription in the form of a geometric composition. It was created by an artist from Czestochowa.
18. Na trzepaku by Filip Gonera, Mielczarskiego 21
This mural was an announce of the Alternative Culture Festival eFKA which was organized by the Oczami Brata Foundation, “Sure, that Alternative 21″ Social Cooperative, the New Theater Foundation in Częstochowa and the Partnership for Local Activity “Stare Miasto – Nowe Życie”. Wow, that’s a lot of organizers.
The author of the mural is Filip Gonera, who created it with his team. The creator also has to his credit to the typo mural on Mielczarskiego Street. The latest work was titled “Na trzepaku” which means: on a whisker. Were you used to playing on a whisker?
19. Mural for Alternative Culture Festival “eFKA” by Nina Parzęczewska, Mielczarskiego 28
Additional stop: Our Rust, Monstfur, Nowowiejskiego St. 6
Here we can have a moment of silence as the mural no longer exists. : < But you can see it on my Instagram. 😉
The works of “Monstfur” can be found in Częstochowa in a few more places. Therefore Czestochowa was the place where these guys started their street art career and learned the technique that they finally mastered to perfection. We talk about painting with templates. In theory, it’s simple – you create a template, mirror it, create another one, and then mirror it again as a second layer. Depending on how complicated the work is, we have more layers and more detailed-cut templates. How much work and talent they put into their Monstfur murals will be seen only by a careful observer.
The templates from which the mural on Nowowiejski Street was imprinted were cut by hand. In my opinion, it was one of the most exciting places in Częstochowa.
That concludes our tour. For more check my Instagram. I highly recommend you to walk around Czestochowa and view the rebellious side of the city.
The map of all murals you can find here.
Let me know in the comments if you need more tips.
Bye, bye!
Part of Streets 