Edinburgh Street Art

The pandemic has effectively meant we’ve been grounded for much of 2020. Makes writing a travel blog somewhat difficult but it has also provided a new appreciation of what’s right on our doorstep.

For us, lockdown kicked off in March 2020. Confined to one outdoor activity per day, I threw myself into running. It’s my go to for clearing my head and carving out some much needed “me” space. But in lockdown it took on a new dimension. In times of crises, creativity can be found. And that’s exactly what seemed to happen in spades in and around Leith, with new works by some of Scotland’s street artists popping up all over the place. I had a purpose to my runs – finding and capturing some of these amazing works.

Given how many of our foreign travels have centred around street art – Buenos Aires (if you get the chance check out the Graffitimundo Tour), New York, London and Lisbon – it felt right to share some of the gems to be found right here in Edinburgh.

These are all accessible on foot or if you are short on time jump on a JustEat bike.

As part of the Trams to Newhaven project, a number of utility boxes in and around Leith Walk and Constitution Street have been painted with murals. Artists including Keith Paton, Breeze Thirteen, Vincente Aguado, Gratis Quo, Ross MaCrae, Ooft, Rek, Trench One, and KMG have all contributed.

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Clockwise – Blameless Collectives ‘The Leith Aquatic’ at Halmyre St, Newhaven Harbour Covid Mermaid, Box Vincent @ Quality Yard, Elph @ Lovella, Leith Walk, Kirsty Whiten @ Out of the Blue Drill Hall on Dalmeny St, Box Vincent @ Quality Yard, Box Vincent @ MouseTrap on Leith Walk.

Moving away from Leith, while Meadowbank Stadium is being re-built, the boards surrounding the construction site have been adorned by works from KMG, Shona Hardie and others. These have tended to change pretty frequently, responding to recent events – the death of Andrew Weatherall, the family of otters taking up residence at Arthur’s Seat. The Stadium is almost complete so I’m really hoping they’ll find some way of keeping the creativity alive in this spot.

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And if in the vicinity of Meadowbank, it’s not far to Figgate Park (a new discovery for us in lockdown) where you’ll find a series of murals by Paco Graff depicting local wildlife. Our eldest daughter particularly enjoyed these. Such a great example of how a local park and some dingy tunnels can be brought to life and add some flavour to the local community.

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In a similar vein, the Colinton Tunnel is apparently home to Scotland’s largest mural in a railway tunnel. At 130 meters long, this former train tunnel is filled with lines from Robert Lois Stevenson’s poetry, whilst the images reflect local history and heritage. Its pretty spectacular and the great thing is, its part of the Water of Leith Walkway and Cycle Path, which is also home to a whole host of artwork.

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I haven’t even skimmed the surface in terms of what can be found in and around Edinburgh in this blog. I’m hoping to add a map highlighting where some of these fantastic works can be found, plus all the others I haven’t incorporated into this blog.

Finally, a bit of advice – one day they’ll be there but the next they may be gone – so what are you waiting for. With Spring on its way, lighter mornings and evenings, get your skates on!

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