Penang Street Art

Georgetown, the capital of Penang, is a very eclectic former British colonial town, recently recognized by the UN as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. One of our first adventures led us to seemingly never-ending alleys of street art, a "must do" cultural experience in Penang. In 2012, the Georgetown Festival commissioned international artist Earnest Zacharevic to paint the walls, telling the everyday story of Penang. Public response has been phenomenal.

In my opinion, the genius of his work is the designed interactivity of his pieces. Zacharevic integrated the use of real objects, like bicycles, basketball hoop, swings, etc., allowing visitors to add to the artistic frame with their own creativity. 

My kids absolutely loved it. Most museum art is roped off, but here they are encouraged to jump right in. This made it a very personal artistic experience for us all. 

Here are a few of our favorites:

   

  

And of course, the obligatory "Chinese tourist photo with our 5 kids." 

There's no way of knowing how many Chinese tourist photo books we've made in over the years... Here's one with some nice ladies from Beijing.