This image gallery brings together 100 pieces of Montreal street art from 2020 that were created in a studio, then pasted, glued, screwed in or cemented into a public place. It is not necessarily the best of the year because taste is a subjective thing and I was obviously not able to photograph everything. The selection was done partly from my own personal favourites but mostly from those of my followers on Instagram. Of course this list was put together from what I was actually able to photograph, so keep in mind that it may lack some great work that just slipped between the cracks.
The pieces are shown here in alphabetical order of artist name. To ensure that the list wasn’t filled with only work from a few popular artists, I have set a maximum of 4 pieces per person. Collaborations by two or more artists count as one entry.
See also:
– Retrospective of 2020 murals and other painted street art
– Retrospective of 2020 graffiti
Cette galerie-photo présente 100 pièces de street art produites en 2020 à Montréal, créées en studio avant d’être collées, vissées ou fixées dans le ciment dans un endroit public. Cette liste n’a pas la prétention d’être un best of de l’année puisque les goûts sont personnels et je n’ai évidemment pas eu la chance de tout photographier. La sélection s’est faite en partie parmi mes pièces favorites, mais surtout parmi les préférées de mes abonnés Instagram. Cette liste a bien sur été créée à partir de ce que j’ai eu la chance de trouver et de photographier, ce qui signifie que quelques chef d’oeuvres de 2020 pourraient ne pas y figurer.
Les pièces apparaissent ci-dessous en ordre alphabétique de nom d’artiste. Pour que cette liste ne soit pas totalement accaparée par quelques artistes populaires, j’ai fixé un maximum de 4 pièces par personne. Les collaborations entre deux ou plusieurs artistes ne comptent que pour une entrée.
Voir aussi:
– Retrospective 2020 murales et autre street art peint
– Retrospective 2020 graffiti
pasted piece by Adi
Poster by
Adi.
paste-up by Adi
One of many different small paste-ups by
Adi. This artist has also made it into the
Retrospective of 2020 murals and other painted street art.
small paste by Laurence Bélanger
One of many plant/insect designs by
Laurence Bélanger.
small paste by Laurence Bélanger
A paste-up by
Laurence Bélanger.
paste-up from Bodegas
One of many pasted head pieces by
Bodegas.
paste-up from Bodegas
One more paste-up by
Bodegas.
poster by Bubzee and Kali Spitzer
Poster by
Bubzee and
Kali Spitzer.
wheatpaste from Bubzee
A beautiful wheatpaste by
Bubzee.
wheatpaste collaboration between Bubzee and Sage Novak
A pasted collaboration between
Bubzee and
Sage Novak.
poster by Bubzee and Sage Novak
A poster by
Bubzee and
Sage Novak.
poster from Cam
A small poster from
Cam. Similar variations in different colours have also been found.
Maya Cardin poster for Black Lives Matter
This one is the most beautiful of the
Black Lives Matter posters put up by
Maya Cardin.
small paste-up from Cess Pool
One of many small paste-ups by
Cess Pool.
wheatpaste by Nivanh Chanthara found in Little Italy
Nivanh Chanthara hit the streets of Montreal for the first time near the end of the year and managed to paste between 15 and 20 pieces in the year’s final few weeks.
wheatpaste by Nivanh Chanthara found in Plateau End
One more by
Nivanh Chanthara.
wheatpaste by Nivanh Chanthara found in Mile End
One more by
Nivanh Chanthara.
wheatpaste by Nivanh Chanthara found in Mile End
One more by
Nivanh Chanthara.
wheatpaste from CSRK found in Mile End
A typical Montreal citizen in transit, by
CSRK. Found in Mile End.
wheatpaste from CSRK found in Petite-Patrie
CSRK found in Petite-Patrie.
CSRK wheatpaste in Petite-Patrie
CSRK inspired by the
Covid19 pandemic.
small wood-up from Flavor
A small wood-up by
Flavor.
a tile mural from Gascon in Hochelaga
Laurent Gascon has been coming up with a new broken tile mosaics honouring a local artist every year since 2009. This 2020 mural, his 13th, features Renée Claude, a québécoise singer who passed away from Covid19 in May.
poster by Huile d’Olive
poster by Huile d’Olive
Above 2 photos:
Huile d’Olive pasted these posters from the very beginning of the
Covid19 pandemic, they were the very first pieces of public art addressing the subject. The posters were made in French or English, in a variation of colours. Huile d’Olive has also made it into the
Retrospective of 2020 murals and other painted street art.
Wheatpaste by Irritated Eye found in central Montreal
Irritated Eye wheatpaste that appeared on St-Laurent shortly after the
death of George Floyd, when the subject of police brutality inspired many artists to create.
installation made by Junko from reclaimed materials, in Mile End
Junko installed around Mile End a handful of impressive large pieces made of reclaimed materials during the final weeks of the year. Check the latter link for more photos.
installation made by Junko from reclaimed materials, in Mile End
One more creation by
Junko made from reclaimed materials. Again, have a look at the latter link for more angles.
wheatpastes by Know Self found in a Mile End alley
A set of 2
Know Self wheatpastes coloured on location. These were found in a Mile End alley. The bottom piece was added to the top one after a few weeks.
wheatpaste by Know Self found in a Mile End alley
One more
Know Self wheatpaste from a Mile End alley, colour added on location.
wheatpaste by Know Self found in a Mile End alley
One more
Know Self wheatpaste from a Mile End alley, painted on location.
pasted pieces by Kyoto Coyote
A set of pieces by
Kyoto Coyote.
Labrona wheatpaste in Hochelaga
Labrona was very active during the first part of the year. This is one of many pasted pieces I found over 2020.
Labrona wheatpaste in the Plateau
One more pasted piece by
Labrona, this one from a series inspired by Picasso. Labrona has also made it into the
Retrospective of 2020 murals and other painted street art.
small paste by LMNOPI
“Wet’suwet’en Strong”, a small paste-up by
LMNOPI.
small paste by LMNOPI
A small paste-up by
LMNOPI titled “Water Is Life”.
small paste by LMNOPI
A small paste-up by
LMNOPI titled “Land Back”.
Lost Claws wheatpaste in the Plateau
This punny wheatpaste by
Lost Claws put up in April was very likely inspired by the
Covid19 pandemic (Six Feet Away / Six Feet Under).
Lost Claws wheatpaste in the Plateau, commenting on a piece by a different artist right next to it
This is
Lost Claws taking a dig at a street artist whose work is found right next to it (one corner is visible in this shot).
tribute by Lost Claws to their cat which had just passed away
A touching tribute by
Lost Claws to his cat which had just passed away.
Lost Claws on the front of a Bixi self-service bicyle
Something a bit different from
Lost Claws. This artist has also made it into the
Retrospective of 2020 murals and other painted street art.
letters N,O,R and T pasted by Louis Letters
letters U, V, W and X pasted by Louis Letters
Above 8 photos: While the streets of Montreal were deserted at the very beginning of the
Covid19 pandemic,
Louis Letters decided to take the
36 Days Of Type challenge outside. The 36 Days Of Type Challenge invites designers and graphic artists to create their own versions of the letters A to Z then the numbers 0 to 9. The creations are usually posted on Instagram, but Louis Letters had the great idea of bringing his creations to the street, photograph them
in situ and then post them. The photos above show the letters N,O, R, T, U, V, W and X.
small paste-up by Louis Letters
A small paste-up by Louis Letters stating “Police Kills”. Ironically, a policeman sitting in his car was watching me as I photographed this piece!
Black Lives Matter poster by Louis Letters
A
Black Lives Matter poster by
Louis Letters. This artist has also made it into the
Retrospective of 2020 graffiti.
poster by Madame Gilles
A poster by
Madame Gilles.
poster by Madame Gilles
A poster by
Madame Gilles.
small paste-up by Maika
A small paste-up by
Maika.
small paste-up by Maika
A small paste-up by
Maika.
installation by Makenoize in a Plateau alley
An installation by
Makenoize in a Plateau alley.
small paste-up by Marine Martinelli
A small paste-up by
Marine Martinelli put up at the
Rouen legal graffiti tunnel. Marine has also made it into the
Retrospective of 2020 murals and other painted street art.
pasted art by Mirov on a Plateau garage door
A large wheatpaste by
Mirov on a Plateau alley garage door.
Big Miss Me wheatpaste in a Rosemont alley
A tall
Miss Me wheatpaste in a Rosemont alley.
Miss Me wheatpaste in Mile End
Miss Me in Mile End.
small paste-up by Missprints
A small
Missprints paste-up put up when the subject of police brutality was trending.
wheatpaste by M’Os Geez
A
M’Os Geez wheatpaste. This artist has also made it into the
Retrospective of 2020 murals and other painted street art.
wheatpaste by Fay Nix found in Hochelaga
Fay Nix in Hochelaga.
wheatpaste by Fay Nix found in Hochelaga
Fay Nix in Hochelaga.
poster by le Pleurnicheur
A poster by
le Pleurnicheur.
poster by le Pleurnicheur
A poster by
le Pleurnicheur.
wheatpaste by le Pleurnicheur found in the Plateau
A wheatpaste by
le Pleurnicheur.
pasted piece from Rage5 downtown
A pasted piece by
Rage5 found downtown.
pasted piece from Rage5 in the old port
A pasted piece by
Rage5 found in the Old Port.
pasted piece from Rage5 in the Plateau
A pasted piece by
Rage5 found on a boarded up Plateau house.
pasted piece from SciWalkArt
A small paste-up by
SciWalkArt. This artist has also made it into the
Retrospective of 2020 murals and other painted street art.
wheatpaste from Shame
A poster by
Shame.
poster from Shame
A poster by
Shame.
Shelley Miller tile installation
Here’s a 50 x 50 tile installation by
Shelley Miller inspired by the first wave of the
Covid19 pandemic. The colours each represent a different Montreal borough (in percentage of cases), and each column represents a day, for 50 days. It therefore shows how in the early days of the pandemic (left of the piece), the relative evolution of boroughs was quite different, but after 35 days (right of the piece), everything seemed to stabilize. More info from the artist’s account via the above link.
mini-poster by Shifty Cat
mini-poster by Shifty Cat
Above 2 photos: two
Shifty Cat posters put up near the beginning of the
Covid19 pandemic.
pasted collaboration of Sloast and Sinister Kid
A collaboration between
Sinister Kid and
Sloast.
wheatpaste from Sloast found in the McGill Ghetto
Sloast in the McGill Ghetto.
poster from Stay Beautiful
A small poster by
Stay Beautiful.
posters by Stay Beautiful
A set of 2 small posters by
Stay Beautiful.
wheatpaste by Stikki Peaches found in Little Italy
Stikki Peaches from a run of wheatpastes in June.
wheatpaste by Stikki Peaches found in Ahuntsic
A
Stikki Peaches wheatpaste of Malcolm X found in Ahuntsic.
wheatpaste by Stikki Peaches found in Ahuntsic
A
Stikki Peaches wheatpaste of Martin Luther King found in Ahuntsic.
two tall wheatpastes from Suriani
A set of two wheatpastes by
Suriani found in Mile Ex.
wheatpaste by Suriani
One more by
Suriani in Mile Ex.
Swarm wheatpaste in Mile End
A wheatpaste by
Swarm spotted in Mile End.
Swarm wheatpaste in Mile End
Swarm wheatpaste found in Mile End.
set of small paste-ups from T.B.O.N.S
T.B.O.N.S. put up a series of small paste-ups around the Plateau and Mile End. These paste-ups often come as sets, such as the ones shown here.
set of small paste-ups from T.B.O.N.S
One more set of small paste-ups by
T.B.O.N.S.
a small paste-up from T.B.O.N.S
Any one of the many dozens of small paste-ups put up by
T.B.O.N.S. could have made this retrospective.
Toxic piece pasted over a cinema poster
Toxic hijacking a cinema poster.
installation by Toxic found at the Rouen legal graffiti tunnel
installation by Toxic found at the Rouen legal graffiti tunnel
Above 2 photos: Closed and open shots of an installation by
Toxic found at the
Rouen legal graffiti tunnel.
poster by Tshoko
A small poster by
Tshoko, variations exist.
small paste-up by Tshoko
One of many sticker/paste-ups put up by
Tshoko in 2020. This artist has also made it into the
Retrospective of 2020 murals and other painted street art.
wood-up by Waxhead in Mile End
A wood-up by
Waxhead found in Mile End.
Waxhead woodup in Mile End
Another wood-up by
Waxhead found in Mile End.
Waxhead sticker, blue variation
sticker by Waxhead
Waxhead sticker
sticker by Waxhead
Above 4 photos:
Covid19 stickers by
Waxhead, found in 4 different colours. Waxhead has also made it into the
Retrospective of 2020 murals and other painted street art.
fake sign by Benny Wilding in Petite-Patrie
Benny Wilding treated us to a few new fake business signs in 2020, here’s one of them.
Mock-business sign by Benny Wilding, in the Plateau
One more mock business sign by
Benny Wilding. This artist has also made it into the
Retrospective of 2020 graffiti (under ‘Cemz’).
wheatpaste by Zola over a garage door which she had painted but had been vandalized
There’s a great story around this pasted policeman piece by
Zola. She had initially contributed a painted anti-police brutality piece on this garage door for the
2020 edition of Canettes de Ruelle (still partially visible – click on her name above to view original). Unfortunately, someone who clearly disapproved of her message vandalised the door with black paint, calling her a cretin in the process. She cleverly flipped the topic back by adding the pasted policeman. Socio-political street art at its best!
Zola poster in Little Italy
Heads rolled in 2020, particularly that of the statue of first Canadian prime minister John A Macdonald. Macdonald allowed famine and disease to kill many indigenous people and his government forced some First Nation communities to leave their traditional territories, withholding food until they did so. In August 2020 his statue, which had been sprayed with blood red paint many times, was finally toppled by activists. Shortly after
Zola immortalised the moment with this poster.
Zola wheatpaste in Rosemont
A wheatpaste by
Zola found in Rosemont.
Zola wheatpaste found in the Plateau/Rosemont
A large wheatpaste by
Zola found in the Plateau/Rosemont.
wheatpaste by an unidentified artist in Hochelaga
An unidentified artist has pasted around Hochelaga black and white photos of various people of the neighbourhood. This is one of almost a dozen by the same artist which I have been lucky enough to find and photograph.
wheatpaste by an unidentified artist in Hochelaga
One more pasted piece by the unidentified Hochelaga artist putting up black and white photos of neighbourhood citizens. This one is of a street musician and the piece was actually put up behind where he usually plays to passersby on Ontario street, prompting many of them to photograph the musician playing in front of this photo of himself.
wheatpaste of George Floyd by an unidentified artist
This wheatpaste of George Floyd was put up in Mile End shortly after the murder that sparked the 2020
Black Lives Matter chapter.
pasted art by an unidentified artist, found in Hochelaga
Pieces in this style by an unidentified artist have been found here and there in Hochelaga alleys, in Old Montreal and around St-Laurent. Sometimes found as double sets as shown here, but usually as a single piece.
wheatpaste by an unidentified artist found in Petite-Patrie
This wheatpaste by an unidentified artist was found in Petite-Patrie.
wheatpaste by an unidentified artist found in Petite-Patrie
Wolf wheatpastes have been found around Petite-Patrie. The artist has not been identified but is presumed to be the same one as the piece above.
poster by an unidentified artist, found in Mile End
A beautiful poster found in Mile End. Artist has not been identified.