Some people see street art as a form of vandalism. But would an artwork still be branded as one if it actually makes a dull wall or sidewalk more pleasing to the eyes? Such is the purpose of the works of Barcelona-based street artist EFIX (Instagram). With humorous illustrations of pop culture characters painted or printed on paper, EFIX gives life to plain-looking passageways and fixes off-putting blemishes around his city. Wary of destroying the urban landscape, EFIX only uses materials that do not stay for a long time. Check out some of his works in the list below, and see how they’ve made Barcelona look more alive than ever.
#1 Mowgli and Baloo
The Jungle Book’s Mowgli and Baloo are enjoying the heat of the sun in this street art that seamlessly incorporates a beautiful palm tree and a sea of smooth white pebbles. EFIX also hung a bunch of bananas on a dangling rope to push the artwork’s tropical vibe even further.
#2 Marge Simpson and her bushy hair
An unruly, huge lump of wall plant stands in as Marge Simpson’s beehive-like hairstyle in this charming artwork. Though some fans may find the height of the hair substitute shorter than the real thing, everyone would probably still agree that it’s a fun idea.
#3 Sylvester and Tweety
Trying to get away from Sylvester’s sight, Tweety flies into a nearby window to hide. But before Tweety can do so, Sylvester already finds him and appears to be planning his next evil plan.
#4 Octopus fire hydrant
This fire hydrant became more noticeable after getting a vivid makeover from EFIX. The street artist dressed the hydrant’s base with eight brightly-colored octopus’ arms, and put cutouts of cartoony eyes and mouth onto the hydrant’s head, making it appear like a funny-looking, angry cephalopod.
#5 SpongeBob portable toilet
If you’re a huge fan of SpongeBob SquarePants, then you’d be happy to see this portable toilet inspired by your favorite Nickelodeon sea sponge. Painted with a huge image of the character’s face, this portable toilet would make you feel like you’re in Bikini Bottom.
#6 Captain Hook
Featuring a Captain Hook painting on the back of a door, this artwork seamlessly blends the two-dimensional image with the real world by cleverly connecting it to the door hook. If you’re kids often forget to lock their doors when they’re alone, then you may want to commission an artist to make a similar one for their rooms.
#7 Lisa Simpson and her saxophone
Lisa Simpson is soulfully playing her saxophone in this street art that ingeniously makes use of an outdoor plumbing pipe as a double for the character’s musical instrument. To make the street art more realistic, the pipe is painted in gold and a shadow effect is added to the ground.
#8 TMNT’s Raphael
For this quirky street art, EFIX turned a green pedestrian crossing signal into an image of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles character Raphael. The exact process of the transformation is unclear, but some fans think EFIX hand-painted Raphael’s eye mask, mouth, belt, and pads on transparent plastic sheets; cut them out; and attached them to the traffic signal accordingly.
#9 Finding Nemo’s Crush
This manhole got the Finding Nemo treatment after EFIX turned it into the film’s sea turtle character, Crush. While the manhole cover with grid-like design makes a great substitute for Crush’s shell, the street art’s two-dimensional appearance makes the sea turtle look like he’s driven over by a car.
#10 The Aristocats’ Marie
The Aristocats’ Marie may be known for her ladylike qualities, but this street art proves that she can also hunt for her own food. Sitting on top of what appears to be a boundary marker, the white-furred kitten proudly shows off the mouse he caught all by herself.
#11 Pinocchio
EFIX gave a parking pole a whole new meaning after decking it out with a cutout painting of Pinocchio’s face. The cutout was fixed to the ground in a way where the pole appeared as the stand-in for the character’s elongating nose.
#12 Simba, Pumbaa, and Timon
This street art recreates one of the memorable shots from the 1994 animated film The Lion King. In the original scene, which is part of the “Hakuna Matata” sequence, Simba, Pumbaa, and Timon, are crossing a cliff using a log as a bridge. But for this playful artwork by EFIX, the three friends appear to be walking over a chain barrier, all in high spirits.
#13 Mario and a piranha plant
A disregarded, textured wall became an extension of the Mushroom Kingdom after EFIX put a vivid painting of Mario jumping over a piranha plant on it. An outdoor plumbing pipe affixed on the wall serves as the street art’s warp pipe, making the Mario images fuse with the real world quite perfectly.
#14 Zombie
This street art is an interpretation of Kerry Callen’s “Happiness Is Fleeting” zombie illustration. The original art shows a sad zombie losing a red balloon and his left arm. EFIX’s version is quite the same, but a hole in the background wall takes the place of the balloon.
#15 Hug-loving cactus
EFIX turned a cactus into a hug-loving cartoon character by attaching amusing cutouts of eyes and mouth onto it. To establish that the cactus’ longing for cuddles, a “Free Hugs” placard was planted to the ground right in front of it.
#16 Up’s Carl Fredricksen
EFIX made a boring wall a little interesting by putting a cutout illustration of Carl Fredricksen on it. In the image, the beloved character from the 2009 animated film Up appears to be floating mid-air as he holds onto a balloon depicted by a round window screen in the wall.
#17 Looney Tunes’ Wile E. Coyote
Hiding behind a service area interface, Wile E. Coyote is all set to catch the Road Runner once and for all. With a TNT detonator right in front of him, the Coyote confidently waits for his prey to fall for the trap he made.
#18 Tom and Jerry
This street art perfectly captures the classic rivalry between Tom the cat and Jerry the mouse. Lighting an explosive shoved into Jerry’s mouse hole, Tom thinks that he’s got the upper hand. Unbeknown to him, Jerry is right behind him igniting a much bigger stick of dynamite.
#19 Sideshow Bob
Featuring an image of Sideshow Bob’s face, this plant pot would probably make Bart Simpson take a second look. While the villain’s treacherous look already makes the artwork on point, the plant in the pot standing in as the character’s iconic palm tree-shaped hair takes this creation to a whole new level of creativity.
#20 Homer Simpson x Ryu
Inspired by Ryu’s special attack from Capcom’s Street Fighter series, this mixed media art features a cutout painting of Homer Simpson doing the iconic Hadouken. The energy balls created from the move, meanwhile, are represented by the x-shaped anchor plates that are lined up across the wall background.
#21 Marge Simpson and her towering hair
EFIX cleverly merged this cutout image of Marge Simpson with the real world by setting it against a towering cylindrical skyscraper that stands in for her iconic beehive-like hairstyle.
#22 Young Tarzan
EFIX brought new life to this worn-out wall by putting a cutout painting of a young Tarzan happily swinging from a vine. The vine looks like a long crack in the wall, which blends in seamlessly with the flaky façade of the concrete fence.
#23 Woody
This street art features a cutout painting of Toy Story’s Woody wondering how his hat has gone up beyond his reach. If it isn’t obvious, his sheriff’s hat is actually represented by what appears to be a brown round window in the wall just above him.
#24 Mowgli
EFIX made this rather unsightly wall into something cute by adding a cutout image of Mowgli hanging upside down from a branch of a tree. The branch, in this case, is an awkwardly angled outdoor plumbing pipe that has been there long before the street artist decided to turn the wall into a canvas.
#25 Baby elephant
EFIX masked an out-of-place outdoor plumbing pipe with a cute cutout painting of a baby elephant. With the pipe cleverly serving as the elephant’s trunk, that particular space is now a lovely sight to look at.
#26 Homer Simpson munching an apple
The Simpsons patriarch takes his first bite from an apple in this funny artwork that fuses a cutout painting with the real world. To achieve the final look, the cutout was set against the storefront of an Apple store, with the iconic logo of the electronics brand serving as the character’s healthy snack.
#27 Tramp
This artwork recreates the fan-favorite spaghetti scene from the 1955 Disney animated film Lady and the Tramp. Unlike the original, this version only features Tramp in a form of a cutout painting, and a mooring rope that stands in for the strand of pasta.
#28 Peeing Homer Simpson
Featuring a cutout painting of Homer Simpson facing back, this mixed media art creates a hilarious illusion of the Simpsons patriarch peeing into a fountain.
#29 Donut-loving Homer Simpson
Homer Simpson’s love for donuts is in full display in this quirky street art that features a cutout painting of the Simpsons patriarch reaching a gigantic, donut-shaped inflatable signage.
#30 Naked Homer Simpson
Featuring a cutout image of Homer Simpson in his birthday suit, this mixed media art finds the Simpsons patriarch inside a museum. Though it looks like Homer is rushing to get dressed, there’s really no need to panic, as a lot of the statues displayed in the museum are naked as well.
#31 Bart Simpson
EFIX turned the letter “T” in the Dead-End Street sign into an image of a basketball ring, board, and stand. He then added a cutout painting of a determined-looking Bart Simpson trying to do a layup.
#32 Witch Lisa Simpson
This mixed media art finds Lisa Simpson enjoying her broomstick ride as a witch with their family pet cat, Snowball. Though a proper witch hat is nowhere to be seen in the photo, a traffic cone makes a perfect stand-in for the missing head accessory.
#33 Jailed Homer Simpson
Featuring a cutout painting of Homer Simpson set behind steel grills, this street art reimagines what the Simpsons patriarch would look if he’s put behind bars.