Altered Street Signs

Altered Street Signs

By Kaushik

For two years, French street artist Clet Abraham was sneaking out into the night and pasting removable stickers onto street signs throughout major cities in Europe giving them a humorous twist. The stickers were strategically placed so that they didn’t compromise the traffic sign’s original function. With the help of the bike’s bank or the shoulder of a friend, it took Clet just twenty seconds to alter the sign and disappear.But this is not all just to crack a smile on the faces of passer-by. Clet was commenting on society’s standardization and the constricting effect that rules have on us, limiting individual expression and thought. Many of his images reference religion. In fact, his first sticker was of Jesus Christ, and there are others he did about Virgin Mary and Mary Magdalene.
Authorities, however, are not impressed with his antics. He was once charged a fine of 400 Euros for vandalizing street signs.