Art is amazing… It inspires, confuses, questions and touches people is ways they can’t explain.   Some seek out their art in churches, others in museums and galleries and some in private collections.  On my road trips and off-road adventures, I look for it outside, on the road and away from the crowds. Whether it is Buddhist sand art, sand castles on the beach or back alley tags, out door art speaks to me.  And one of my favorite forms is building murals.  The older the building, the older the mural…  the better.

I don’t know what it is about the art on the side of buildings but it seems to be alive. Maybe it’s the quest since usually you need to hunt for it in back parking lots, alleys or off the beaten path.

But building murals are not often shiny and new. Rather after years of ware and fading, the textures seem to tell the story of life.   The brilliant colors that once adorn the building become tired under the grind of daily life until its spirit begins to peal and crack.  However when you look closer, you see it is the aging tears in the paint against the texture of the building that gives the work its depth and sense of maturity.  You realize the art has stood against the elements and won.  The art is not fading, it is wearing its battle scares as a badge of honor and what looks like blistering and cracks are really welts taken in defense of its place in the sun.

Sure that is a lot to read into a an old building mural, but isn’t that better than thinking you really should smoke camels.

Art is everywhere and the next time you’re out on the road looking at a building mural, snap a picture and send it to us at off-road adventures on Facebook.  We can’t get enough.