Street art

Street art

Street art is any art developed in public spaces. The term can include traditional graffiti art work, as well as, stencil graffiti, sticker art, wheatpasting and street poster art, video projection, art intervention, guerrilla art, flash mobbing and street installations (definition from Artrepublic.com). This page looks at street art in Christchurch. It is a notable feature of the urban landscape since the Canterbury earthquakes.

Current and upcoming Christchurch street art events

The Little Street Art Festival - Friday 24 November to Monday 4 December 2023

The new Little Street Art Festival includes nine Ōtautahi urban artists who have produced works across the central city, and more artists who will contribute to the programme of activations. Artworks include from tiny paintings filling cracks, painted blooms emerging from planter beds, reflective ruminations on Ōtautahi’s past, and portraits that will capture your attention in unexpected places. Artists include:

Find out what's on.

Street art in Christchurch

Christchurch has produced some stunning artists including Dcypher, Jacob Yikes, Wongi "Freak" Wilson, Ikarus, Ghostcat, and Kophie aka Meep.

Watch this Space

Watch this space is a comprehensive guide to Christchurch street art:

Fiksate Gallery

Fiksate Studio & Gallery is New Zealand's only street art and urban contemporary gallery, and is focused on supporting and showcasing urban art.

Plain Sight

Plain Sight is an AR (augmented reality) app from Evans Taylor Digital that allows you to experience your favourite street artworks in a whole new way.
Headlining artists Kophie aka Meep and Dcypher DTR will be located at 146 Gloucester Street.
From 13 to 22 March, artists will be painting large-scale murals in Ōtautahi's CBD!

SHIFT: Urban Art Takeover (28 January to 11 April 2023)

SHIFT Urban Art TakeoverSHIFT Urban Art Takeover

SHIFT: Urban Art Takeover: With the Museum’s redevelopment not far away, most of the complex is empty and it has been handed over to urban artists from Aotearoa New Zealand and overseas to use as their canvas. They’ve created a pathway of art across five floors and over 35 spaces, including storerooms, offices and other parts of the Museum that are normally off-limits. Their artworks, which range from traditional graffiti to murals, paste-ups, projections and more, are inspired by the Museum and the taonga (treasures) it cares for.

Tickets are available on the door, but priority will be given to those who have pre-purchased tickets online if capacity is reached. The journey through SHIFT takes between an hour and a half and two hours. SHIFT: Urban Art Takeover is a paid-for experience with all proceeds going towards the Museum’s redevelopment.

The exhibition will run until 11 April, the end of Easter weekend.

Find out more

FLARE Ōtautahi Street Art Festival (2 to 12 March 2022)

7 large murals popped up across the CBD as street artists from across New Zealand converged on our inner city to unleash their creativity on our major walls and spaces.

Spectrum Street Art Festival (December 2015 to April 2016)

Oi You presented the Spectrum Street Art Festival in Christchurch from 12 December 2015 until 17 April 2016. This year's festival featured a new exhibition in the YMCA on Hereford Street, with works by the eight featured street artists as well as new works by returning artists. Eight new works brightened Christchurch streets.

Read Street artists to descend on central Christchurch this week by Charlie Gates, The Press, 5 December 2015

Our Spectrum Street Art Festival photos

Street art by Berst

Spectrum Street Art Festival (February to May 2015)

See our photos from the 2015 Spectrum Street Art Festival (14 February to 10 May 2015).

Art by Flox, Welles Street

OI YOU! present RISE 2014

OI YOU! present RISE 2014 had three major exhibitions. See our photos.

Big walls - RISE Street art on Cashel Street

Christchurch street art images

Find photos of local art:

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