London is littered with graffiti and stencils, certain areas are also subtly plastered with stickers randomly on street signs electricity boxes and traffic lights.
The London graffiti brings individuality and a creative aspect to the city. Most famous and well documented is the work of Banksy which can be in and around central London.

The graffiti in London is ever changing and pieces come and go each week, sometimes within days. Once you find the best spots then you will notice the urban landscape rapidly alters.
The East end of London has a more prominent art scene so artists like Eine, Obey and Faile tend to populate the Shoreditch area with throw ups. Brick Lane, Hackney and Bethnal Green are some of the prime spots to find well known graffiti from the likes of Asbo, Dscreet, Sickboy and Stickee.

Another good area to scout is Old Street. Exit Old Street tube station and head East towards Shoreditch High Street taking in the side streets such as Charlotte Road, Rivington Street and Bateman’s Row on route. This area used to be the stomping ground of Banksy and was home to some of his more famous work before it was removed now it is a rich little hive of lesser known artists fighting amongst themselves for street canvas.

There are also some graffiti pieces scattered around central London and surrounding areas such as North London, Exmouth Market and Angel. Banksy takes a great deal of graffiti real estate in central London such as ‘One Nation Under CCTV’ on Newman Street just off Oxford Street. However other graffiti talents such as Snub, Sweet Tooth and Mike Marcus are starting to broaden the medias perception of stencils and graffiti.

Space Invaders are also littered around London like a treasure trail, peeking out from up high and around corners.

Eine’s ornate shop shutter letters literally cover most of the shop fronts in East London. Creating a alphabet of bright and vibrant doorways.

Mike Marcus’ gas mask laden ladies are appearing more and more frequently in central London however don’t seem to last long before being torn down or painted over.

The Toaster Crew toasters seem to be in decline with regards to painted pieces which now seem restricted to only the East of London, however more and more toasters bearing the brand are appearing around London on underground stations and stairwells.

Certain areas such as Essex Road in North London have gained great fame and notoriety as a result of Banksy and have even moved to maintain and preserve work. This can also be seen with Obey’s work in Brick Lane’s bar/restaurant/club Cargo. Whether you think graffiti should be left to age or destroyed there is still a lot to see in London.

London’s graffiti scene is very similar to it’s other European contemporaries such as Barcelona and Paris. Certain areas of London benefit greatly from its graffiti features like Camden Market whose stencils enrich the character of the area and liven up the desolate industrial landscape. Also the graffiti in and around Camden Market is inspired by the areas rebellious and punk upbringings.

The same can be said for the graffiti running along Regents Canal which brightens up an otherwise dull and bleak setting with the odd toaster and cheeky monkey.

If you want to find some London graffiti then the best thing to do is stroll through East London starting from Liverpool Street Station and heads towards Hoxton and Shoreditch via Brick Lane and Old Street. Basically if you walk around the East end of London’s back streets and cobbled alleyways (carefully) then your pretty much guaranteed to find some good graffiti.