Within the Hague, there’s a small alleyway called Raamstraat which contains many different types of graffiti. The street serves as a lesser used connector between Spuistraat and Grote Marktstraat (near de Bijenkorf department store). It can be especially useful when trying to get away from the cramped areas of Spuistraat, as it seems less traveled than most areas.
December 2010 - of course, with the iconic bicycle, as if deliberately posed.
The header for this blog is also from Raamstraat. The other place that I found beautiful graffiti was Delft, while waiting for a bus.
Graffiti at the bus station - and more bikes
And just around the corner, I found this:
The girl is from Vermeer's "The Girl with a Pearl Earring" painting
The message reads: Something that disappears is not gone, it only hides. Although the addition of the girl from Vermeer’s painting is unrelated to the quote, here’s a good fictional novel to read about the creation of the painting: The Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier.
I think one of the first things I will do when I get my feet firmly back on Dutch soil is go back to this little alleyway and take more pictures. There are lots of little hidden gems to be found.
There’s more in other places. Another connecting street between Grote Markt and Spuistraat has somewhat similar stuff but not as pretty imo.
Those streets used to be a bit seedier, with regular graffiti and tagging.
So I assume they went for the grand designs to get rid of those/make sure people wouldn’t spray paint over them again.