Have you ever been to Florence, Italy and really looked at the street signs? If so then you will know that I am talking about. There is something different about some of the street signs of Florence. They have been modified to make them much more interesting. I think that you will agree with me that the modified street signs are quirky and many will make you chuckle.
At first we were wondering if the signs were officially sanctioned by the city of Florence, after all it is a city known for its’ art. But if it wasn’t the city modifying the street signs, who was? We soon discovered the answer. As we were strolling the streets of Florence, we noticed that in one of the shop windows there was a collection of stickers on display. The stickers were replicas of many of the modified street signs that we had seen around Florence. On the sticker was written the word Clet. After a quick Google search we learned that a French artist named Clet Abraham has been creating the modified street signs. We also learned that his street art is not sanctioned by the city and he has been fined repeatedly. However this has not stopped him. He continues to create his street art under the threat of fines (or worse) and his work can even be seen in other cities around Italy.
Video Showing Clet at Work
During our many walks around Florence, we all had fun trying to find Clet’s handy work. This evolved into a game for us to see who could find as many different signs as possible. My daughter Sydney seemed to always be able to spot the most. Although we have sworn off souvenirs during our round the world adventure, we decided to break this rule for Clet. We decided that we liked Clet art so much that we bought a sticker that now adorns our computer.
Clet Sticker
Modified Signs We Found in Florence
Kerri, the first Clet pieces I saw were also in Florence. He paid a visit and left a trail through Brussels last summer.
I wish more bloggers would take the time to discover the artists behind the photos of of street art they publish. It upsets me to see photos tagged ‘random street art’. They miss so much by not finding out the story behind the pieces.
Ohh…to bad we missed the street in Brussels! It was interesting finding out a little about Clet and we truly enjoyed his unique art.
This is so ironic as I was thinking it would be fun to a little post of all the street signs here in my town of Reno, Nevada. But, these art pieces are amazing, Kerri! I was trying to come up with my own meaning for each as I scrolled down. Some of them are very funny! Great post 🙂
Hi Mike. So glad that you enjoyed the post. I am always interested in learning about the street art in the places we visit. I would love to see your post about Reno, Nevada. Sadly I have only driven through Reno and never stayed there….
These modified signs are brilliant. I can’t imagine the amount of smiles they have put on people’s faces! The city shouldn’t be fining Clet, they should be thanking him! 🙂
They are aren’t they! I totally agree with you that the city should be thanking him. After all Florence is known for its’ art and what way couldn’t be better than by embracing all avenues of art including street art.
I love the Clet replica sticker you have on your computer 🙂 My friend and I were visiting Florence about a month ago and loved the street signs and had read about Clet’s street art. We saw a car that had a Clet replica sticker like yours on it, and looked everywhere but couldn’t find one to buy for ourselves. Do you know if there’s anywhere online to buy them? Thanks!
Thanks Elsa! What was your favorite sign? Unfortunately I do not know of any place to order online. You may want to try contacting Clet personally and see if he knows of a place or maybe he can even send you a sticker himself. He has a facebook page. Please let me know how it turns out.