Street artist Julien Mallard (AKA Seth) travels the world painting graffiti murals of children. His characters are inspired by the country he’s creating in, and his style is inspired by children’s book illustrations. Seth’s graffiti kids wear the traditional clothing of their country or are posed writing in their home language; a reflection of the community that the children are growing up in. Many of his murals are based on actual people, who he then asks to pose with the painting while he photographs them. It’s gotta be pretty awesome for these kids to have a graffiti mural made in their honor. They can pass it by on their way to school and just feel great about themselves. So Seth isn’t just bringing color into the world; he’s touching the hearts of individuals within a community. That’s powerful stuff.
Each of Seth’s murals have a deeper meaning. They are often political in nature or a comment on the society that his kids are growing up in. But, as with all great art, Seth has chosen to allow the viewer to believe what they want about his paintings instead of making the meaning blatantly clear. At the end of the day it’s up to viewer whether they want to read more into his paintings or not. Seth’s art could just be really cool graffiti, or it can be one man’s poignant comment on the world that we live in today.
Julien Mallard graduated from the National School of Decorative Arts in Paris, and besides painting street art murals, he’s also published several books that focus on his art and his travels. Seth also calls himself “Globepainter”; an apt name seeing as though he’s made it his mission to paint his murals all around the globe.
Check out Seth’s website or find him on Facebook.
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- Not all of Seth’s street art characters are young children. In this mural in Vietnam he has chosen to paint a teenage girl. She carries an umbrella filled with her hopes and dreams, sheltering herself from a bland, unimaginative world.
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- Julien Malland paints a huge mural near a school in France. The characters in the graffiti painting are French kids growing up in a city environment which Seth has reflected in the street art work.
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- Because he painted this street art mural in Paris, graffiti artist Seth has chosen to use a Parisian boy as the character. The boy looks over his shoulder at his home while sulking in a dark and spooky but very beautiful forest. The boy is accompanied by an owl; a symbol of mystery, wisdom and communicating with the underworld.
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- Seth chose an Indian girl to be the character for this street art mural in India. He’s shown her writing in her home language; another reflection of the country around the painting.
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- This collaborative street art mural by Seth is based on the Zulu culture in South Africa. He’s chosen to paint a local woman in traditional Zulu dress – his muse poses with the mural. Julien Malland often finds actual people to portray in his murals.
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- Julien Malland’s street art style is very illustrative; it could easily appear in a childrens book or an animated series. The girl in this mural in Paris, France, is wearing traditional folk dress to celebrate her French heritage.
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- Globepainter, AKA Seth, gvies the sleeping boy in this street art mural in Cambodia a traditional cambodian headdress.
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- Seth’s muse, a little boy in Cambodia, poses next to the street art mural that Seth painted of him. It’s pretty cool to see the comparison between the real person and the artwork of that person – this is a rare treat for graffiti lovers, as most street art murals focus on imaginary characters, not actual people.
