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Tom Bob is not your everyday kind of graffiti artist. Instead of vandalizing urban landscapes, he’s making cities come back to life.

From rain pipes to air conditioners and vents, from manhole covers to random objects, like tactile pavement, poles, bumps, rods, bins, and fire hydrants, everything is really one giant canvas for Tom. And this is where his signature cartoonish creatures find their home.

Initially starting with the streets of New York, the artist has since hopped from city to city, leaving their streets and corners way more colorful in return. No wonder he’s built quite a fanbase with 258k devoted Instagram followers, and many more waiting for his street artworks to pop up in cities around the US.

So scroll down, upvote your favorite ones, and make sure to check out our previous posts here and here with Tom Bob’s brilliant works that perfectly immerse into the concrete jungle.

More info: Instagram

To find out more about Tom Bob, the artist behind this amazing transformative street art, Bored Panda reached out to him for a quick interview. Tom said that “Bored Panda was a major influence in promoting my work to a worldwide audience back in 2017.” It turns out, “This exposure gave me the opportunity to travel globally and make pieces in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, South America, and throughout the United States.”

Tom Bob was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts, USA and moved to New York City in his early 20s. “I had not come from a traditional street art background and started later in life. I loved the DIY approach to it and saw how important it was as a worldwide art movement and I wanted to be part of that.”

Living in New York City for 30 years afforded Tom Bob “the opportunity to see all the great gallery and museum shows along with all the amazing graffiti and street art during that time.” This became a great source of inspiration for his work.

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#4

Verified Light My Fire

Verified Light My Fire

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zims
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

On the one hand this is cute, on the other hand I would hate it outside my own door. Just not my aesthetic.

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Tom Bob looks for common everyday objects like manhole covers, electrical meters, standpipes, and vents and transforms them into what he calls “fun, whimsical characters.”

“I had made a few murals, but I was attracted to the three-dimensionality of street objects. I didn't have to make sculpture, it already existed.”Most importantly, Tom Bob hopes that his work is seen as “a quick, easy-to-read image, like a graphic road sign creating the emotion of happiness.” He concluded that “I want to be of service as an artist, putting positive energy out into the world.”

The street artist Tom Bob grew up in northeastern Massachusetts and he moved to New York in the '80s, where he discovered his interest in art. But he only got into street art later in life and he’s been pursuing his colorful projects for 5 years now.

Tom Bob explained, “The emotion I try to create is happiness. That’s my focus. And the thing which I love about street art is that it's the most democratic art form, the most world-wide, expressive art form in the last 15 years. And it’s for everyone to see.”

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The artist who became famous in NYC, after spreading his colorful artworks in cities across the US, believes that the fact street art is available for everyone is what really makes it so special. “So this kind of person is walking down, who’s not going to a gallery, and it just kind of puts a smile on his face.”

#7

Roller Coaster

Roller Coaster

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로희
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Only works for certain amount of time but I like this one the most!

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#9

Homer Simpson Donut

Homer Simpson Donut

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Contrary to much street art, Tom’s street pieces are not static, nor isolated. On the contrary, they’re deeply transformative as they create new meanings and fresh perspectives to mundane things that people don’t take a second look at.

Tom Bob belongs to the wave of American street artists who have been working on colorful and large-scale murals that helped to legitimize street art as an independent form of art. Meanwhile, graffiti evolved in several directions; some artists were using stencils to create more intricate drawings, and others used spray paint to put up murals around their cities. 

The latter is also called tagging, and is thought to be a primitive and often badly regarded form of expression. In many countries across the world, tagging streets even goes against the law.

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#10

Lue Bird Of Happiness

Lue Bird Of Happiness

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Zoltán Gyovai
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

imagine when light turns on and the bird seems puking a ray of light right onto the ground

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#11

Nurses Always Looking Out For Us

Nurses Always Looking Out For Us

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#12

Bee Kind

Bee Kind

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SoozeeQ
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't know what those pipes/valves are for, but this great! He hasn't interfered with their functionality at all, and made them look so much better.

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#14

Love Birds

Love Birds

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zims
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Is that a mooring? If so, this will look pretty different when those birds get some ropes around their necks.

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Renowned contemporary artist Barry McGee is considered to be one of the most pivotal members of the street art movement. San Francisco-based artists have been inspired by the bold, cartoon-like forms that became typical of the movement.

Around the same time, another prominent New York street artist named Keith Haring was actively creating. In 1982, Keith Haring created his first major outdoor mural on the Houston Bowery Wall in New York City, which is now considered one of the most iconic street art pieces ever made.

Haring’s famous mural was created using his signature style figures and bold colors, and it became firmly entrenched in the history of graffiti and street art.

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#16

Better To Be 6 Feet Apart Than 6 Feet Under

Better To Be 6 Feet Apart Than 6 Feet Under

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Doggo Froggo
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That is a good saying...... I think we should put that as a reminder in cemeteries....

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#18

Pizza Time

Pizza Time

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kjorn
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

would be funny if we saw a tmnt hand trying to grab on part

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#19

Chill Pill

Chill Pill

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Dana
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I know quite a few people who need that right now... including myself

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#20

Snacktime

Snacktime

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SoozeeQ
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ha ha. The "before" shot looks like Homer Simpson. I wasn't expecting a squirrel or chipmunk!

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Today, street art is widely associated with terms like "independent art," "post-graffiti," "neo-graffiti," and guerrilla art. Its key message is making art visible and available to all viewers. Oftentimes, many artists find street art as a perfect tool to spread their message, comment on the current events, and criticize what they think is wrong with our current times.

For example, the legendary British artist Banksy often goes political in his works, making harsh criticism of consumer culture and capitalist society.

#21

Robots

Robots

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A.J Milne
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You go up and down really fast whilst looking at the last picture's eyes.

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#23

Made This Bart Simpson Skydiving Piece 2 Years Ago In The Great City Of Sacramento

Made This Bart Simpson Skydiving Piece 2 Years Ago In The Great City Of Sacramento

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angelica H
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

there is art like this every where in sacramento, especially in the downtown area, and old sac.

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#27

Meet Dustin Reynolds

Meet Dustin Reynolds

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SoozeeQ
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Oh wow. What an inspiration. I'd never heard of him, so I Googled him. Sailed around the world, literally "single-handedly". https://www.cruisingworld.com/story/people/dustin-reynolds-one-arm-one-leg-all-heart/

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#30

Johnny 5

Johnny 5

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Note: this post originally had 148 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.