How good are you with a drill? (Vhils, Norfolk Hotel, Fremantle)

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Really, that good? Okay then, how’d you like to have a go at turning the west side wall of a beautiful old Fremantle building into a massive piece of art then … yes? No? That was the task set before Portugal’s, famous graffiti/street artist, Vhils (aka Alexandre Farto). The result is an extremely impressive subtractive wall art portrait, made by chipping into the bricks and mortar.

Vhils on Norfolk Hotel, Fremantle © 2013 The Ponder Room



While I love stumbling on ponderous pieces of street art, I’m definitely still a novice to this area. However I was interested to find out that Vhils was discovered when he positioned one of his pieces next to that of the famous Banksy. As a result of the exposure, and his great skill, he’s now moved into galleries and holding solo shows, like so many street artists.



Vhils Norfolk Hotel in Fremantle © 2013 The Ponder Room

Vhils, Fremantle Norfolk Hotel
© 2013 The Ponder Room

 The piece left me pondering that … 

  1. Positioning your work next to an iconic Banksy work was a very clever marketing idea. Goes to show that the technique of position, position, position can be applied to just about anything.
  2. Maybe next time I make a mistake when drilling a hole for a painting, I should just keep going and see what I end up with?


His work is definitely worth seeking out, I believe he’s been in Sydney and has just moved on to Rio de Janeiro. We only have to go to Norfolk Hotel in Fremantle, another bonus for Perths art scene.

There’s a little bit more about him here http://www.theoutsiders.net/artist/vhils

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