You HAVE To See How This Street Artist Turns Pipes, Curbs, And Sewer Grates Into Storybook Works Of Art
Tom Bob is a street artist based in New York City and Massachusetts. He's been painting for decades, but the thing he's best known for really got started about 10 years ago: transforming everyday objects—think pipes, sewer grates, and flood lights—into magical works of art.
"I have always wanted to be an artist," Bob said.
It was trips to Wynwood, Miami's mural-filled art district, that inspired his shift to full-time street art.
"That community [...] was the most democratic and world wide art movement in the past 20 years and I wanted to be part of that," Bob said. "That was the spark 10 years ago when I made the commitment to dedicate my life to street art."
Take a look at some of his most popular creations:
1.He'll take a neglected pile of wheel stops in a parking lot...
...and transform the scene into a girl enjoying some giant French fries:
2.Turn some security lights...
...into a very cool alien:
3.You can find some of his work in schools, like this radiator...
...which he turned into a boy enjoying some corn:
4.On roofs, like when he reimagined this NYC rooftop chimney cap...
...into a building on top of a building!
5.And on streets, where a bike rack...
...becomes the tab on a tin of sardines.
6.Tom has worked all over the world, traveling to Dubai, Switzerland, Taiwan, Colombia, and more. He turned this ramp in London...
...into a scene of the Queen skateboarding:
7.In Miami, he started with a blank, drab concrete curb:
And brought a lizard to life:
8.And in Los Angeles, he made inventive use of a shadow...
...turning it into a rollercoaster.
Tom says he didn't have a plan at the time he started street art, but "just started experimenting with the objects pieces; they were well received on social media and the invitations to paint globally started pouring in."
"Sometimes the idea comes instantly, other times it takes time to figure it out. The pieces are sculptural," Bob said.
It's often not easy to use the streets as your canvas:
"I never want to see my work destroyed but that's the chance you take working in the streets," Bob said. "Thankfully we have our cameras at the ready for documentation."
Over on Tom's Instagram, @tombobnyc, he runs a little guessing game for each of his pieces.
He posts pictures of his blank canvases, like drain pipes or sides of buildings, and his followers cast their votes in the comments for what they think he'll turn them into.
9.Take this ancient-looking trash can/ashtray... thing. What's your vision for it?
If you thought a guy delivering some pizzas... congrats!
10.Let's take another school radiator. What do you think?
It's a kid on the accordion!
11.How about this garage doorway? (Hint: Look at the circular detailing.)
It's a frog!
12.OK, we'll go a bit more abstract... what do you think is in this plastered wall's future?
It became a lively ski mountain.
13.There's this big security mirror in a covered doorway.
Did you envision a girl putting on lipstick?
14.Tom's creations are truly visionary...
...like this angel playing the harp (a.k.a. a rather artistic metal barrier):
15.He has a knack for finding random, overlooked objects...
...and reimagining them as something out of a storybook:
16.Manhole covers are a staple of his work...
...like this one transformed into a pan of frying eggs:
17.Sometimes, he creates something that makes you wonder what the object even used to be...
...and how on earth he came up with something so creative:
"My work has a big demographic, for 8 to 80 year olds and everyone in between," Bob said. "The pieces do put smiles on millions of faces which is very satisfying. The childlike cartoon style works best when juxtaposed against an urban landscape; I like it when they are seen unexpectedly surprising people."
To see more of Tom's transformations, you can find him on Instagram.
