Peel back the pavement and what do you find?

Apparently, all the hallmarks of our existence lie within the top 300 ft of the earth’s crust.  Within this space is the web of gas pipes, water mains and electric cables that sustain modern life, as well as the millions of tonnes of rubbish generated by humans every year.

Radical artist Vik Muniz highlighted the problem of landfill in Lucy Walker’s Oscar nominated documentary film WASTE LAND (2010) where he photographed huge portraits of people working at the world’s largest landfill site Jardim Gramacho in Sao Paulo, largely made from the recycled materials they collect to make their living.

Now, guerilla artist The Wa has brought the issue to the fore again, peeling back the pavement of a Stockholm street with his work Sous les pavés la plage (Under the pavement, the beach) revealing not a beach under the tarmac but some of the world’s rubbish - plastic bags, bottles and other non-biodegradable waste that is ploughed into landfill. The name of the piece, of course, is an ironic twist on the infamous piece of 1968 graffiti by the French political activists The Situationists.

Follow the link to one of our favourite street art blogs, Vandalog to see more photographs of The Wa's Sous les pavés la plage